Wilmette Public Schools, District 39

Essential Question: How do interactions influence systems?

UNIT: IMPACT EARTH SYSTEMS AND INTERACTIONS

Science Curriculum, Grade 5

VOCABULARY: climate, evidence, claim, populations, manipulated variable, data, mean, median, mode, interaction, cost, benefit, microorganism, control, variable, result, data, representation, carbon footprint!
National Standards or Core Standards Human activities are constrained by and, in turn, affect all other processes at Earths surface. When the environment changes, some plants and animals survive and reproduce, others move to new locations. Changes in the environment can affect the survival of living organisms. Changes in an organisms habitats are sometimes beneficial to it and sometimes harmful.
Guiding Questions How do observations inform what we know? How do changing conditions impact populations? What evidence do you have? What evidence have scientists gathered to support the theory of climate change? Do all scientists agree? Big Ideas of Science Relationship of population to environment Life evolves on a dynamic Earth and continuously modifies the planet, and is modified by changes in the planet. Observations give us relevant information about objects Populations of microorganisms are impacted by changes within the systems in which they live. Changing environmental conditions promote the survival of some microorganisms over others Humans can impact the environment both positively and negatively Changes in environmental conditions affect the survival of individual organisms, populations, and entire species. Humans alter global climate patterns by burning fossil fuels, releasing chemicals into the atmosphere, reducing forest cover, and by the rapid expansion of farming, development, and industrial activities. Humans may be able to mitigate climate change or lessen its severity by reducing greenhouse gas concentrations through processes that move carbon out of the atmosphere or reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Actions can be taken by individuals, institutions, communities, and governments that influence climate. Reducing human vulnerability depends on understanding climate science and using that knowledge in decisions and activities of human society.! Populations of organisms are impacted by biotic and abiotic factors in their environment. When environments change, organisms respond, some move, some die. Climate is a conceptual description of an areas average weather conditions and the extent to which those conditions vary over the year. Most actions that change the Earth's environments have both costs and benefits. Modest changes in individual and societal activities can significantly impact environments. Some negative effects of human activities are reversible with proper management Lives of humans and other organisms will be impacted in many different ways both positive and negative if Earths temperature continues to rise. Assessment of Knowledge and Skills
Summative Assessment 1:

Teaching Resources & Technology

CORE IDEAS

How can we reduce our carbon footprint? Created 2011 How do scientists investigate and use evidence to support their claims? How do human activities alter Earths climate? What will happen to life on Earth if temperatures continue to rise? How can humans reduce climate change and minimize its negative effects?

Dawn Publications How We Know What We Know About Our Changing Climate by Lynne Cherry Microscopes Camera Scope (1 per ! Conduct controlled investigations ! Manipulate variablea classroom) ! Collect and represent data National Geographic ! Synthesize test results Melting Away 6-Pack! Draw inferences based upon findings ! Identify ideal conditions to grow Pathfinder (3packs per classroom) yeast cultures Melting Away 6-Pack-Pioneer (2 packs per classroom) Summative Assessment 2 Global Warming 6-Pack (5 Summit--A simulation of scientific packs per classroom) community developing a claim related to collected evidence based upon Weeks 1&2: Yeast cultures (living evidence. populations). Formative Assessment Notes from training session ! Identify the impact of human actions on the planet Calendar overview (positive/negative) ! Support ideas with evidence Yeast Experiments Weeks 1&2 informed by careful analysis of observations ! Investigate changing populations Recommended Garden Lesson: as indicators of climate change Impact Earth-Butterflies (2012-07) ! Investigate strategies for reducing carbon footprint ! Graph data collected
Journal entry: Using the data you have gathered, support with evidence the best growing conditions for yeast. Formative understandings

Guiding Questions

Big Ideas of Science

CONNECTED/21st Century Learning

What is the relationship of scientific claims to evidence? What is the nature of scientific inquiry? How do scientists go about their work? How do theories become accepted or refuted? What is technology and how does technological development shape our world? How is technology created?

Scientific inquiry is a dynamic process that is not limited to one scientific method. Inquiry engages learners to: Use observations to ask scientific questions.
Use applicable metric units. Analyze data trends. Communicate results and draw conclusions. Make predictions based upon analysis of data. Describe science careers related to the unit of study. Collect qualitative and quantitative data. Construct charts and visualizations to display data. Explain reasons for differences or discrepancies in data. Generate further questions for investigation. Explain how scientific theories change over time. Identify scientists who furthered our understanding of climate change.

Collaboration: Student Scientist Summit Global Perspective/Social Responsibility: Carbon Footprint Comparisons Social Responsibility/Communication : Citizen Scientists gathering and sharing data

Science is an imaginative endeavor that is subject to modification as new information challenges current theories. It involves the collection of data, the use of logical reasoning, argumentation and the devising of hypotheses and explanations informed by evidence. Scientists keep honest/unbiased, clear and accurate records, value hypotheses and understand that more than one explanation can be given for the same evidence. Scientists value the role of computation and estimation in their work. Scientists use a variety of tools to inform their observations. Scientists organize information using tables, graphs, diagrams and symbols. Scientists question claims based on vague attributions and are skeptical of arguments based on small data samples.

Scientific and Engineering Practices

How are technological problems defined and researched? How can a problem be stated so that it can be solved? How have others solved similar problems?

What are technological systems and how Scientists embrace unexpected results. can they best be modeled and improved? Technology is a class of designed systems, products, or processes. The designed world is constantly changing as new technologies, tools, and materials are developed. Created 2011 How can drawings be used to show the way things fit together? Anyone can modify a technology, invent a new application of technology or make a new product (e.g. invent a new toy, How can creative solutions be developed, make a dollhouse, or paper airplane) by thinking about what they want to do, gathering the right knowledge and skills, and trying different ways of working until they succeed. clearly expressed, and evaluated? The first step to solving technological problems is to define the problem in terms of criteria and constraints or limits. It is How can the best possible solution be important to find out how others have solved similar problems and to learn more about the nature of the problem itself. developed to solve a technological problem? Why are controls needed? Systems analysis and modeling are key tools in designing, troubleshooting and maintaining technological systems. The more clearly a technological problem is stated in this way the easier it is to design and compare possible solutions. Working together and expressing ideas in words, sketches, and models are helpful in coming up with different solutions to technological problems. After developing several solutions, the best solution can be chosen by comparing each of the solutions with the criteria and constraints developed to define the problem to see which meets them best. Solutions to design problems need to be tested and redesigned several times to arrive at the best available solution.
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