Life Science
The Life Science standards
emphasize a more complex understanding of change, cycles, patterns, and
relationships in the living world. Students build on basic principles related
to these concepts by exploring the cellular organization and the classification
of organisms; the dynamic relationships among organisms, populations, communities,
and ecosystems; and change as a result of the transmission of genetic
information from generation to generation. Inquiry skills at this level include
organization and mathematical analysis of data, manipulation of variables in
experiments, and identification of sources of experimental error. Metric units
(SI – International System of Units) are expected to be used as the primary
unit of measurement to gather and report data at this level.
The Life Science standards
continue to focus on student growth in understanding the nature of science.
This scientific view defines the idea that explanations of nature are developed
and tested using observation, experimentation, models, evidence, and systematic
processes. The nature of science includes the concepts that scientific
explanations are based on logical thinking; are subject to rules of evidence;
are consistent with observational, inferential, and experimental evidence; are
open to rational critique; and are subject to refinement and change with the
addition of new scientific evidence. The nature of science includes the concept
that science can provide explanations about nature and can predict potential
consequences of actions, but cannot be used to answer all questions.
LS.1 The student
will demonstrate an understanding of scientific reasoning, logic, and the
nature of science by planning and conducting investigations in which
a) data
are organized into tables showing repeated trials and means;
b)
a classification
system is developed based on multiple attributes;
c)
triple beam and
electronic balances, thermometers, metric rulers, graduated cylinders, and probeware
are used to gather data;
d)
models and
simulations are constructed and used to illustrate and explain phenomena;
e)
sources of
experimental error are identified;
f)
dependent
variables, independent variables, and constants are identified;
g)
variables are
controlled to test hypotheses, and trials are repeated;
h) data are organized, communicated through
graphical representation, interpreted, and used to make predictions;
i)
patterns
are identified in data and are interpreted and evaluated; and
j)
current
applications are used to reinforce life science concepts.
LS.2 The student
will investigate and understand that all living things are composed of cells.
Key concepts include
a)
cell structure and organelles;
b)
similarities and differences between plant and animal
cells;
c)
development of cell theory; and
d)
cell division.
LS.3 The student
will investigate and understand that living things show patterns of cellular
organization. Key concepts include
a)
cells, tissues, organs, and systems; and
b)
patterns of cellular organization and their
relationship to life processes in living things.
LS.4 The
student will investigate and understand how organisms can be classified. Key
concepts include
a)
the distinguishing characteristics of domains of
organisms;
b)
the distinguishing characteristics of kingdoms of
organisms;
c)
the distinguishing characteristics of major animal phyla
and plant divisions; and
d)
the characteristics that define a species.
LS.5 The student
will investigate and understand the basic physical and chemical processes of
photosynthesis and its importance to plant and animal life. Key concepts
include
a)
energy transfer between sunlight and chlorophyll;
b)
transformation of water and carbon dioxide into sugar
and oxygen; and
c)
photosynthesis as the foundation of virtually all food
webs.
LS.6 The student
will investigate and understand that organisms within an ecosystem are
dependent on one another and on nonliving components of the environment. Key concepts
include
a)
the carbon, water, and nitrogen cycles;
b)
interactions resulting in a flow of energy and matter
throughout the system;
c)
complex relationships within terrestrial, freshwater,
and marine ecosystems; and
d)
energy flow in food webs and energy pyramids.
LS.7 The student
will investigate and understand that interactions exist among members of a
population. Key concepts include
a)
competition, cooperation, social hierarchy, territorial
imperative; and
b)
influence of behavior on a population.
LS.8 The student
will investigate and understand interactions among populations in a biological
community. Key concepts include
a)
the relationships among producers, consumers, and
decomposers in food webs;
b)
the relationship between predators and prey;
c)
competition and cooperation;
d)
symbiotic relationships; and
e)
niches.
LS.9 The student
will investigate and understand how organisms adapt to biotic and abiotic
factors in an ecosystem. Key concepts include
a)
differences between ecosystems and biomes;
b)
characteristics of land, marine, and freshwater
ecosystems; and
c)
adaptations that enable organisms to survive within a
specific ecosystem.
LS.10 The student
will investigate and understand that ecosystems, communities, populations, and
organisms are dynamic, change over time, and respond to daily, seasonal, and
long-term changes in their environment. Key concepts include
a)
phototropism, hibernation, and dormancy;
b)
factors that increase or decrease population size; and
c)
eutrophication, climate changes, and catastrophic
disturbances.
LS.11 The
student will investigate and understand the relationships between ecosystem
dynamics and human activity. Key concepts include
a)
food production and harvest;
b)
change in habitat size, quality, or structure;
c)
change in species competition;
d)
population disturbances and factors that threaten or
enhance species survival; and
e)
environmental issues.
LS.12 The student will investigate and
understand that organisms reproduce and transmit genetic information to new
generations. Key concepts include
a) the structure and role of DNA;
b) the function of genes and chromosomes;
c) genotypes
and phenotypes;
d)
characteristics
that can and cannot be inherited;
e)
genetic
engineering and its applications; and
f)
historical
contributions and significance of discoveries related to genetics.
LS.13 The student
will investigate and understand that populations of organisms change over time.
Key concepts include
a)
the relationships of mutation, adaptation, natural
selection, and extinction;
b)
evidence of evolution of different species in the
fossil record; and
c)
how environmental influences, as well as genetic
variation, can lead to diversity of organisms.
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