Grassy Fork School
7th Grade Science/Social Studies
School Year Syllabus: 2022-2023
Teacher: Mr. Mark Tocholke M. Ed.
School Telephone: (423)487-5835 Cell Phone Number: (423)237-3339
E-mail: [email protected]
Course Description
7th grade science:
Seventh grade science is designed to involve the students in applying reading, writing, speaking, listening, and conducting skills in an independent manner through meaningful labs and applied technologies.
7th grade social studies:
Seventh grade students will explore the cultural, economic, geographical, historical, and political changes of Western Civilization in Europe as well as the geographic regions of East Asia, West Africa, and Southwest Asia and Northern Africa. Students will compare and contrast the history and geography of civilizations that were developing concurrently throughout Africa, Europe, the Americas, and Asia during the 15th to 18th centuries. Students will examine the growth in economic interactions among civilizations as well as the exchange of ideas, beliefs, technologies, and commodities. Students will describe the indigenous populations of the Americas and the long-term impact of European exploration in the New World. Finally, students will analyze the influence of geography on the development of civilizations as they continue their study of world history and geography. This course will also teach students about the historical context of ancient and major world religions and will follow a common template for major world religions so as to not promote any religion. Major world religions are introduced in either 6th or 7th grade.
Textbook & Course Materials
Required Texts
*World History & Geography The Middle Ages to the 1700s Author- Jackson J. Speilvogel ISBN: 978-0-07-687163-6
*Integrated Science Grade 7 Authors-Michelle Anderson et al. ISBN: 978-0-02-137759-6
Online Link to Textbooks: upcoming
Student Learning Outcomes and Topic Outline
Social Studies:
1st Nine Weeks-
Assignments and Projects: Essay, Oral Presentation, Student Project (to be determined collaboratively)
2nd Nine Weeks-
Assignments and Projects: Essay, Oral Presentation, Student Project (to be determined collaboratively)
3rd Nine Weeks-
4th Nine Weeks-
Science:
1st Nine Weeks-
Matter and Its Interactions
Students will:
1) Develop and use models to illustrate the structure of atoms, including the subatomic particles with their relative positions and charge.
2) Compare and contrast elemental molecules and compound molecules. 3) Classify matter as pure substances or mixtures based on composition.
4) Analyze and interpret chemical reactions to determine if the total number of atoms in the reactants and products support the Law of Conservation of Mass.
5) Use the periodic table as a model to analyze and interpret evidence relating to physical and chemical properties to identify a sample of matter. 6) Create and interpret models of substances whose atoms represent the states of matter with respect to temperature and pressure
From Molecules to Organisms: Structures and Processes
Students will:
1) Develop and construct models that identify and explain the structure and function of major cell organelles as they contribute to the life activities of the cell and organism.
2) Conduct an investigation to demonstrate how the cell membrane maintains homeostasis through the process of passive transport.
3) Evaluate evidence that cells have structural similarities and differences in organisms across kingdoms.
4) Diagram the hierarchical organization of multicellular organisms from cells to organism.
5) Explain that the body is a system comprised of subsystems that maintain equilibrium and support life through digestion, respiration, excretion, circulation, sensation (nervous and integumentary), and locomotion (musculoskeletal).
6) Develop an argument based on empirical evidence and scientific reasoning to explain how behavioral and structural adaptations in animals and plants affect the probability of survival and reproductive success.
7) Evaluate and communicate evidence that compares and contrasts the advantages and disadvantages of sexual and asexual reproduction.
8) Construct an explanation demonstrating that the function of mitosis for multicellular organisms is for growth and repair through the production of genetically identical daughter cells.
9) Construct a scientific explanation based on compiled evidence for the processes of photosynthesis, cellular respiration, and anaerobic respiration in the cycling of matter and flow of energy into and out of organisms.
Assignments and projects: unit lab, essay, and oral presentation
2nd Nine Weeks-
Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy and Dynamics
Students will:
Heredity: Inheritance and Variation of Traits
Students will:
1) Hypothesize that the impact of structural changes to genes (i.e., mutations) located on chromosomes may result in harmful, beneficial, or neutral effects to the structure and function of the organism.
2) Distinguish between mitosis and meiosis and compare the resulting daughter cells.
3) Predict the probability of individual dominant and recessive alleles to be transmitted from each parent to offspring during sexual reproduction and represent the phenotypic and genotypic patterns using ratios.
Assignments and projects: unit lab, essay, and oral presentation
3rd Nine Weeks-
Earth and Human Activity
Students will:
1) Graphically represent the composition of the atmosphere as a mixture of gases and discuss the potential for atmospheric change.
2) Engage in a scientific argument through graphing and translating data regarding human activity and climate.
Links Among Engineering, Technology, and Applications of Science
Students will:
1) Examine a problem from the medical field pertaining to biomaterials and design a solution taking into consideration the criteria, constraints, and relevant scientific principles of the problem that may limit possible solutions.
Assignments and projects: unit lab, essay, and oral presentation
4th Nine Weeks-
Grading Policy
B = 85 - 92
C = 75 - 84
D = 70 - 74
F = 0 – 69
I = Incomplete
50%-Tests (chapter tests, unit tests, map tests, lab tests)
40%-Performance (lab assignments, oral presentations, essays, student projects)
10%-Daily work (daily assignments or activities, quizzes, and participation)
Academic Dishonesty
Academic dishonesty includes such things as cheating, inventing false information or citations, plagiarism and helping someone else commit an act of academic dishonesty. It usually involves an attempt by a student to show possession of a level of knowledge or skill that he/she does not possess. A FAILING GRADE WILL BE ASSIGNED TO ALL CASES OF ACADEMIC DISHONESTY AND BE ASSIGNED OTHER APPROPRIATE ACADEMIC PENALTIES DEEMED NECESSARY BY TEACHER AND PRINCIPAL.
Attendance Policy: See student handbook
Please Note** Course policies are subject to change. It is the student’s responsibility to check for corrections or updates to the syllabus. Any changes will be posted in the classroom.
7th Grade Science/Social Studies
School Year Syllabus: 2022-2023
Teacher: Mr. Mark Tocholke M. Ed.
School Telephone: (423)487-5835 Cell Phone Number: (423)237-3339
E-mail: [email protected]
Course Description
7th grade science:
Seventh grade science is designed to involve the students in applying reading, writing, speaking, listening, and conducting skills in an independent manner through meaningful labs and applied technologies.
7th grade social studies:
Seventh grade students will explore the cultural, economic, geographical, historical, and political changes of Western Civilization in Europe as well as the geographic regions of East Asia, West Africa, and Southwest Asia and Northern Africa. Students will compare and contrast the history and geography of civilizations that were developing concurrently throughout Africa, Europe, the Americas, and Asia during the 15th to 18th centuries. Students will examine the growth in economic interactions among civilizations as well as the exchange of ideas, beliefs, technologies, and commodities. Students will describe the indigenous populations of the Americas and the long-term impact of European exploration in the New World. Finally, students will analyze the influence of geography on the development of civilizations as they continue their study of world history and geography. This course will also teach students about the historical context of ancient and major world religions and will follow a common template for major world religions so as to not promote any religion. Major world religions are introduced in either 6th or 7th grade.
Textbook & Course Materials
Required Texts
*World History & Geography The Middle Ages to the 1700s Author- Jackson J. Speilvogel ISBN: 978-0-07-687163-6
*Integrated Science Grade 7 Authors-Michelle Anderson et al. ISBN: 978-0-02-137759-6
Online Link to Textbooks: upcoming
Student Learning Outcomes and Topic Outline
Social Studies:
1st Nine Weeks-
- East Asia: 400-1500s CE Overview: Students will analyze the geographic, political, economic, and cultural structures of China and Japan.
- Byzantine Empire: 400-1500s CE Overview: Students will analyze the geographic, political, economic, and cultural structures of the Byzantine Empire.
- Southwest Asia and North Africa: 400-1500s CE Overview: Students will analyze the geographic, political, economic, and cultural structures of Southwest Asia and North Africa.
Assignments and Projects: Essay, Oral Presentation, Student Project (to be determined collaboratively)
2nd Nine Weeks-
- West Africa: 400-1500s CE Overview: Students will analyze the geographic, political, economic, and cultural structures of West Africa.
- Middle Ages in Western Europe: 400-1500s CE Overview: Students will analyze the geographic, political, economic, and cultural structures of Europe during the Middle Ages.
- Early Modern Europe: 1400-1700s CE Overview: Students will analyze the origins, accomplishments, and geographic diffusion of the Renaissance as well as the historical developments of the Protestant Reformation and Scientific Revolution.
Assignments and Projects: Essay, Oral Presentation, Student Project (to be determined collaboratively)
3rd Nine Weeks-
- Indigenous Civilizations of the Americas: 400-1500s CE Overview: Students will analyze the geographic, political, economic, and cultural structures of indigenous civilizations of the Americas.
- The Age of Exploration: 1400-1700s CE Overview: Students will analyze the motivations for the movement of people from Europe to the Americas and the impact of exploration by Europeans.
4th Nine Weeks-
- TCAP Review
- Finish Study Island Modules
- Remediation
Science:
1st Nine Weeks-
Matter and Its Interactions
Students will:
1) Develop and use models to illustrate the structure of atoms, including the subatomic particles with their relative positions and charge.
2) Compare and contrast elemental molecules and compound molecules. 3) Classify matter as pure substances or mixtures based on composition.
4) Analyze and interpret chemical reactions to determine if the total number of atoms in the reactants and products support the Law of Conservation of Mass.
5) Use the periodic table as a model to analyze and interpret evidence relating to physical and chemical properties to identify a sample of matter. 6) Create and interpret models of substances whose atoms represent the states of matter with respect to temperature and pressure
From Molecules to Organisms: Structures and Processes
Students will:
1) Develop and construct models that identify and explain the structure and function of major cell organelles as they contribute to the life activities of the cell and organism.
2) Conduct an investigation to demonstrate how the cell membrane maintains homeostasis through the process of passive transport.
3) Evaluate evidence that cells have structural similarities and differences in organisms across kingdoms.
4) Diagram the hierarchical organization of multicellular organisms from cells to organism.
5) Explain that the body is a system comprised of subsystems that maintain equilibrium and support life through digestion, respiration, excretion, circulation, sensation (nervous and integumentary), and locomotion (musculoskeletal).
6) Develop an argument based on empirical evidence and scientific reasoning to explain how behavioral and structural adaptations in animals and plants affect the probability of survival and reproductive success.
7) Evaluate and communicate evidence that compares and contrasts the advantages and disadvantages of sexual and asexual reproduction.
8) Construct an explanation demonstrating that the function of mitosis for multicellular organisms is for growth and repair through the production of genetically identical daughter cells.
9) Construct a scientific explanation based on compiled evidence for the processes of photosynthesis, cellular respiration, and anaerobic respiration in the cycling of matter and flow of energy into and out of organisms.
Assignments and projects: unit lab, essay, and oral presentation
2nd Nine Weeks-
Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy and Dynamics
Students will:
- Develop a model to depict the cycling of matter, including carbon and oxygen, including the flow of energy among biotic and abiotic parts of an ecosystem.
Heredity: Inheritance and Variation of Traits
Students will:
1) Hypothesize that the impact of structural changes to genes (i.e., mutations) located on chromosomes may result in harmful, beneficial, or neutral effects to the structure and function of the organism.
2) Distinguish between mitosis and meiosis and compare the resulting daughter cells.
3) Predict the probability of individual dominant and recessive alleles to be transmitted from each parent to offspring during sexual reproduction and represent the phenotypic and genotypic patterns using ratios.
Assignments and projects: unit lab, essay, and oral presentation
3rd Nine Weeks-
Earth and Human Activity
Students will:
1) Graphically represent the composition of the atmosphere as a mixture of gases and discuss the potential for atmospheric change.
2) Engage in a scientific argument through graphing and translating data regarding human activity and climate.
Links Among Engineering, Technology, and Applications of Science
Students will:
1) Examine a problem from the medical field pertaining to biomaterials and design a solution taking into consideration the criteria, constraints, and relevant scientific principles of the problem that may limit possible solutions.
Assignments and projects: unit lab, essay, and oral presentation
4th Nine Weeks-
- TCAP Review
- Finish Study Island Modules
- Remediation
Grading Policy
- Viewing Grades in Aspen-Points you receive for graded assignments will be posted to Aspen Grade Book weekly. Log in information to be given to parents at the beginning of the school year.
- Late Assignments-10 points will be deducted each day an assignment is late. A score of 0 will be assigned for all missing work…no exceptions!
- Grade Scale-
B = 85 - 92
C = 75 - 84
D = 70 - 74
F = 0 – 69
I = Incomplete
- Final grades assigned for the courses will be based on the following percentage of total points earned and are assigned as follows:
50%-Tests (chapter tests, unit tests, map tests, lab tests)
40%-Performance (lab assignments, oral presentations, essays, student projects)
10%-Daily work (daily assignments or activities, quizzes, and participation)
Academic Dishonesty
Academic dishonesty includes such things as cheating, inventing false information or citations, plagiarism and helping someone else commit an act of academic dishonesty. It usually involves an attempt by a student to show possession of a level of knowledge or skill that he/she does not possess. A FAILING GRADE WILL BE ASSIGNED TO ALL CASES OF ACADEMIC DISHONESTY AND BE ASSIGNED OTHER APPROPRIATE ACADEMIC PENALTIES DEEMED NECESSARY BY TEACHER AND PRINCIPAL.
Attendance Policy: See student handbook
Please Note** Course policies are subject to change. It is the student’s responsibility to check for corrections or updates to the syllabus. Any changes will be posted in the classroom.