***This course is not available for the Track C July/August learning period.***
In this course, you will explore Mother Earth—the fossil record and rock strata and what they tell us about the Earth’s history; the water cycle, hydroelectric power, and how pollutants are harming human health; and the distribution of natural resources and how they impact human populations.
Hands-on labs include creating a model of the geologic time scale, creating a model of the water cycle, testing water quality from your area/home, and making your own water wheel to learn about how kinetic energy can be transformed into mechanical energy.
Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) Covered:
MS-ESS1-4. Construct a scientific explanation based on evidence from rock strata for how the geologic time scale is used to organize Earth’s 4.6 billion-year-old history.
MS-ESS2-1. Develop a model to describe the cycling of Earth’s materials and the flow of energy that drives this process.
MS-ESS2-2. Construct an explanation based on evidence for how geoscience processes have changed Earth’s surface at varying time and spatial scales.
MS-ESS2-4. Develop a model to describe the cycling of water through Earth’s systems driven by energy from the sun and the force of gravity.
MS-ESS3-1.Construct a scientific explanation based on evidence for how the uneven distribution of Earth’s mineral, energy, and groundwater resources are the result of past and current geoscience processes.