2016-17 has been a fun and exciting year for science. Our focus, across all disciplines, has been to incorporate the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) into our teaching. In addition to the content standards within each discipline, NGSS focuses on key skills- communication, collaboration, inquiry, problem solving and flexibility- that will serve our students well throughout their lives.

Science

In one of the recent units of study in our biology (9th) classes, students learned the mechanisms of evolution through various labs and activities and continue to read and analyze data sets that support evolutionary trends. Active engagement was evident as students used beans to represent genetic traits in mice populations and determined the “fittest” sample population. Populations died off in one cup and flourished in another. Students studied single gene traits on a genetic wheel (laugh dimples, tongue roll, hitchhiker’s thumb…) by playing a survivor game. Competition and laughter was abundant as students compared circularly rolled tongues, the degree to which one’s thumb can bend and earlobes.

In chemistry (10th) the most current unit, as always, circled around to the foundational chemistry students learned in 1st semester and asked them to apply their knowledge to intermolecular forces and the states of matter. They discussed the Kinetic Molecular Theory and explained the changing intermolecular forces of the particles as teachers made liquid nitrogen ice cream for the classes.

In physics (11th) students are studying electricity and magnetism in the current unit. Students used electroscopes to determine what type of charge is produced when rubbing strips of different types of material together. Students investigated charged “magic” tape and mapped the potential lines produced from the electrical field created between a battery and a piece of conductive carbon paper.