Download Eco Science Pacing Guide

Pacing Guide
Ecoscience
2010-11
Science Course of Study
Concept:
Explore Earth’s biogeochemical cycles and their connection to Earth’s
spheres, including an understanding of the cause and effect of climate change.
(Pacing- 4 weeks)
Topics:
Planet of Life & Earth’s Spheres
The unique traits of Earth that permit the planet to support life and how each of Earth’s
spheres are crucial to sustaining life.
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Earth as a planet of life
Introduction to lithosphere, hydrosphere, and atmosphere
The study of ecology
Earth’s land & rock formations
Earth’s fresh water supply and underground layers
Layers of the atmosphere
Regions of the biosphere
Vocabulary: organisms, lithosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere, ecology, igneous rock,
sedimentary rock, metamorphic rock, artesian well, troposphere, stratosphere, ozone,
mesosphere, thermosphere, biosphere, ionosphere, Aurora Borealis
Performance Skills:
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Locate Earth in a diagram of the solar system
Identify & describe the regions of Earth in which living things are found
Describe the three main types of rocks that make up the lithosphere
Explain why fresh water is a valuable resource for organisms
Diagram the layers of the atmosphere
Describe the characteristics of each layer
Describe the regions of the biosphere
Explain how organisms interact with the biosphere
Pacing Guide
Ecoscience
2010-11
Science Course of Study
Cycles of Matter
Movement of matter through the lithosphere, atmosphere, hydrosphere, and biosphere.
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The water cycle
Elements of life
The carbon cycle
The oxygen cycle & labatory investigation
The nitrogen cycle
Vocabulary: carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, evaporation, transpiration,
condensation, precipitation, photosynthesis, respiration, decomposition, pH, organic,
nitrogen-fixing bacteria, legumes, fertilizer, fossil fuels
Performance Skills:
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Describe the chemical composition of the human body.
Explain the water cycle, carbon cycle, and nitrogen cycle as pertaining to their
importance to living organisms.
Relate pH values to the oxygen cycle through a hands-on investigation involving
snails and Elodea.
Diagram the water cycle.
Energy in the Ecosystem
Movement of energy through the biosphere
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Roles of living things
Ecosystem structure
Food chains and food webs
Energy and food
Ecological pyramids
Producers, consumers & decomposers
Trophic levels
Diversity & stability
Biological magnification
Pacing Guide
Ecoscience
2010-11
Science Course of Study
Vocabulary: producers, consumers, herbivores, omnivores, carnivores, detrivores,
scavengers, decomposers, trophic level, food chain, food web, diversity, stability,
biological magnification, DDT, biomass, energy, ecological pyramid, feeding
relationship
Performance Skills:
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Identify the roles of producers, consumers, and decomposers.
Explain the concept of trophic level.
Differentiate among the four types of consumers.
Describe food chains and food webs.
Draw a simple 5-step food chain.
Examine how ecosystem structure is related to population changes and the
transfer of pollutants via biological magnification.
Investigate the movement of energy through an ecosystem.
Define ecological pyramid and explain its relationship to energy in an ecosystem.
Change in the Biosphere
Conservation of matter, physical and chemical changes that impact the environment,
ocean and atmospheric currents, transfer of energy, and global climate.
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Changes in the lithosphere
Changes in the hydrosphere including ice ages and El Nino
Atmospheric changes
The Greenhouse Effect
Global warming and climate changes
Needs of organisms including water, food & energy, living space, and climate
Vocabulary: tectonic plates, weathering, erosion, ice ages, El Nino, La Nina, glaciers,
greenhouse effect, global warming, chloroflourocarbons, nutrients, territory, dormant,
hibernation
Pacing Guide
Ecoscience
2010-11
Science Course of Study
Performance Skills:
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Describe ways in which the three layers of the biosphere change over time.
List factors that affect an area’s ability to support life.
Predict how changes in the environment might affect organisms.
Identify the four basic needs of all living organisms.
Concept:
Use scientific processes to construct knowledge and understanding in all
science content areas.
(Pacing- 1 week)
Topics:
The Nature of Science
An overview of the nature of science, stressing that science, by its very nature, is
changeable.
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What is science and what do scientists do
Uncertainty in science
Science and the needs of society
Vocabulary: science, scientist, hypothesis, society, uncertainty, guess
Performance Skills:
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Explain why there is always uncertainty in science.
Distinguish between a hypothesis and a guess.
Identify several needs of society and how science is trying to resolve these.
Pacing Guide
Ecoscience
2010-11
Science Course of Study
Skills and Methods
The tools, skills, and methods scientists use to study the environment, including the steps
involved in carrying out a controlled experiment.
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Observing and questioning
Steps in research
Formulating a hypothesis
Designing an experiment
Controlled experiments and variables
Collecting, organizing, and analyzing data
Vocabulary: observation, scientific method, research, hypothesis, inference,
experiment, controlled experiment, variable, independent variable, dependent variable,
control group, experimental group, data
Performance Skills:
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Describe the steps involved in conducting a scientific experiment
Compare and contrast inference to hypothesis
Describe ways in which research is carried out
Differentiate between dependent and independent variables
Describe ways in which scientific data is analyzed
Design and conduct scientific investigations
Communicate and defend a scientific argument
Concept:
Explore the basic concepts and principles of environmental science
including principles from other science disciplines that are applied to environmental
issues.
(Pacing- 4 weeks)
Pacing Guide
Ecoscience
2010-11
Science Course of Study
Topics:
What is Environmental Science?
An introduction to environmental science, how it integrates information from other
branches of science, and why the environment is of concern to all people.
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Environmental science history
Environmental science as an integrated field
Parts of the environment
Interactions in the environment
Vocabulary: environment, environmental science, ecology, ecologists, biotic factors,
abiotic factors, integrated science
Performance Skills:
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Give examples of how parts of the environment interact.
Explain how science influences decision-making processes.
Explore how other fields of science, such as biology and geology, are important to
environmental science.
Differentiate between biotic and abiotic factors.
Describe what an ecologist does.
Ecosystem Structure
Explore the structure of an ecosystem and show how changes within any of Earth’s major
spheres might affect the biosphere and the organisms within it.
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Species and where they live
Populations and communities
Ecological organization
Vocabulary: ecosystem, species, habitat, geographical range, population, community,
biodiversity, ecological organization
Pacing Guide
Ecoscience
2010-11
Science Course of Study
Performance Skills:
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Describe the structure of an ecosystem.
Relate the concept of habitat destruction to the loss of biodiversity.
List, in order, the levels of ecological organization.
Differentiate between habitat and geographical range.
Interactions in the Ecosystem
An exploration into habitats and niches and how changes in either of these factors
could lead to the demise of an organism and/or species.
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The role of an organism
Competitive exclusion
Niche diversity
An organism’s habitat and what it provides
Vocabulary: habitat, niche, specialized niche, realized niche, niche diversity,
competitive exclusion, predator, prey, keystone predator
Performance Skills:
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Describe the concept of the niche.
Examine how interactions between a species and its environment define the
species’ niche.
Differentiate between realized niche and fundamental niche.
Describe examples of the phenomenon known as competitive exclusion.
Explore the role of keystone predators in determining niche diversity.
Pacing Guide
Ecoscience
2010-11
Science Course of Study
Evolution, Adaptation, and Population
An introduction to the concepts of evolution and adaptation with explorations into
populations, their capacity for growth, and the limiting factors of the environment that
prevent infinite population growth.
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How evolution in a species occurs
Evolving in a niche
Convergent vs. divergent evolution
Favorable adaptations
Coevolution
The study of demography
Population growth patterns
Carrying capacity
Density dependent and independent limiting factors
Human population growth
Vocabulary: evolution, adaptation, convergent evolution, divergent evolution,
generalized species, specialized species, coevolution, alien species, Darwin, exponential
growth, boom-and-bust growth, demography, S-shaped growth curve, carrying capacity,
limiting factors, density-dependent factors, density-independent factors, competition
Performance Skills:
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Explain how a species adapts to its niche.
Describe convergent evolution and coevolution, and relate each to the concept of
niche.
Identify the risks of introducing an alien species to an ecosystem.
Explain how populations of organisms grow.
Describe the factors that limit the growth of a population.
Identify the shapes of growth curves that represent populations of different
organisms.
Graph exponential growth in the human population.
Pacing Guide
Ecoscience
2010-11
Science Course of Study
Ecosystem Balance
An introduction to the many relationships that occur within an ecosystem and how those
interactions maintain balance and produce stability through succession.
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Symbiotic relationships
Ecological succession
Primary vs. secondary succession
Succession in aquatic habitats
Island succession
Stability in the ecosystem
Ecosystem equilibrium
Vocabulary: symbiosis, predator, prey, predation, population cycles, parasitism,
mutualism, commensalism, succession, primary succession, secondary succession,
disturbance, pioneer species, climax community, aquatic succession, island succession,
lichens, stability, equilibrium, balance, chaos theory
Performance Skills:
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Explain the relationship between the population sizes of predator and prey.
Define symbiosis and describe the four main symbiotic relationships.
Contrast primary and secondary succession.
Outline the steps in primary succession.
Describe the sequence of ecological succession in a lake and on an island.
Explain the concept of ecosystem stability.
Characterize the effects of disturbances on ecosystems.
Concept:
Focus on the concept of the biome and identify each of Earth’s major
terrestrial and aquatic biomes, their climate, abiotic and biotic factors.
(Pacing- 9 weeks)
Pacing Guide
Ecoscience
2010-11
Science Course of Study
Topics:
Desert Biome
Overview of the limiting, abiotic, and biotic factors of a desert with a focus on the
conditions that form deserts.
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Desert characteristics
Desert climate
Desert plants & animals
Natural desert formation
Desertification
Vocabulary: desert, leaching, pavement, succulents, cacti, aloe vera, nocturnal,
tropics, semiarid regions, desertification, rainshadow effect
Performance Skills:
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Describe the characteristics of a desert.
Explain how desert organisms are adapted to life in their environment.
Describe the climate of the desert.
Differentiate between hot and cool deserts.
Identify major desert plants and animals.
Describe human threats to the desert ecosystem.
Illustrate the processes that cause desert formation.
Tundra Biome:
Presents the characteristics of the tundra biome, including representative organisms and
their adaptations.
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Tundra location
Climate of the tundra
Tundra organisms, plants, and animals
Oil in the tundra
Threats to the biodiversity of the tundra
Pacing Guide
Ecoscience
2010-11
Science Course of Study
Vocabulary: tundra, arctic, permafrost, migration, lichens, Trans-Alaska pipeline
Performance Skills:
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Describe why the characteristics of the tundra make it a fragile ecosystem.
Compare the characteristics of tundra organisms with those of their relatives in
warmer climates.
Identify major tundra plants and animals.
Explore human threats to the tundra biome.
Describe how the Trans-Alaska pipeline was constructed and its importance to the
tundra’s economy.
Grassland Biomes
Focuses on the locations of grasslands and limiting factors, as well as the characteristics
of the three types of grasslands.
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Grassland climate
Grassland organisms, plants, and animals
Steppe and prairie climate
Steppe and prairie locations
Steppe and prairie organisms
Savanna location
Savanna climate
Savanna organisms
Vocabulary: grassland, desert-grassland boundary, drought-resistant, rainy season,
steppe, prairie, savanna, bunchgrasses, sod-forming grasses, humus, runners, tufts,
vertical feeding patterns
Pacing Guide
Ecoscience
2010-11
Science Course of Study
Performance Skills:
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Describe the characteristics and climate of grasslands.
Identify where grasslands are located.
Compare and contrast a prairie and a steppe.
Describe the importance of steppes and prairies in agriculture.
Describe savannas, and state where they are located.
Explain how organisms have adapted to survive on the savanna.
Identify major organisms of the grasslands.
Explain human threats to grasslands.
Forest Biomes
Focus on locations and climate of coniferous forests, deciduous forests, tropical
rainforests, and tropical dry forests.
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Coniferous forest locations and climate
Coniferous forest organisms, plants, and animals
Deciduous forest locations and climate
Deciduous forest organisms, plants, and animals
Layers of the forest
Rainforest structure
Rainforest locations and climate
Rainforest organisms, plants, and animals
Deforestation and habitat destruction
Organisms and diversity
Vocabulary: conifers, coniferous forest, cones, needles, deciduous, canopy, emergent,
understory, forest floor, humus, rainforest, dry forest, tropics, arboreal, buttresses,
deforestation
Pacing Guide
Ecoscience
2010-11
Science Course of Study
Performance Skills:
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Describe the characteristics of the coniferous forest.
Explain adaptations that enable organisms to survive in coniferous forests.
Identify the characteristics and climate of the deciduous forest.
Describe the organisms that inhabit deciduous forests.
Describe the characteristics of the tropical zone and of the rain forest.
Illustrate the complexity and diversity of the rainforest.
Relate how deforestation is leading to global warming, habitat destruction, and
loss of biodiversity.
Freshwater Biomes
Explore the various freshwater aquatic biomes and how standing-water ecosystems differ
from flowing-water ecosystems.
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Aquatic biomes introduction
Salinity and pH
Depth zones
Standing-water ecosystems
Standing-water organisms
Wetlands
The Florida Everglades
Flowing-water ecosystems
Stream Flow
Stream organisms
Vocabulary: aquatic, salinity, pH, photic zone, aphotic zone, benthic zone, standingwater, lakes, ponds, marshes, swamps, bogs, phytoplankton, zooplankton, wetlands,
streams, sediments, meander, river, bends
Pacing Guide
Ecoscience
2010-11
Science Course of Study
Performance Skills:
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Describe the factors that characterize the various types of aquatic biomes.
List the depth zones from the top down.
Identify the characteristics of different types of standing-water ecosystems.
Explain the value of wetlands and the reasons for their decline.
Describe how abiotic factors of gravity, erosion, and sedimentation affect stream
ecosystems.
Marine Biome
Focuses on the world ocean and the varying depth zones of salt-water biomes.
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The world ocean
Oceanic zone
Characteristics of ocean water
Neritic zones
Coral Reefs and Kelp forests
Estuaries
Neritic Zone productivity
Intertidal zones
Salt marshes and mangrove swamps
Vocabulary: open ocean, world ocean, oceanic zone, detritus, pH, salinity, ocean
currents, tides, waves, continental shelf, continental slope, neritic zone, reef, coral,
zooxanthellae, estuary, intertidal zone, subsidence, salt marshes, kelp forests, mangrove
swamps
Performance Skills:
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Locate the major ocean zones based on their relationship to the shore.
Describe the flow of water through the world ocean and the characteristics of
ocean water in different parts of the world.
Describe the factors that define a neritic zone.
Compare and contrast two types of neritic zone ecosystems.
Explain the processes that contribute to the formation of salt marshes and
mangrove swamps.
List several human activities that damage intertidal habitats.
Pacing Guide
Ecoscience
2010-11
Science Course of Study
Concept:
Focuses on the historical perspective by applying current issues and laws.
Developing and using population models, collecting and analyzing water quality data,
and connecting to real-world, on-going issues (can be local, national, or global).
(Pacing- 4 weeks)
Topics:
Human Population
A focus on human population and societies throughout history, with a focus on human
nutrition and feeding the world.
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A portrait of Earth throughout history
Systems and connections
Perceptions of Earth
Hunter-Gatherer societies
Agricultural societies
Industrial societies
Industry for developing nations
Sustainable development
The Frontier Ethic vs. the Sustainable Development Ethic
History of the human population
Increases in growth rate
Industry & health care
Declines in growth rate
Famine & war
Growth & changing needs
Measuring growth rate
Demography
Vocabulary: systems, connections, Gaia hypothesis, Mother Earth, hunter-gatherer
societies, agricultural society, industrial society, sustainable development, frontier ethic,
renewable resource, nonrenewable resource, agricultural revolution, germ theory of
disease, famine, demography
Pacing Guide
Ecoscience
2010-11
Science Course of Study
Performance Skills:
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Describe Earth as a network of systems and connections.
Explain how Earth is closed with respect to matter, and open with respect to
energy.
Identify hunter-gatherer, agricultural, and industrial societies.
Describe how the impact of humans on the environment has increased over time.
Define the frontier ethic and the sustainable development ethic.
Contrast renewable and nonrenewable resources.
Describe the major events that have affected the rate of human population growth
throughout history.
Identify factors that affect the size of a population.
Compare and contrast population growth trends in developing and industrialized
nations.
Relate overpopulation to use of natural resources, energy demands, and
biodiversity.
Hypothesize about the effect of availability of resources on population growth.
Feeding the World
A focus on human population and societies throughout history, with a focus on human
nutrition and feeding the world.
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Human nutrition
Nutritional deficiency
World food supply
The Green Revolution & cash crops
Food from water
Modern farming techniques
Sustainable agriculture
Reducing erosion
Pest management
Vocabulary: macronutrients, micronutrients, kilocalories, protein, carbohydrate,
essential amino acid, lipid, vitamins, minerals, undernourished, malnutrition, Green
Revolution, cash crop, aquaculture, sustainable agriculture, strip cropping, terracing,
contour plowing, soil mismanagement, erosion, Integrated Pest Management
Pacing Guide
Ecoscience
2010-11
Science Course of Study
Performance Skills:
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List the major groups of nutrients and the amount of energy provided by each
type.
Explain the effects of economics on the production of food.
Describe how farming techniques have changed during the past 50 years.
Describe the basic components of sustainable agriculture, and explain why they
are desirable.
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Concept:
Explore the effectiveness and efficiency for differing varieties at a local,
state, national, and global level. In addition, Earth’s resources (abiotic and biotic) as they
relate to environmental issues (such as mining) are included.
(Pacing- 8 weeks)
Topics:
Energy Resources/ Fossil Fuels
Explore traditional energy resources from organic fuels, as well as nuclear power and
emerging alternate energy sources.
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The need for energy
Changing energy needs
Fuels from organisms
Fossil fuels
Coal formation
Petroleum and natural gas
Problems with fossil fuels
Biomass fuels including wood, garbage, methane, and alcohol
Vocabulary: fuel, hydrocarbon, fossil fuel, peat, lignite, bituminous coal, anthracite
coal, petroleum, fossil fuels, biomass fuels, natural gas
Pacing Guide
Ecoscience
2010-11
Science Course of Study
Performance Skills:
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Explain how changes in human societies have changed the demand for energy.
Describe the structure of organic fuels.
List the stages of coal formation and describe the characteristics of each stage.
Locate the major coal deposits on a map of the United States.
Describe the processes of petroleum formation and extraction.
List several uses for petroleum and natural gas.
Describe some of the problems associated with the use of fossil fuels.
Compare biomass fuels to fossil fuels, and give an example of a bioconversion
technique.
Energy Resources/Nuclear Power
Explore traditional energy resources from organic fuels, as well as nuclear power and
emerging alternate energy sources.
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Atoms and isotopes
Radioactivity
Nuclear fission
Nuclear reactors
Breeder reactors
Types of radioactive waste
Radioactive waste disposal
Safety and cost of nuclear power
Vocabulary: nucleus, isotope, protons, neutrons, electrons, radiation, half-life, nuclear
fission, high-level waste, medium-level waste, low-level waste, meltdown
Performance Skills:
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Describe the structure of the atom and the atomic nucleus.
Explain how unstable nuclei become stable by releasing radiation.
Illustrate the fission chain reactions that power nuclear reactors and breeder
reactors.
Diagram the structure and function of a nuclear reactor.
Define radioactive waste, and explain the dangers that arise from it.
State the problems involved in the safe disposal of radioactive wastes.
Pacing Guide
Ecoscience
2010-11
Science Course of Study
Energy Resources/Alternate Sources
Explore traditional energy resources from organic fuels, as well as nuclear power and
emerging alternate energy sources.
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The sun as fuel
Passive vs. active solar energy
Photovoltaic cells
Energy from flowing streams
Energy from tides
Wind energy
Geothermal energy
Nuclear Fusion
Vocabulary: bioconversion, solar energy, passive solar heating, active solar heating,
photovoltaic cell, hydroelectric power, aerogenerator, geothermal energy, nuclear fusion
Performance Skills:
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Explain the importance of the sun in supplying energy to Earth.
Describe how solar energy can be used to heat buildings and generate electricity.
Describe two ways that moving water can be used to produce electricity.
Discuss the benefits and drawbacks of producing electricity through the use of
hydroelectric power.
Explain how the energy in wind can be used to produce electricity.
Describe some advantages and disadvantages of using wind energy.
Describe how geothermal energy is used.
Explain how nuclear fusion could be a valuable source of energy in the future.
Pacing Guide
Ecoscience
2010-11
Science Course of Study
Resources in the Biosphere/Minerals and Land
Explores Earth’s resources, such as minerals, soil, land, water, and air, as they pertain to
important environmental issues.
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Minerals and their uses
Mining and the environment
Mineral conservation
Soil formation
Composition and characteristics of soil
The interaction between soil and climate
Soil mismanagement
Solid waste and garbage disposal
The landfill problem
Classification and effects of hazardous wastes
Soil loss and desertification
Reducing the volume of waste
Disposing of hazardous waste
Legislation regarding land pollution
Vocabulary: mineral, ore, bedrock, parent rock, soil, soil profile, surface mining,
subsurface mining, dredging, solid waste, landfill, hazardous waste, biodegradable,
reactive, corrosive, toxic, ignitable, radioactive, medical wastes, waste exchange, deepwell injection, secure chemical landfill, controlled incineration, radioactive waste
disposal
Pacing Guide
Ecoscience
2010-11
Science Course of Study
Performance Skills:
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Describe minerals and identify some of their characteristics.
List several ways that minerals are used.
Describe methods for extracting minerals.
Identify and explain ways in which extraction methods may affect the
environment.
Identify different soil types and how they influence soil characteristics.
Describe the relationship between climate and soil formation.
Identify causes of soil mismanagement.
Predict possible outcomes from soil mismanagement.
List examples of solid wastes and identify their sources.
Describe past and present methods used to dispose of solid wastes.
Identify problems associated with hazardous wastes.
Classify hazardous wastes according to their characteristics.
Identify ways in which soil is lost.
Describe the methods used in agriculture to prevent soil erosion.
Identify and explain four methods for reducing the volume of wastes.
Discuss the benefits and drawbacks of various forms of waste disposal.
Resources in the Biosphere/Water & Water Pollution
Explores Earth’s resources, such as minerals, soil, land, water, and air, as they pertain to
important environmental issues.
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Uses for water
Industrial, residential, and agricultural uses for water
Surface and ground water
Water resource problems
Water treatment
Water purification
Sewage and pathogens
Types of water pollution
Organic vs. inorganic chemical pollutants
Eutrophication
Radioactive and thermal pollution
Controlling water pollution
Pacing Guide
Ecoscience
2010-11
Science Course of Study
Vocabulary: irrigation, water table, overdraft, desalination, distillation, reverse
osmosis, sedimentation, filtration, aeration, sterilization, sewage, sewage-treatment
plants, pathogens, toxic chemicals, heavy metal, inorganic chemicals, organic chemicals,
eutrophication, thermal pollution
Performance Skills:
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Describe the ways in which people use water.
Relate how water affects ecosystems.
Explain ways in which fresh water is naturally stored as a resource.
Predict the effects of the depletion of an aquifer.
Explain why fresh water in many parts of the world is not portable.
Trace the sequence of events involved in the purification of water.
Explain the link between water pollution and human disease.
Identify the major types of water pollutants and their sources.
Examine the sources and effects of inorganic and organic toxic chemicals.
Describe the process of eutrophication and its effects on lake ecosystems.
Explain the problems of radioactive and thermal water pollution.
Identify government attempts to control water pollution.
Describe the problems involved in enforcing laws regarding water pollution.
Resources in the biosphere/Air & Air Pollution
Explores Earth’s resources, such as minerals, soil, land, water, and air, as they pertain to
important environmental issues.
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Indoor vs. outdoor air pollutants
Air pollution and living things
Global effects of air pollution
Acid rain and global warming
Natural vs. human air pollution controls
Noise pollution
Vocabulary: pollutants, particulates, CFC’s, oxides, photochemical smog, radon,
cancer, emphysema, acid precipitation, ozone depletion, greenhouse effect, global
warming, ice cores, decibels, noise pollution
Pacing Guide
Ecoscience
2010-11
Science Course of Study
Performance Skills:
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Describe air pollution.
Identify common outdoor and indoor air pollutants.
Identify the effects of air pollution on human health.
Describe the effects of air pollution on plants and animals.
Identify the effects of acid precipitation and ozone depletion.
Explain the greenhouse effect and global warming.
Describe natural processes that help control pollution.
Explain human efforts to control air pollution.
Identify federal legislation for curbing air pollution.
Describe the problem of noise pollution.
Explain measures and legislation for controlling noise pollution.
Concept:
Explore the background and history of environmental action and laws
including investigations on a local, national, and global level.
(Pacing- 2 weeks)
Topics:
A Sustainable Future
Examine the effects of habitat destruction and the solutions of conservation, recycling,
and conserving biodiversity.
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The loss of biodiversity
Extinction
Loss of habitat
Aquatic habitat destruction
Demand for resources
Importance of biodiversity
International efforts
The Endangered Species Act
Waste reduction
Conserving energy
Recycling paper, plastic, and minerals
Conserving biodiversity
Pacing Guide
Ecoscience
2010-11
Science Course of Study
Vocabulary: extinction, biodiversity, habitat destruction, alien species, wilderness,
gene bank, conservation, recycling, source reduction, preserve
Performance Skills:
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Discuss extinction and how it occurs.
Explain habitat destruction and the loss of biodiversity, and how they are related.
Explain the causes of deforestation and its impact on biodiversity.
Investigate the disappearance of aquatic habitats.
State the ways that biodiversity benefits humans.
Describe how the pattern of the current mass extinction differs from that of earlier
extinctions.
Describe the social and economic factors that cause habitat destruction.
Explain the Endangered Species Act and how it is applied.
Define conservation, explaining how resources can be conserved.
Describe ways of conserving energy.
List materials that are currently recycled.
Identify the benefits of recycling.
Identify methods being used to preserve biodiversity and assess their
effectiveness.
Relate the loss of biodiversity to the growth of the human population.
Protecting the Environment
Explore global, local, federal, and international policies for protecting the environment to
ensure a healthy global ecosystem.
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Economics and values
Decisions for the global ecosystem
Making policies
Local policies
National quality of life
Native American fishing rights
International policies
Development and environmental protection
Global agenda
Pacing Guide
Ecoscience
2010-11
Science Course of Study
Vocabulary: supply-demand curve, risk assessment, policy, economics, cost/benefit
analysis
Performance Skills:
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Describe the relationship between the environment, human behavior, and human
values.
Describe the steps involved in decision making and policy making.
Identify how environmental protection may be carried out at the local level.
Explain the reasons why policies may be more effective at the local level.
Explain the necessity for federal intervention in local environmental issues.
Identify opposing values and how they complicate policy enforcement.