Download Biology Topics

BIG IDEAS in SCIENCE
1. Scientific discoveries and technological innovation impact the way people live, work, and
interact.
2. Science reflects, documents, and influences the values, ideas, and events throughout history.
3. Scientists use the tools of technology to problem-solve, communicate, acquire new knowledge,
and evaluate information to get answers to their questions.
4. How anything is made determines how it works.
5. Energy can change forms and transfer from one object to another.
6. Objects respond when acted upon by a stimulus or force.
7. Systems are made of parts and can combine to form larger systems.
8. Change and constancy occur naturally or as a result of human impact.
9. Recognizing patterns helps predict what will happen next and what can change over time.
Biology Topics
Duration
Semester 1
1 week
4 weeks
3 weeks
4 weeks
4 weeks
Semester 2
6 weeks
5 weeks
Topic
Overview Biology
Homeostasis/Human Systems/Nutrition & Enzymes
Taxonomy & Kingdoms
Ecosystems
Change Over Time
DNA & Genetics
Cell Processes
TOPIC: OVERVIEW / INTRODUCTION / REVIEW of science material previously studied
BIG IDEAS:
How anything is made determines how it works
Systems are made of parts & can combine to form larger systems
Scientific discoveries and technological innovation impact the way people live, work, & interact
Science reflects, documents, & influences the values, ideas, & events throughout history
Scientists use the tools of technology to problem-solve, communicate, acquire new knowledge, & evaluate information to get answers to their questions
TEKS Knowledge Statement:
6.10 The student understands the relationship between structure and function in living systems
6.11 The student understands that traits of species can change through generations and that the instructions for traits are contained in the genetic material of the
organisms
(4) The student understands that cells are the basic structures of all living things and have specialized parts that perform specific functions, and that viruses are
different from cells and have different properties and functions
7.9 The student understands the relationship between structure and function in living systems.
8.6 The student understands that interdependence occurs among living systems.
TEKS Skill Statements:
6.10B determine that all organisms are composed of cells that carry on functions to sustain life
6.11B identify cells as structures containing genetic material
7.9A identify the systems of the human organism and describe their functions
8.6A describe interactions among systems in the human organism
UNDERSTAN DINGS
Learners will understand that:
ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS
What is life?
there are criteria by which scientists decide whether
something is living or not
living things have particular requirements in order to stay
What makes a living organism “alive”?
alive
How are living things organized both within themselves
and in relation to each other?
individual survival and species survival are dependent
upon different circumstances
What conditions must be in place for the species to
survive?
Students will know . . .
Students will do . . .
Characteristics of living things:
- has genetic material
- be self-regulatory (manage itself w/in an environment)
---------------------------------------- reproduce in order for the species to remain on Earth
Distinguish between a living organism and a nonliving
thing
Cells are the basic units of all living organisms
Choose an organism to study in-depth throughout the
duration of the course
Systems of the human body
Living
organisms are similar to each other in some ways
and different from each other in some ways
Compare & Contrast organisms to determine similarities
and differences among them
Apply human systems structure & function to other
organisms
TOPIC: HOMEOSTASIS
BIG IDEA: How anything is made determines how it works. Objects respond when acted upon by a stimulus or force.
Systems are made of parts and can combine to form larger systems.
Change and constancy occur naturally or as a result of human impact.
Scientists use the tools of technology to problem-solve, communicate, acquire new knowledge, and evaluate information to get answers
to their questions.
TEKS Knowledge Statement:
(4) The student understands that cells are the basic structures of all living things and have specialized parts that perform specific functions, and that viruses are
different from cells and have different properties and functions.
(9) The student understands metabolic processes and energy transfers that occur in living organisms.
(10) The student understands that, at all levels of nature, living systems are found within other living systems, each with its own boundary and limits.
(11) The student understands that organisms maintain homeostasis.
TEKS Skills Statements:
identify and describe the role of bacteria in maintaining health such as in digestion and in causing diseases such as in streptococcus infections and diphtheria
compare the structures and functions of different types of biomolecules such as carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, and nucleic acids
investigate and identify the effects of enzymes on food molecules
interpret the functions of systems in organisms including circulatory, digestive, nervous, endocrine, reproductive, integumentary, skeletal, respiratory, muscular,
excretory, and immune
compare the interrelationships of organ systems to each other and to the body as a whole
identify and describe the relationships between internal feedback mechanisms in the maintenance of homeostasis
investigate and identify how organisms, including humans, respond to external stimuli
analyze the importance of nutrition, environmental conditions, and physical exercise on health
UNDERSTAN DINGS
ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS
Learners will understand that:
viruses and bacteria play essential roles in the
health and sickness of organisms.
What if bacteria did not exist?
Why can’t you get the same cold twice?
enzymes regulate physiological processes
including digestion
How come the doctor won't give me
antibiotics?
body systems must work together to maintain an
internal balance in organisms by responding to
both internal and external stimuli
How is it that I am I what I eat?
Why do I sweat (pee, etc)?
Students will know . . .
Students will do . . .
Human systems and how they interact
Evaluate enzyme graphs and nutrition labels
How organisms respond to stimuli in order
maintain homeostasis
Interpret examples of homeostasis through
investigations
All systems within an organism work together
to maintain homeostasis
Describe the role of viruses and bacteria in
causing disease and in maintaining health.
Enzymes are produced to help catalyze
reactions to maintain homeostasis
TOPIC: TAXONOMY
BIG IDEAS:
Scientific discoveries and technological innovation impact the way people live, work, and interact.
Scientists use the tools of technology to problem-solve, communicate, acquire new knowledge, and
evaluate information to get answers to their questions.
Systems are made of parts and can combine to form larger systems.
Change and constancy occur naturally or as a result of human impact.
Recognizing patterns helps predict what will happen next and what can change over time.
TEKS Knowledge Statement:
(8)The student understands applications of taxonomy and can identify its limitations.
(10) The student understands that, at all levels of nature, living systems are found within other living systems, each with its own
boundary and limits.
TEKS Skills Statements:
(A) collect and classify organisms at several taxonomic levels, such as species, phylum and kingdom using dichotomous keys.
(B) analyze the relationships among organism and develop a model of hierarchical classification system based on similarities and
differences using taxonomic nomenclature
(C) analyze and identify characteristics of plant systems and subsystems
UN D ER STA N DIN G S
Learners will understand that:
ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS
organisms are arranged in a hierarchical manner
In what ways are organisms alike and different from one
another?
organisms are classified into kingdoms based on a set of
common characteristics
scientists use various tools & systems to classify
organisms
no matter how organisms are classified, each method has
its limits
How are organisms (both living & extinct) organized?
To what extent can you sort out groups of organisms?
Can plants survive without us?
What are plants made of?
plants have different structures & adaptations for survival
Students will know . . .
Students will do . . .
Binomial nomenclature identifies each species by a
scientific name of two words accepted by speakers of all
languages, each name applies only to one species, and
each species has only one name
• Use dichotomous keys to identify organisms
Methods used to classify organisms, including the history
of classifying organisms, the 5 kingdom system, the 6
kingdom system, and the 3 domain system.
Levels of classification K, Ph, C, O, F, G, S
Characteristics of each individual kingdom and that an
organism belongs in a particular kingdom based on its
characteristics
The significance of specific plant structures &
adaptations necessary for survival
• Read a cladogram to analyze related species
• Do the taxonomy of their organism and determine what
other organisms this one is related to
• Place organisms into the correct kingdom based on their
characteristics.
• Compare and contrast characteristics of the different
kingdoms
• An independent plant investigation project to analyze the
purpose of different plant structures & adaptations and infer
its relationship to environmental conditions.
TOPIC: ECOLOGY
BIG IDEAS: Energy can change forms and transfer from one object to another.
Systems are made of parts and can combine to form larger systems.
Change and constancy occur naturally or as a result of human impact.
Objects respond when acted upon by a stimulus or force.
Science reflects, documents, and influences the values, ideas, and events throughout history.
Scientific discoveries and technological innovation impact the way people live, work, and interact.
TEKS Knowledge Statements:
(9) Student understand metabolic processes and energy transfers that occur in living organisms
(11) Students understand that organisms maintain homeostasis
(12) Students understand that interdependence and interactions occur within an ecosystem
(13) Students understand the significance of plants in the environment
TEKS Skills Statements:
(B) compare the energy flow in photosynthesis to the energy flow in cellular respiration
(D) analyze the flow of matter and energy through different trophic levels and between organisms and the physical environment
(A) analyze the flow of energy through various cycles including the carbon, oxygen, nitrogen, and water cycles
(B) interpret interactions among organisms exhibiting predation, parasitism, commensalism, and mutualism
(C) compare variations, tolerances, and adaptations of plants and animals in different biomes
(D) identify and illustrate that long-term survival of species is dependent on a resource base that may be limited
(E) investigate and explain the interactions in an ecosystem including food chains, food webs, and food pyramids
(D) summarize the role of microorganisms in maintaining and disrupting equilibrium including diseases in plants and animals and decay in an ecosystem
(A) evaluate the significance of structural and physiological adaptations of plants to their environments
(B) survey and identify methods of reproduction, growth, development of various types of plants
UNDE RSTA NDI NGS
Learners will understand that:
matter and energy are transferred throughout all levels of the
biosphere.
relationships and interactions between organisms and within
their environment affect each other and the environment
the environment takes actions to stay in balance at all levels:
within the organism, among organisms, within ecosystems, and
throughout the entire biosphere
ESSENTI AL Q UESTIO NS
How does an ecosystem respond to change?
How do adaptations aid in an organism’s survival?
Is life energy-efficient?
Could animals exist without plants?
Can we ever run out of oxygen?
plants are important to the environment in various ways
there are consequences of limited resources within any
environment
Students will know . . .
Students will do . . .
Levels of biosphere.
Interpret how changes in resources (both biotic & abiotic)
affect populations.
The environmental factors that affect organisms.
The role of predator prey relationship in the
determination of the ecosystem structure.
How to interpret food chains, webs, and pyramids.
The types of symbiosis
How matter and energy are cycled through water, carbon,
and nitrogen cycles.
How human and natural events can affect availability of
resources.
Compare physiological and structural adaptations of
organisms in different biomes.
investigate different types of food webs & energy
pyramids and explain what is going on within them
Recognize examples of symbiosis and give reasons for the
existence of these relationships
Describe the role of photosynthesis at the various levels of
the biosphere
Identify the role of microorganisms in the ecosystem.
TOPIC: CHANGE OVER TIME
BIG IDEAS: Change and constancy occur naturally or as a result of human impact.
Recognizing patterns helps predict what will happen next and what can change over time.
Scientific discoveries and technological innovation impact the way people live, work, and interact.
Science reflects, documents, and influences the values, ideas, and events throughout history.
Scientists use the tools of technology to problem-solve, communicate, acquire new knowledge, and evaluate information
to get answers to their questions.
TEKS Knowledge Statement:
(7) The student knows the theory of biological evolution.
TEKS Skill Statements:
(A) Identify evidence of change in species using fossils, DNA sequences, anatomical similarities,
physiological similarities and embryology.
(B) Illustrate the results of natural selection, speciation, diversity, phylogeny, adaptation, behavior and
extinction.
UNDERSTAN DINGS
Learners will understand that:
ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS
How do we know whales used to walk?
natural selection is a mechanism for evolution
Why don’t you need your appendix?
there is evidence to determine the relationships
between organisms
the role of natural selection in changing the
natural world
Why did the dinosaurs go extinct?
Why do new species appear?
Students will know . . .
Students will do . . .
Evolution is change over time
Compare structures of plants and animals from
different environments.
How to interpret a cladogram
Organisms change over time
The difference between vestigial, homologous,
and analogous structures
Ways
plants & animals behave within and
adapt to their environment or die
Explain real life examples of the results of
natural selection, speciation, diversity, phylogeny,
adaptation, behavior and extinction.
Construct a cladogram
Explain similarities and differences between and
among plants and animals
TOPIC: DNA / Genetics
BIG IDEAS: Scientific discoveries and technological innovation impact the way people live, work, and interact.
Scientists use the tools of technology to problem-solve, communicate, acquire new knowledge, and evaluate information to get answers to their
questions.
Change and constancy occur naturally or as a result of human impact.
How anything is made determines how it works.
Recognizing patterns helps predict what will happen next and what can change over time.
TEKS Knowledge Statements: (6) Students understand the structures and functions of nucleic acids in the mechanisms of genetics.
(9)Students understand metabolic processes and energy transfers that occur in living organisms
(13)Students knows the significance of plants in the environment
TEKS Skills Statements
(A) describe components of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), and illustrate how information for specifying the traits of an organism is carried in the DNA
(B) explain replication, transcription, and translation using models of DNA and ribonucleic acid (RNA)
(C) identify and illustrate how changes in DNA cause mutations and evaluate the significance of these changes
(D) compare genetic variations observed in plants and animals;
(E) compare the processes of mitosis and meiosis and their significance to sexual and asexual reproduction
(F) identify and analyze karyotypes
(A) compare the structures and functions of different types of biomolecules such as carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, and nucleic acids
(B) survey and identify methods of reproduction, growth, and development of various types of plants
UNDERSTAN DINGS
Learners will understand that:
ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS
the order of the nitrogen bases determine the genotype and
phenotype of an organism
What makes me unique?
Is a mutation always a bad thing?
the steps in the process of mitosis control if the daughter cell
will replicate exactly like the parent cell
the steps in the process of meiosis will influence the genetic
make-up of the offspring after the exchange of genetic material
between two species
What do DNA and RNA look like?
What happens when mitosis goes wrong?
Does it take two to tango?
DNA and chromosomal mutations impact natural selection
and are a response to changing environments
Students will know . . .
Students will do . . .
The differences between sexual and asexual
reproduction.
Construct a model of DNA
The differences between mitosis and meiosis: the initial
products, the processes, & their outcomes
Use replica of DNA & RNA to model replication,
transcription, & translation
DNA contains the genetic code because of structure,
shape, and base pairing
Sketch or use manipulatives to show how changes in DNA
cause mutations and decide if the changes are significant or
not
The structural differences between DNA and RNA and
how that contributes to their functions
Describe or diagram the processes of mitosis & meiosis
and explain their relevance to asexual & sexual reproduction
How DNA replicates itself and the process of RNA
transcription & translation to amino acids
Use Punnett squares and probability to find possible
genotypes & phenotypes, including sex-linked traits and
multiple alleles.
How mutations happen
How to use a Punnett square to predict genetic outcomes
Interpret and analyze karyotypes
Explain the role of mutations in evolution
TOPIC: CELL STRUCTURE / FUNCTION
BIG IDEAS: How anything is made determines how it works.
Objects respond when acted upon by a stimulus or force.
Systems are made of parts and can combine to form larger systems.
Scientists use the tools of technology to problem-solve, communicate, acquire new knowledge, and evaluate information to get answers to their
questions.
TEKS Knowledge Statement:
(4)Students understand that cells are the basic structures of all living things and have specialized parts
that perform specific functions, and that viruses are different from cells and have different properties and functions
(5)Students understand how an organism grows and how specialized cells, tissues, and organs develop
(9)Students understand metabolic processes and energy transfers that occur in living organisms
(10)Students understand that, at all levels of nature, living systems are found within other living systems, each with its own boundary and limits
TEKS Skill Statements:
(A) identify the parts of prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells
(B) investigate and identify cellular processes including homeostasis, permeability, energy production, transportation of molecules, disposal of wastes, function
of cellular parts, and synthesis of new molecules
(C) compare the structures and functions of viruses to cells and describe the role of viruses in causing diseases and conditions such as acquired immune
deficiency syndrome, common colds, smallpox, influenza, and warts
(D) identify and describe the role of bacteria in maintaining health such as in digestion and in causing diseases such as in streptococcus infections and diphtheria.
(A) compare cells from different parts of plants and animals including roots, stems, leaves, epithelia, muscles, and bones to show specialization of structure and
function
(B) identify cell differentiation in the development of organisms
(C) sequence the levels of organization in multicellular organisms to relate the parts to each other and to the whole
(B) compare the energy flow in photosynthesis to the energy flow in cellular respiration
(B) compare the interrelationships of organ systems to each other and to the body as a whole
UNDERSTAN DINGS
Learners will understand that:
ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS
cell parts and their processes are important to the overall
function of the organism
How did I get to be 100 Trillion cells big when I came
from one cell?
cell differentiation allows for organs with specialized
functions
How does a cell know what to let in and what to get rid
of? What if it didn’t know?
the energy flow in photosynthesis & cellular respiration
impact individual organism as well as the whole biosphere
Is there an energy crisis happening on the planet? What
about within my body?
cells use the elements contained in the biomolecules for
different cell processes
If "No man is an island", how many interdependent
systems am I a part of?
Students will know . . .
Students will do . . .
Cell structures
Organ systems are interdependent
Viruses are different from cells
Differences in prokaryotic cells and eukaryotic cells
How to operate a microscope
The path that energy takes from the sun to the cell parts
The structure of biomolecules as they relate to the cell
using them.
Compare and contrast a prokaryotic and eukaryotic cell
Recognize distinguishing characteristics of plant and
animal cells.
Use a microscope to discriminate among cells from
different parts of plants & animals including roots, stems,
leaves, epithelia, muscles, & bones to indicate specialization
of structure & function
Recognize reactants & products of photosynthesis &
cellular respiration and relate to the energy flow in each
Model and/or investigate cellular transport and describe
the structures involved
Recognize the molecules of life & what compounds they
are found in, what foods contain the compounds, what the
cell uses the compound for and what organelles primarily
use them