Jr. High Science

8th Grade Science

The students will finish up the diagrams of the Frog. I will be giving them the final section of vocabulary words on the Frog. The test on this section will be this Wednesday.  The students will have a test on all of the sections on Thursday, May 24th. We will be dissecting the frog on Tuesday, May 22nd & Wednesday, May 23rd.  We are going to finish up Biology before the year is up.

7th Grade Science

All week, the students will be working on the 3D Models for their Human Body projects.  They all have very creative ideas, and I cannot wait to display these projects. We will also be working on the presentations for this project.  Beginning Monday, May 21st, the students will present the projects to their class. We will continue reading about the Human Body through out the next couple of weeks.

Friday-there is No School!

8th Grade Science

Last week, we began Biology-Chapter 1.  The students were able to see what the first chapter of Biology will look like, and the enormous amount of topics that are in one small section of a chapter.  This week, the students will continue on with the chapter and we have our Frog Vocabulary quiz on section 1 on Tuesday.  I will be giving the students the second section of vocabulary right after we take the first test on Tuesday. This quiz will be on Friday. 

7th Grade Science

The students had a small quiz on Friday on the Digestive System and Nutrition. They will finish the quizzes up this week.  We will aslo type up our Final Copies of the Human Body Paper on Thursday.  I have the rough drafts to pass back to them.  All final copies are due this week, and next week the students will be working on the 2

8th Grade Science

This week, we will begin learning about the frog. The students will watch a small video on the frog, and the habitat that it lives in.  I will introduce them to new vocabulary terms that go along with the parts of the frog.  Also, we will be starting Biology, Chapter 1.  The students will be getting an inroduction of the topics that are in the Biology book, and what they will be learning in high school.  On Tuesday, May 1st, the students have a test on the vocabulary from pages 574 & 587, and on Thursday, May 3rd, they will have a test on the vocabulary from pages 600, 608, and 616.

7th Grade Science

The students have just completed the Digestive System, and nutrition.  We are going to move right into the next sections which are the heart, or muscular system, and the lymphatic system. There are Chapter Assessments in the book that the students will complete.  I will be counting these as test grades.  Last week, we began our project on the Human Body. By Friday, May 4th, the students need to turn in a rough draft of their papers for this project.  I will have these papers back to them by next Monday, so they can make their corrections and turn in a Final Copy by May 11th. Here is a list of what is left: May 7-11: Type of Final Copy-all papers are due by Friday, May 4th. May 14-18: Work on the 3D Model and Presentation. May 21st: We will begin to present the projects.

8th Grade Science

The students will be finishing up the rest of the body systems this week.  This will conclude the human body, and then we will move into the Frog.  Starting next week Monday, the students will receive the vocabulary terms for the parts of the frog.  My goal is to dissect the week of May 21st.  Even though we will be working on the Frog, the kids will learn about the first chapter of Biology too.  This week Tuesday, the students will have a quiz on the vocabulary for Sections 18.2 and 19.2, and then on Friday, they will have the next quiz from Sections 20.1 and 20.3. 

7th Grade Science

I began working on the Human Body Systems projects last week.  On my blog, I posted the objectives for this project.  During this week, the students will continue to look through their research, so they can continue writing their rough drafts for the paper.  In addition to this project, the students will continue with the chapters from the book.  We will cover the Digestive System this week. 

All Mathletics forms are due by this Friday!

The Human Body Systems Project-Due May 21, 2012

The students have been learning about the major systems of the body.  They will be completing a project that deals with a specific system and organ.  For example, a student can study the digestive system, and focus on the stomach.

Here is what the project will entail:

• Pick a human body system, and choose an organ located in that system.
• Research the system in our school library, public libraries, and the internet.
• Two books and one internet source will be needed.

Here are some questions to keep in mind:

1. Describe the system and the major functions of it.
2. Describe the organ, and how it functions.
3. Research any diseases/illnesses that can occur in this system.  Look at the causes and what would happen if this disease or illness takes over the entire system.
4. Discuss what you have learned about this system and organ.

I will have the students write a paper, and create a 3D model of their organ.  The students will have to label the parts of this organ, and it must be placed on some type of stand.  They will have class time to work on the projects too. All students will make a presentation on their 3D model and paper.  Students can work on the 3D models at home if they choose to.  Below is a list of dates for when everything will be due.

• May 1st-4th: Rough drafts will be completed by May 4th, and students will have time during this week to work on the rough drafts.       
• May 7th-11th: Final copies will be typed.  All final copies are due on May 11th.
• May 14th-18th: Work on the 3D Models and presentations.
• On Monday, May 21st: the students will begin presenting their projects.

I wrote up an outline for the paper that they will need to complete. This is in their Science notebooks.

Welcome back! I hope that all of you had a wonderful Easter Break.  I cannot believe it is the middle of April. Time is really going fast.  Here are the upcoming events for Jr. High Science.

8th Grade

We are going to be discussing the systems of the human body. This will help the students prepare for the frog dissection that we will be performing in May.  I am reviewing the systems, so that they will be able to understand the parts of the frog during the dissection.  I will have questions to go along with each system. 

7th Grade

We will be starting Chapter 19 Nutrients and Digestion.  We will discuss the first section this week which is specifically about the nutrients in our body.  On Wednesday, I will have an outline discussing the upcoming project on the human body. Before the Easter break, I had the students pair up and pick out a body system that they were interested in.  In this system, they had to pick out one specific part that they will research and present to the class, along with a 3D model that will be shown during their presentation.  The outline explains the entire project, and the only thing that will  be completed at home is the 3D model.  Everything else will be done in school. 

On Tuesday, we are headed to the Bulls/Sox Academy in Lisle.  Have a great week.

We have three days until our Easter Break!  All of the students and teachers need this time to relax and enjoy Easter with their families.  Hopefully, we will have great weather during this time.  Here is what we will be doing for these next three days.

7th Grade Science

We will be looking at the next Chapter in our textbook. This will be on the Digestive System.  I will be discussing an upcoming project that our 7th graders will be working on.  This project deals with the Human Body and the systems.  I will have more details once we come back from our Easter Break.

8th Grade Science

On Monday, the students will be presenting their Volcano Projects that we started last week Wednesday.  The students had to pair up with another student and research different volcanoes.  All presentations will be completed on Monday, so that any student who may not be in school Tuesday or Wednesday will be able to complete their presentation.  On Tuesday, I will talk to the students about Biology because we will be starting this once we get back from the break.  We will be going over the body systems of a frog to help prepare for dissecting.  Wednesday, the students will be watching Jesus Christ Superstar, so I will not see them. 

Have a wonderful Easter Break!

7th Grade Science

Last week, the students took a test on the major bones in the body.  Overall, many students did really well.  This week, we will finish up Chapter 18 Bones, Skin and Muscles.  The students will have a test on this Chapter on Thursday.  They have already started the study guide last week Friday, and will finish that by Tuesday.  I have a couple of things that I want to review with them before they take the test. 

8th Grade Science

The students have started learning about Volcanoes.  We will finish up this chapter before they leave for Easter break.  We watched a video on Volcanoes last Friday, so the students will have a small quiz.  I am also going to incorporate a couple of activities with this chapter. so that the students with have a clear idea of how volcanoes were formed. 

On Wednesday, March 28th, the 7th graders will be attending the book fair.

8th Grade Science

The 8th Grade students will be finishing up with Chapter 10 Plate Tectonics.  The students have created their own study guide for this chapter.  The students will have the test on Chapter 10 on Tuesday, March 20th.  They have known about this test since last week, so they should be fully prepared.  We are going to finish up one more chapter before our Easter Break.  We will be reading the chapter on Volcanoes.  This should be a review for the students because they have learned about volcanoes in their previous years here at SJF.  We will start this chapter on Wednesday.

7th Grade

We will continue with Chapter 18 Bones, Skin, and Muscles. We have just started Section 18.2 The Muscular System.  We will go over these notes today, and then we will be reading this section.  A reminder that the students have the Test for the Major Bones in our Body this Friday.  They have known about this since last week, so they should be fully prepared.  The Chapter 18 test will be next week Tuesday, March 27th.  The students will be creating a study guide to help them prepare for this test.

Have a great week!

8th Grade Science

We are starting our last section of Chapter 10. The students will have notes to take, and questions that will go along with the entire chapter.  The test for this chapter will be Tuesday, March 20th.  Once we complete this chapter, we will be on our last chapter before we begin Biology.  I want to start Biology right when we get back from Easter Break.

7th Grade Science

The students began notes for our next chapter which is on Bones, the Skin, and Muscles.  This chapter is pretty detailed, so we will take our time going through it.  I am trying to come up with something creative before our year ends, so once I have an idea I will post it on my blog.  Also, the students will be having a test on the Skeletal System on Friday, March 23rd.

Friday-the students can wear a “touch” of green for St. Patrick’s Day.