3.3 & 3.4: Energy in Reactions

This week we finish our Chemical Reactions unit as we look at bond energy and real-life examples. Be able to...

Describe energy change in a chemical reaction.
Give examples of how living things use chemical reactions to create and store energy.

These are also our choices on Contract 24.

3.1 & 3.2: Chemical Reactions

This week we are discussing chemical reactions so that when we can eventually do a few reactions in a lab and know whats going on. So...

What is going on during a chemical reaction?

We also learn that because of the Law of Conservation of Mass, what goes in must come out. While molecules are rearranged, the type and number of atoms stay the same in a reaction. So...

Balance the following Equation:

NO + H2 -> NH3 + H2O

Have you found a reaction you want balanced in your Contract 23 research? Post it!

2.3 & 2.3: Chemical Bonds

We just finished up our "scavenger hunt" of chemical bonds today.

What items do you find around your house that we use because of their unique bond properties?

Contract 22 focuses on Covalent and Ionic bonding.

1.2 & 1.3: The Periodic Table of Elements

This week we wrap up atomic structure with the Periodic Table.

What are the different groups or families on the Periodic Table?
Why are those groups seperated in the ways they are?

Contract 20 will finish up our ceiling Periodic Table.

1.1: Atomic Structure

This week we begin our physical science unit with a look at the basic building materials of our universe: Elements.

A few questions:
What is the structure of an atom?
How does this structure influence the properties of the element?

...and your questions:
What are protons, neutrons, and electrons made of?
Can those subatomic particles change their shape?
How do we know that those particles are even there?
How do stars create elements?
Why do elements give off certain colors?
How do ions form?
Why do atoms combine with other atoms instead of staying as just one atom?
What keeps electrons from becoming attached to protons in the nucleus?

Challenge: Physicists try to describe our vast universe by studying the smallest parts of an atom in Quantum Physics. Try and explain the Quantum Theory. What is Quanta? Explain the String Theory.

We crossover with the unique element writing project for Language Arts. This week, show the structure of your element by building a model for Contract 19.

4.3: Oceans as a Natural Resource

What do we take from the oceans? How does it affect our daily lives? How does our use of these resources affect the world we live in? Those are a few of the questions we will ponder this week.

We will also be doing a lab activity after watching the Nature feature Crash: A Tale of Two Species.

See if you can find information on the sturgeon and the paddlefish, two other "living fossils" a bit closer to home.

This weeks Contract 18 looks at the cause and effect related to our use of natural resources found in the ocean.

4.1 & 4.2: Ocean Environments

One of the main concepts that spans all the science we cover in eighth grade is that things change over time. For organisms, these changes are usually in response to the environment. In this chapter we take a look at many different ocean environments. We also study the organisms in each biome.

What are the different zones in the ocean?
How do these zones differ from each other?
What are some adaptations that organisms have to live in these different zones?

This weeks contract can be found at Contract 17.