Students demonstrate an understanding of how living systems function and how they interact with the physical environment. This includes an understanding of the cycling of matter and flow of energy in living systems. An understanding of the characteristics, structure and function of cells, organisms and living systems will be developed. Students will also develop a deeper understanding of the principles of heredity, biological evolution, and the diversity and interdependence of life. Students demonstrate an understanding of different historical perspectives, scientific approaches and emerging scientific issues associated with the life sciences.
 
Benchmark A: Explain that cells are the basic unit of structure and function of living organisms, that once life originated all cells come from pre-existing cells, and that there are a variety of cell types.
Grade Nine
 No indicators present for this benchmark.
 Grade Ten
Characteristics and Structure of Life
  1. Explain that living cells
a.   are composed of a small number of key chemical elements (carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, phosphorus and sulfur)
b.   are the basic unit of structure and function of all living things
c.   come from pre-existing cells after life originated, and
d.   are different from viruses
  2. Compare the structure, function and interrelatedness of cell organelles in eukaryotic cells (e.g., nucleus, chromosome, mitochondria, cell membrane, cell wall, chloroplast, cilia, flagella) and prokaryotic cells.
 
Benchmark B: Explain the characteristics of life as indicated by cellular processes and describe the process of cell division and development.
Grade Nine
 No indicators present for this benchmark.
 Grade Ten
Characteristics and Structure of Life
  3. Explain the characteristics of life as indicated by cellular processes including:
a. homeostasis
b. energy transfers and transformation
c. transportation of molecules
d. disposal of wastes
e. synthesis of new molecules
  4. Summarize the general processes of cell division and differentiation, and explain why specialized cells are useful to organisms and explain that complex multicellular organisms are formed as highly organized arrangements of differentiated cells.
 
Benchmark C: Explain the genetic mechanisms and molecular basis of inheritance.
Grade Nine
 No indicators present for this benchmark.
 Grade Ten
Heredity
  5. Illustrate the relationship of the structure and function of DNA to protein synthesis and the characteristics of an organism.
  6. Explain that a unit of hereditary information is called a gene, and genes may occur in different forms called alleles (e.g., gene for pea plant height has two alleles, tall and short).
   7. Describe that spontaneous changes in DNA are mutations, which are a source of genetic variation. When mutations occur in sex cells, they may be passed on to future generations; mutations that occur in body cells may affect the functioning of that cell or the organism in which that cell is found.
  8. Use the concepts of Mendelian and non-Mendelian genetics (e.g., segregation, independent assortment, dominant and recessive traits, sex-linked traits and jumping genes) to explain inheritance.
 
Benchmark D: Explain the flow of energy and the cycling of matter through biological and ecological systems (cellular, organismal and ecological).
Grade Nine
 No indicators present for this benchmark.
 Grade Ten
Diversity and Interdependence of Life
  9. Describe how matter cycles and energy flows through different levels of organization in living systems and between living systems and the physical environment. Explain how some energy is stored and much is dissipated into the environment as thermal energy (e.g., food webs and energy pyramids).
 10. Describe how cells and organisms acquire and release energy (photosynthesis, chemosynthesis, cellular respiration and fermentation).
 11. Explain that living organisms use matter and energy to synthesize a variety of organic molecules (e.g., proteins, carbohydrates, lipids and nucleic acids) and to drive life processes (e.g., growth, reacting to the environment, reproduction and movement).
 
Benchmark E: Explain how evolutionary relationships contribute to an understanding of the unity and diversity of life.
Grade Nine
 No indicators present for this benchmark.
 Grade Ten
Diversity and Interdependence of Life
 12. Describe that biological classification represents how organisms are related with species being the most fundamental unit of the classification system. Relate how biologists arrange organisms into a hierarchy of groups and subgroups based on similarities and differences that reflect their evolutionary relationships.
 13. Explain that the variation of organisms within a species increases the likelihood that at least some members of a species will survive under gradually changing environmental conditions.
 14. Relate diversity and adaptation to structures and their functions in living organisms (e.g., adaptive radiation).
 
Benchmark F: Explain the structure and function of ecosystems and relate how ecosystems change over time.
Grade Nine
 No indicators present for this benchmark.
 Grade Ten
Diversity and Interdependence of Life
 15. Explain how living things interact with biotic and abiotic components of the environment (e.g., predation, competition, natural disasters and weather).
 16. Relate how distribution and abundance of organisms and populations in ecosystems are limited by the ability of the ecosystem to recycle materials and the availability of matter, space and energy.
 17. Conclude that ecosystems tend to have cyclic fluctuations around a state of approximate equilibrium that can change when climate changes, when one or more new species appear as a result of immigration or when one or more species disappear.
 
Benchmark G: Describe how human activities can impact the status of natural systems.
Grade Nine
 No indicators present for this benchmark.
 Grade Ten
Diversity and Interdependence of Life
 18. Describe ways that human activities can deliberately or inadvertently alter the equilibrium in ecosystems. Explain how changes in technology/biotechnology can cause significant changes, either positive or negative, in environmental quality and carrying capacity.
 19. Illustrate how uses of resources at local, state, regional, national, and global levels have affected the quality of life (e.g., energy production and sustainable vs. nonsustainable agriculture).
 
Benchmark H: Describe a foundation of biological evolution as the change in gene frequency of a population over time. Explain the historical and current scientific developments, mechanisms and processes of biological evolution.
Grade Nine
 No indicators present for this benchmark.
 Grade Ten
Evolutionary Theory
 20. Recognize that a change in gene frequency (genetic composition) in a population over time is a foundation of biological evolution.
 21. Explain that natural selection provides the following mechanism for evolution; undirected variation in inherited characteristics exist within every species. These characteristics may give individuals an advantage or disadvantage compared to others in surviving and reproducing. The advantaged offspring are more likely to survive and reproduce. Therefore, the proportion of individuals that have advantageous characteristics will increase. When an environment changes, the survival value of some inherited characteristics may change.
 22. Describe historical scientific developments that occurred in evolutionary thought (e.g., Lamarck and Darwin, Mendelian Genetics and modern synthesis).
 
Benchmark I: Explain how natural selection and other evolutionary mechanisms account for the unity and diversity of past and present life forms.
Grade Nine
 No indicators present for this benchmark.
 Grade Ten
Evolutionary Theory
 24. Analyze how natural selection and other evolutionary mechanisms (e.g. genetic drift, immigration, emigration, mutation) and their consequences provide a scientific explanation for the diversity and unity of past life forms, as depicted in the fossil record, and present life forms.
 25. Explain that life on Earth is thought to have begun as simple, one celled organisms approximately 4 billion years ago. During most of the history of Earth only single celled microorganisms existed, but once cells with nuclei developed about a billion years ago, increasingly complex multicellular organisms evolved.
 
Benchmark J: Summarize the historical development of scientific theories and ideas, and describe emerging issues in the study of life sciences.
Grade Nine
 No indicators present for this benchmark.
 Grade Ten
Historical Perspectives and Scientific Revolutions
 26. Use historical examples to explain how new ideas are limited by the context in which they are conceived. These ideas are often rejected by the scientific establishment; sometimes spring from unexpected findings; and usually grow slowly through contributions from many different investigators (e.g., biological evolution, germ theory, biotechnology and discovering germs).
 27. Describe advances in life sciences that have important long-lasting effects on science and society (e.g., biological evolution, germ theory, biotechnology and discovering germs).
 28. Analyze and investigate emerging scientific issues (e.g., genetically modified food, stem cell research, genetic research and cloning).

Students demonstrate an understanding of the composition of physical systems and the concepts and principles that describe and predict physical interactions and events in the natural world. This includes demonstrating an understanding of the structure and properties of matter, the properties of materials and objects, chemical reactions and the conservation of matter. In addition, it includes understanding the nature, transfer and conservation of energy; motion and the forces affecting motion; and the nature of waves and interactions of matter and energy. Students demonstrate an understanding of the historical perspectives, scientific approaches and emerging scientific issues associated with the physical sciences.
 
Benchmark A: Describe that matter is made of minute particles called atoms and atoms are comprised of even smaller components. Explain the structure and properties of atoms.
Grade Nine
Nature of Matter
  1. Recognize that all atoms of the same element contain the same number of protons, and elements with the same number of protons may or may not have the same mass. Those with different masses (different numbers of neutrons) are called isotopes.
  2. Illustrate that atoms with the same number of positively charged protons and negatively charged electrons are electrically neutral.
  4. Show that when elements are listed in order according to the number of protons (called the atomic number), the repeating patterns of physical and chemical properties identify families of elements. Recognize that the periodic table was formed as a result of the repeating pattern of electron configurations.
  5. Describe how ions are formed when an atom or a group of atoms acquire an unbalanced charge by gaining or losing one or more electrons.
 Grade Ten
 No indicators present for this benchmark.

Benchmark B: Explain how atoms react with each other to form other substances and how molecules react with each other or other atoms to form even different substances. Grade Nine
Nature of Matter
  6.  Explain that the electric force between the nucleus and the electrons hold an atom together. Relate that on a larger scale, electric forces hold solid and liquid materials together (e.g., salt crystals and water).
  7. Show how atoms may be bonded together by losing, gaining or sharing electrons and that in a chemical reaction, the number, type of atoms and total mass must be the same before and after the reaction (e.g., writing correct chemical formulas and writing balanced chemical equations).
  8. Demonstrate that the pH scale (0-14) is used to measure acidity and classify substances or solutions as acidic, basic, or neutral.
 Grade Ten
 No indicators present for this benchmark.
 
Benchmark C: Describe the identifiable physical properties of substances (e.g., color, hardness, conductivity, density, concentration and ductility). Explain how changes in these properties can occur without changing the chemical nature of the substance.
Grade Nine
Nature of Matter
  9. Investigate the properties of pure substances and mixtures (e.g., density, conductivity, hardness, properties of alloys, superconductors and semiconductors).
 10. Compare the conductivity of different materials and explain the role of electrons in the ability to conduct electricity.
 Grade Ten
 No indicators present for this benchmark.

 Benchmark D: Explain the movement of objects by applying Newton’s three laws of motion.
Grade Nine
Forces and Motion
 21. Demonstrate that motion is a measurable quantity that depends on the observer’s frame of reference and describe the object’s motion in terms of position, velocity, acceleration and time.
 22. Demonstrate that any object does not accelerate (remains at rest or maintains a constant speed and direction of motion) unless an unbalanced (net) force acts on it.
 23. Explain the change in motion (acceleration) of an object. Demonstrate that the acceleration is proportional to the net force acting on the object and inversely proportional to the mass of the object. (Fnet=ma. Note that weight is the gravitational force on a mass.)
 24. Demonstrate that whenever one object exerts a force on another, an equal amount of force is exerted back on the first object.
 25. Demonstrate the ways in which frictional forces constrain the motion of objects (e.g., a car traveling around a curve, a block on an inclined plane, a person running, an airplane in flight).
Grade Ten
 No indicators present for this benchmark.
 
Benchmark E: Demonstrate that energy can be considered to be either kinetic (motion) or potential (stored).
Grade Nine
Nature of Energy
 12. Explain how an object’s kinetic energy depends on its mass and its speed (KE=½mv 2).
 13. Demonstrate that near Earth’s surface an object’s gravitational potential energy depends upon its weight (mg where m is the object’s mass and g is the acceleration due to gravity) and height (h) above a reference surface (PE=mgh).
 Grade Ten
 No indicators present for this benchmark.
 
Benchmark F: Explain how energy may change form or be redistributed but the total quantity of energy is conserved.
Grade Nine
Nature of Matter
  3. Describe radioactive substances as unstable nuclei that undergo random spontaneous nuclear decay emitting particles and/or high energy wavelike radiation.
Nature of Energy
 11. Explain how thermal energy exists in the random motion and vibrations of atoms and molecules. Recognize that the higher the temperature, the greater the average atomic or molecular motion, and during changes of state the temperature remains constant.
 14. Summarize how nuclear reactions convert a small amount of matter into a large amount of energy. (Fission involves the splitting of a large nucleus into smaller nuclei; fusion is the joining of two small nuclei into a larger nucleus at extremely high energies.)
 15. Trace the transformations of energy within a system (e.g., chemical to electrical to mechanical) and recognize that energy is conserved. Show that these transformations involve the release of some thermal energy.
 16. Illustrate that chemical reactions are either endothermic or exothermic (e.g., cold packs, hot packs and the burning of fossil fuels).
 17. Demonstrate that thermal energy can be transferred by conduction, convection or radiation (e.g., through materials by the collision of particles, moving air masses or across empty space by forms of electromagnetic radiation).
 Grade Ten
 No indicators present for this benchmark.

 Benchmark G: Demonstrate that waves (e.g., sound, seismic, water and light) have energy and waves can transfer energy when they interact with matter.
Grade Nine
Nature of Energy
 18. Demonstrate that electromagnetic radiation is a form of energy. Recognize that light acts as a wave. Show that visible light is a part of the electromagnetic spectrum (e.g., radio waves, microwaves, infrared, visible light, ultraviolet, X-rays, and gamma rays).
 19. Show how the properties of a wave depend on the properties of the medium through which it travels. Recognize that electromagnetic waves can be propagated without a medium.
 20. Describe how waves can superimpose on one another when propagated in the same medium. Analyze conditions in which waves can bend around corners, reflect off surfaces, are absorbed by materials they enter, and change direction and speed when entering a different material.
 Grade Ten
 No indicators present for this benchmark.
 
Benchmark H: Trace the historical development of scientific theories and ideas, and describe emerging issues in the study of physical sciences.
Grade Nine
Historical Perspectives and Scientific Revolutions
 26. Use historical examples to explain how new ideas are limited by the context in which they are conceived; are often initially rejected by the scientific establishment; sometimes spring from unexpected findings; and usually grow slowly through contributions from many different investigators (e.g., atomic theory, quantum theory and Newtonian mechanics).
 27. Describe advances and issues in physical science that have important, long-lasting effects on science and society (e.g., atomic theory, quantum theory, Newtonian mechanics, nuclear energy, nanotechnology, plastics, ceramics and communication technology).
 Grade Ten
 No indicators present for this benchmark.
 

Students recognize that science and technology are interconnected and that using technology involves assessment of the benefits, risks and costs. Students should build scientific and technological knowledge, as well as the skill required to design and construct devices. In addition, they should develop the processes to solve problems and understand that problems may be solved in several ways.
 
Benchmark A: Explain the ways in which the processes of technological design respond to the needs of society.
Grade Nine
Abilities To Do Technological Design
  2. Identify a problem or need, propose designs and choose among alternative solutions for the problem.
  3. Explain why a design should be continually assessed and the ideas of the design should be tested, adapted and refined.
 Grade Ten
Abilities To Do Technological Design
  3. Explain that when evaluating a design for a device or process, thought should be given to how it will be manufactured, operated, maintained, replaced and disposed of in addition to who will sell, operate and take care of it. Explain how the costs associated with these considerations may introduce additional constraints on the design.
 
Benchmark B: Explain that science and technology are interdependent; each drives the other.
Grade Nine
Understanding Technology
  1. Describe means of comparing the benefits with the risks of technology and how science can inform public policy.
 Grade Ten
Understanding Technology
  1. Cite examples of ways that scientific inquiry is driven by the desire to understand the natural world and how technology is driven by the need to meet human needs and solve human problems.
  2. Describe examples of scientific advances and emerging technologies and how they may impact society.

Students develop scientific habits of mind as they use the processes of scientific inquiry to ask valid questions and to gather and analyze information. They understand how to develop hypotheses and make predictions. They are able to reflect on scientific practices as they develop plans of action to create and evaluate a variety of conclusions. Students are also able to demonstrate the ability to communicate their findings to others.
 
Benchmark A: Participate in and apply the processes of scientific investigation to create models and to design, conduct, evaluate and communicate the results of these investigations.
Grade Nine
Doing Scientific Inquiry
  1. Distinguish between observations and inferences given a scientific situation.
  2. Research and apply appropriate safety precautions when designing and conducting scientific investigations (e.g., OSHA, Material Safety Data Sheets [MSDS], eyewash, goggles and ventilation).
  3. Construct, interpret and apply physical and conceptual models that represent or explain systems, objects, events or concepts.
  4. Decide what degree of precision based on the data is adequate and round off the results of calculator operations to the proper number of significant figures to reasonably reflect those of the inputs.
  5. Develop oral and written presentations using clear language, accurate data, appropriate graphs, tables, maps and available technology.
  6. Draw logical conclusions based on scientific knowledge and evidence from investigations.
 Grade Ten
Doing Scientific Inquiry
  1. Research and apply appropriate safety precautions when designing and conducting scientific investigations (e.g. OSHA, MSDS, eyewash, goggles and ventilation).
  2. Present scientific findings using clear language, accurate data, appropriate graphs, tables, maps and available technology.
   3. Use mathematical models to predict and analyze natural phenomena.
  4. Draw conclusions from inquiries based on scientific knowledge and principles, the use of logic and evidence (data) from investigations.
  5. Explain how new scientific data can cause any existing scientific explanation to be supported, revised or rejected.

Students realize that the current body of scientific knowledge must be based on evidence, be predictive, logical, subject to modification and limited to the natural world. This includes demonstrating an understanding that scientific knowledge grows and advances as new evidence is discovered to support or modify existing theories, as well as to encourage the development of new theories. Students are able to reflect on ethical scientific practices and demonstrate an understanding of how the current body of scientific knowledge reflects the historical and cultural contributions of women and men who provide us with a more reliable and comprehensive understanding of the natural world.
 
Benchmark A: Explain that scientific knowledge must be based on evidence, be predictive, logical, subject to modification and limited to the natural world.
Grade Nine
Nature of Science
  1. Comprehend that many scientific investigations require the contributions of women and men from different disciplines in and out of science. These people study different topics, use different techniques and have different standards of evidence but share a common purpose - to better understand a portion of our universe.
  3. Demonstrate that reliable scientific evidence improves the ability of scientists to offer accurate predictions.
 Grade Ten
Nature of Science
  1. Discuss science as a dynamic body of knowledge that can lead to the development of entirely new disciplines.
  2. Describe that scientists may disagree about explanations of phenomena, about interpretation of data or about the value of rival theories, but they do agree that questioning, response to criticism and open communication are integral to the process of science.
  3. Recognize that science is a systematic method of continuing investigation, based on observation, hypothesis testing, measurement, experimentation, and theory building, which leads to more adequate explanations of natural phenomena.

 Benchmark B: Explain how scientific inquiry is guided by knowledge, observations, ideas and questions.
Grade Nine
Scientific Theories
  5. Justify that scientific theories are explanations of large bodies of information and/or observations that withstand repeated testing.
  6. Explain that inquiry fuels observation and experimentation that produce data that are the foundation of scientific disciplines. Theories are explanations of these data.
  7. Recognize that scientific knowledge and explanations have changed over time, almost always building on earlier knowledge.
 Grade Ten
 No indicators present for this benchmark.
 
Benchmark C: Describe the ethical practices and guidelines in which science operates.
Grade Nine
Nature of Science
  2. Illustrate that the methods and procedures used to obtain evidence must be clearly reported to enhance opportunities for further investigations.
Ethical Practices
  4. Explain how support of ethical practices in science (e.g., individual observations and confirmations, accurate reporting, peer review and publication) are required to reduce bias.
 Grade Ten
Ethical Practices
  4. Recognize that ethical considerations limit what scientists can do.
  5. Recognize that research involving voluntary human subjects should be conducted only with the informed consent of the subjects and follow rigid guidelines and/or laws.
  6. Recognize that animal-based research must be conducted according to currently accepted professional standards and laws.
 
Benchmark D: Recognize that scientific literacy is part of being a knowledgeable citizen.
Grade Nine
Science and Society
  8. Illustrate that much can be learned about the internal workings of science and the nature of science from the study of scientists, their daily work and their efforts to advance scientific knowledge in their area of study.
  9. Investigate how the knowledge, skills and interests learned in science classes apply to the careers students plan to pursue.
 Grade Ten
Science and Society
  7. Investigate how the knowledge, skills and interests learned in science classes apply to the careers students plan to pursue.