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PERIOD 1, 4, & 6 » Earth Science
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Earth Science
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Earth Science Topics Covered:
Chapter 12 & 13: Living Things and The Environment
Chapter 16: Rivers and Groundwater
Chapter 17: Erosion and Deposition
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Dear Parents and Students,
Our science class will soon begin exploring the chapter 12 entitled “Interactions of Living Things.” In this chapter, students will learn about the many ways in which living things interact with each other and their environment. By the end of the chapter, students should demonstrate a clear understanding of the chapter’s main ideas and be able to discuss the following topics:
1. the difference between a biotic and an abiotic environment (Section 1)
2. the five levels of environmental organization (Section 1)
3. the relationship between the abiotic environment and communities (Section 1)
4. the functions of the various components of an ecosystem (Section 2)
5. the differences between a food chain and a food web (Section 2)
6. energy flow through a food web (Section 2)
7. the two different types of competition (Section 3)
8. some examples of predators and prey (Section 3)
9. mutualism, commensalism, and parasitism (Section 3)
10. the definition of coevolution (Section 3)
Questions to Ask Along the Way
You can help your child learn about these topics by asking interesting questions as he or she progresses through the chapter. For example, you may wish to ask your son or daughter the following questions:
• Why is ecology important?
• What is one way that you affect living things other than people or pets?
• Where do we fit on the food chain?
• Can you think of two animals that live in the same environment without affecting each other?
Florida Sunshine State Standards
The following standards are addressed in this chapter:
D.1.3.2 knows that over the whole Earth, organisms are growing, dying, and decaying as new organisms are produced by the old ones.
D.1.3.4 AA knows the ways in which plants and animals reshape the landscape (e.g., bacteria, fungi, worms, rodents, and other organisms add organic matter to the soil, increasing the soil fertility, encouraging plant growth, and strengthening resistance to erosion).
G.1.3.4 AA knows that the interactions of organisms with each other and with the nonliving parts of their environments result in the flow of energy and the cycling of matter throughout the system.
G.2.3.2 CS knows that all biotic and abiotic factors are interrelated and that if one factor is changed or removed, it impacts the availability of other resources within the system.
G.2.3.3 CS knows that a brief change in the limited resources of an ecosystem may alter the size of a population or the average size of individual organisms and that long-term change may result in the elimination of animal and plant populations inhabiting the Earth.
The Internet at Home
If you have Internet service at home, you and your child can access information related to the chapter “Interactions of Living Things.” The following resources are available for use.
GO TO: www.scilinks.org
TOPIC: Biotic and Abiotic Factors sciLINKS NUMBER: HSM0164
TOPIC: Organization in the Environment sciLINKS NUMBER: HSM1079
TOPIC: Predator/Prey sciLINKS NUMBER: HSM1205
TOPIC: Food Chains and Food Webs sciLINKS NUMBER: HSM0594
TOPIC: Coevolution sciLINKS NUMBER: HSM0309
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Then our science class will soon begin exploring the chapter 13 entitled “Cycles in Nature.” In this chapter, students will learn about the cycles of the Earth. By the end of the chapter, students should demonstrate a clear understanding of the chapter’s main ideas and be able to discuss the following topics:
1. the cycle of water in the atmosphere, land, and oceans (Section 1)
2. the steps in the carbon cycle and the importance of the carbon cycle to living things (Section1)
3. the steps in the nitrogen cycle and the importance of the nitrogen cycle to living things (Section 1)
4. the meaning of succession (Section 2)
5. the differences between primary and secondary succession (Section 2)
Questions to Ask Along the Way
You can help your son or daughter learn about these topics by asking interesting questions as he or she progresses through the chapter. For example, you may wish to ask your son or daughter the following questions:
• Does water naturally get recycled?
• What happens to animals after they die? Where do their bodies go?
• When you exhale, how does it help plants?
• What would happen if no one in your neighborhood maintained their yards for a year? for 20
years?
Florida Sunshine State Standards
The following standards are addressed in this chapter:
D.1.3.4 AA knows the ways in which plants and animals reshape the landscape (e.g., bacteria, fungi, worms, rodents, and other organisms add organic matter to the soil, increasing soil fertility, encouraging plant growth, and strengthening resistance to erosion).
D.2.3.2 knows the positive and negative consequences of human action on the Earth’s systems.
G.1.3.4 AA knows that the interactions of organisms with each other and with the non-living parts of their environments result in the flow of energy and the cycling of matter throughout the system.
G.1.3.5 knows that life is maintained by a continuous input of energy from the sun and by the recycling of the atoms that make up the molecules of living things.
G.2.3.4 AA understands that humans are a part of an ecosystem and their activities may deliberately or inadvertently alter the equilibrium in ecosystems.
The Internet at Home
If you have Internet service at home, you and your child can access information related to the chapter “Cycles in Nature.”
GO TO: www.scilinks.org
TOPIC: Cycles of Matter sciLINKS NUMBER: HSM0373
TOPIC: Succession sciLINKS NUMBER: HSM1475
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Next our science class will soon begin exploring the chapter 16 entitled “Rivers and Groundwater.” In this chapter, students will learn about river and stream development and how water changes the face of the planet. By the end of the chapter, students should demonstrate a clear understanding of the chapter’s main ideas and should be able to discuss the following topics:
1. the water cycle (Section 1)
2. drainage basins (Section 1)
3. the factors that affect the rate of stream erosion (Section 1)
4. the four stages of river development (Section 1)
5. the different types of stream deposits (Section 2)
6. the relationship between rich agricultural regions and river flood plains (Section 2)
7. the location of a water table (Section 3)
8. the characteristics of an aquifer (Section 3)
9. the formation of caves and sinkholes as a result of erosion and deposition (Section 3)
10. the stages of water treatment at a sewage treatment plant (Section 4)
11. the similarities and differences between a septic system and a sewage treatment plant (Section 4)
Questions to Ask Along the Way
You can help your child learn about these topics by asking relevant questions as he or she progresses through the chapter. For example, you may wish to ask your son or daughter the following questions:
• If all rivers flow downhill, why do some of them seem to curve more than others?
• Where does the water in rivers come from?
• Where does our tap water come from?
• Why is it important to conserve water?
Florida Sunshine State Standards
The following standards are addressed in this chapter:
D.1.3.1 CS knows that mechanical and chemical activities shape and reshape the Earth’s land surface by eroding rock and soil in some areas and depositing them in other areas, sometimes in seasonal layers.
D.1.3.5 CS understands concepts of time and size relating to the interaction of Earth’s processes.
D.2.3.2 knows the positive and negative consequences of human action on the Earth’s systems.
G.2.3.2 CS knows that all biotic and abiotic factors are interrelated and that if one factor is changed or removed, it impacts the availability of other resources within the system.
G.2.3.3 CS knows that a brief change in the limited resources of an ecosystem may alter the size of a population or the average size of an organism and that long-term change may result in the elimination of animal and plant populations inhabiting the Earth.
G.2.3.4 AA understands that humans are a part of an ecosystem and their activities may deliberately or inadvertently alter the equilibrium in ecosystems.
The Internet at Home
If you have Internet service at home, you and your child can access information related to the chapter “Rivers and Groundwater.”
GO TO: www.scilinks.org
TOPIC: Water Erosion sciLINKS NUMBER: HSM1627
TOPIC: Rivers and Streams sciLINKS NUMBER: HSM1316
TOPIC: Water Underground sciLINKS NUMBER: HSM1633
TOPIC: Water Pollution and Conservation sciLINKS NUMBER: HSM1630
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This unit will finish by exploring the chapter 17 entitled “Agents of Erosion and Deposition.”
1. how storms and wave erosion are connected (Section 1)
2. how waves break in shallow water (Section 1)
3. how beaches form (Section 1)
4. what types of coastal landforms are created by wave action (Section 1)
5. why areas composed of fine materials are vulnerable to wind erosion (Section 2)
6. how wind moves sand and fine materials (Section 2)
7. what the effects of wind erosion are (Section 2)
8. how dunes and loess differ (Section 2)
9. why glaciers are important agents of erosion and deposition (Section 3)
10. how ice in a glacier flows (Section 3)
11. what some of the landforms eroded by glaciers are (Section 3)
12. what some of the landforms deposited by glaciers are (Section 3)
13. how slope is related to mass movement (Section 4)
14. what different types of mass movement exist (Section 4)
Questions to Ask Along the Way
You can help your child learn about these topics by asking interesting questions as he or she progresses through the chapter. For example, you may wish to ask your son or daughter the following questions:
• Why do beaches look different all over the world?
• Do glaciers really move?
• Can wind be powerful enough to affect a landscape?
• What types of natural factors have affected the landscape of your neighborhood?
Florida Sunshine State Standards
The following standards are addressed in this chapter:
In this chapter, students will learn about the many natural factors that change the landscape of the Earth. By the end of the chapter, students should demonstrate a clear understanding of the chapter’s main ideas and be able to discuss the following topics:B.1.3.6 AA knows the properties of waves (e.g., frequency, wavelength, and amplitude); that each wave consists of a number of crests and troughs; and the effects of different media on waves.
D.1.3.1 CS knows that mechanical and chemical activities shape and reshape the Earth’s land surface by eroding rock and soil in some areas and depositing them in other areas, sometimes in seasonal layers.
D.1.3.5 CS understands concepts of time and size relating to the interaction of Earth’s processes.
G.2.3.4 AA understands that humans are a part of an ecosystem and their activities may deliberately or inadvertently alter the equilibrium in ecosystems.
G.1.3.4 AA knows that the interactions of organisms with each other and with the nonliving parts of their environments result in the flow of energy and the cycling of matter throughout the system.
The Internet at Home
If you have Internet service at home, you and your child can access information related to the chapter “Agents of Erosion and Deposition.”
TOPIC: Wave Erosion sciLINKS NUMBER: HSM1638
TOPIC: Wind Erosion sciLINKS NUMBER: HSM1669
TOPIC: Glaciers sciLINKS NUMBER: HSM0675
TOPIC: Mass Movements sciLINKS NUMBER: HSM0917
Thank you for your time and interest.
Sincerely,
Ms. Luft
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Mrs. Luft
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