7th Grade Science

SEVENTH GRADE
CONTENT STRANDS:
Life Science (L) Earth and Space Science (E)
Physical Science (P)
COMPETENCIES and Suggested Teaching Objectives:
1. Compare and contrast structure and function in living systems. (L)
a. Compare and contrast plant and animal cells through investigations.
b. Describe the process of respiration and the use of its products.
c. Illustrate the parts of the digestive system and the interaction of each part.
d. Illustrate the parts of and interaction between the respiratory and circulatory
system.
e. Illustrate the parts of the excretory system and the interaction of each part.
1. Explore the processes of the reproduction and heredity of organisms.
(L)
a. Distinguish genes as sections of DNA molecules that carry the genetic
code for inherited traits.
b. Examine the concepts of homozygous and heterozygous traits.
c. Explain mitosis and relate it to an organism’s growth and repair processes.
3. Determine how organisms co-exist in their environment. (L)
a. Demonstrate that cells interact with their environment.
b. Investigate homeostasis as it relates to plants and animals.
4. Explore how environmental factors of population influence the
formation of an ecosystem. (L,E)
a. Describe the process of photosynthesis and the use of its products.
b. Design an experiment in plant behavior to include responses to water,
gravity, and light.
c. Investigate and research environmental concerns of the land, water, and
air.
d. Analyze the importance of biological diversity in communities and
ecosystems.
2001 Mississippi Science Framework
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5. Examine survival strategies of organisms over many generations. (L)
a. Apply concepts of adaptation by analyzing how organisms are classified into
groups and subgroups.
b. Research animal adaptations and behaviors as related to survival strategies.
c. Explain how natural and man-made pressures cause extinction.
6. Explore the composition and changes of the Earth system. (E,P)
a. Identify minerals by using any or all of the following tests: streak,
cleavage, fracture, hardness, specific gravity, and special properties.
b. Research and explain how crustal movements result in earthquakes, volcanoes,
mountain formation, etc.
c. Distinguish between chemical and physical weathering.
d. Identify how forces such as erosion and deposition create landforms.
e. Research landforms and fossils specific to Mississippi.
f. Compare properties and composition of salt water, fresh water, and brackish
water.
g. Investigate the interactive forces that produce weather to include moisture,
temperature, fronts, air masses, and cloud formations.
7. Explain the causes of lunar phases, eclipses, and Earth’s seasons. (E)
a. Distinguish between radiating objects (the sun and the stars) and reflecting
objects (the planets and their moons).
b. Characterize lunar phases in terms of their appearance, their visibility at a given
time of day or night, and their progression through time.
c. Illustrate the relationship between lunar phases and the phase angle between
the sun and the moon as seen from Earth.
d. Illustrate the alignments of the Earth, the moon, and the sun, which give rise to
solar and lunar eclipses and explain why these eclipses do not occur every
month.
e. Explain how the position of the earth in relation to the sun has an effect on
seasonal weather changes.
8. Investigate chemical and physical properties of matter. (P)
a. Determine and measure experimentally: boiling point, melting point,
density, and solubility.
b. Demonstrate understanding that chemical and physical properties determine a
substance’s identity.
c. Compare common metals, nonmetals, and metalloids by name, symbol, and
characteristics.
d. Recognize elements that will combine to form compounds.
e. Relate density to mass and volume.
2001 Mississippi Science Framework
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9. Investigate motions and forces. (P)
a. Using SI units, measure and graph the motion of an object by its position,
direction of motion, and speed.
b. Investigate Newton’s Laws of Motion.
c. Using the scientific method, design an experiment to test how different types of
surfaces affect friction.
10. Investigate the sources of energy. (P, E)
a. Investigate the sun as a major source of energy.
b. Compare and contrast how the three forms of thermal energy flow.
c. Research one or more of the sources of energy (nuclear, solar, wind,
geothermal, hydro).
Reprinted with permission from the National Science Education Standards,