November 18, 2009

The seeds are growing in the ecocolums and the students look forward to the next adventure. Thanks for the contributions of the bottles. We have studied acids and bases with some fun experiments. Now it is test time.

Test Time:

Study Chapter 5 for an upcoming test. Know everything on pages B 68- B 69 and the following data:

Map the Concept: Know 3 types of symbiotic relationships:
Parasitism- one organism benefits, another is harmed
Commensalism-one organism benefits, another is not affected
Mutualsm-both organisms benefit

Acids and Bases

Recognize that red(purple) cabbage juice as a common indicator turns bright pink in the presence of an acid and green or yellow in the presence of a base.

Recoginze that grape juice turns deep red in the presence of an acid and blue in the presence of a base.

Recognize that the color of black tea becomes lighter in the presence of an acid and darker in the presence of a base.

Recognize the characteristics of common items as indicatorscontained in acids like citrus fruits, vinegar, and carbonated cola soft drinks, as well as common bases like a bar of soap, ammonia, baking soda, and antacids.

Listen to the audio about acids and bases.

November 2, 2009 -November 24, 2009

AMSTI- Ecosystems

In this unit, students explore the web of relationships that link organisms to each other and to their natural environment. From their experiences, they develop an understanding of the following concepts:

Concepts:
An ecosystem is a community of organisms and its interaction with its environment.

Organisms can be categorized by the functions they serve in an ecosystem, producers, or decomposers.

Organisms in an ecosystem have dependent and interdependent relationships, which can be illustrated by food webs.

Factors that affect growth and reproduction of organisms in an ecosystem include light, water, temperature, and soil.

Natural and human-made events can "disturb" an ecosystem.

A pollutant is anything that can harm living organisms when too much of it is released into an ecosystem. Pollution is the condition that results when pollutants interact with the environment.

Pollutants can affect the stability of an ecosysterm; solutions can be developed to minimize or alleviate the effects of pollutants.

Model ecosystems can be used to learn more abouth the complex relationships that exists on earth.

Explore: Construction of Ecocolumns
November 2nd- Instructions for column ecosystems discussed in class and diagram sent home with the students. Due date: November 9th.

Their are 5 keys to prepariang the bottles for building an ecocolumn:
Collecting 3 bottles for each ecocolumn.
Cleaning the bottles out.
Removing thier lables.
Marking the bottles for cutting.
Cutting the bottles.

Reading selections are provided by AMSTI. Each students should maintain a written journal in their Science folders of all data daily. ARI-PALS will incorporated into each lesson. For the unit grades will be determined based on folder grades and classroom participation. We will finish the unit after the ecocolumns are polluted.


If you have plastic crates that hold 2-liter bottles, please send them to school. The crates will help prevent the ecocolumsnf from being accidentally knocked over in the classroom.

Thanks for your help,
Mrs. White