1/31/12 6th Grade Notes - Newtonian Physics

Guys,

I know what I went over today was a little confusing and I just talked to Ms. Oliveri and apparently I am going a bit too in depth for your age group so I am sorry.  I will explain concepts more clearly tomorrow but will not be expecting you to find velocity over time like we were doing today.  It is important to note that velocity is just speed in a certain direction.

Some key vocabulary words we went over today were...
Net force - the total amount of force acted on an object
Force - a push or pull exerted on an object
Velocity - speed in a certain direction

Yesterday and today we went over Newton's 1st Law of Motion which states
An object at rest will stay at rest and an object in motion will stay in motion unless it is acted upon by an outside force.


I feel as though most of you have a good understanding of this law and that is why tomorrow we will be covering Newton's 3rd Law of Motion and begin to get into making soda straw rockets.

1/31/12 7th Grade Notes - Arthropods

Guys today we finished our packets in class so you should all have a relatively good understanding of arthropods by now.  Some of their main characteristics are that they are ALL invertebrates, have an external skeleton (called an exoskeleton), a segmented body, and jointed attachments (called appendages).  There are four main groups of arthropods -- crustaceans, arachnids, centipedes & millipedes, and insects. It is interesting to note that crustaceans are actually a Subphylum and the other three groups are Classes of Arthropods.

Crab

Spider

Centipede

Insect

Photos courtesy of Google Images

For those of you who did not finish the Webquest we did in class here is the website - http://evolution.berkeley.edu/evolibrary/article/arthropodstory.  I expect you to have the questions completed and ready to turn in tomorrow.  

1/29/12 7th Grade Notes - Mollusks continued

In class on Thursday we went over mollusks in a little more detail covering what you read.  I had a powerpoint that highlighted the main differences between the three classes of Mollusks and a few pictures of some of these creatures.  I cannot figure out how to post the powerpoint slides here but I will put the information I think important for you to know below.

Mollusks have a soft body and most either have an internal or external shell.  Three classes of mollusks are gastropods, bivalves, and cephalopods.  All mollusks have a FOOT, MANTLE, VISCERAL MASS, DIGESTIVE SYSTEM, and GILLS.

   - Foot - helps with movement and catching prey

   - Mantle - a tissue that protects the body

   - Visceral mass - this refers to the internal organs of a mollusk

   - Digestive system - like the segmented worms and roundworms, this is a one-way digestive tract with two openings

   - Gills - help mollusks take in oxygen that is present in the water to breath and in bivalves it the way they eat as they are filter feeders

Gastropods - Literally means stomach foot in Greek.  Some are poisonous and brightly colored to warm predators.  They move by their muscular foot on a thin layer of mucus that protects their internal organs.  Some gastropods are herbivores while others are carnivores but all have a radula that they use to obtain their food  They either have a single shell or are shell-less

      Ex. Snails, limpets, and slugs (shell less)

Snail

Limpet

Orange slug

Photos courtesy of Google Images

Bivalves - The prefix bi means two so naturally all bivalves have two shells that are attached with a muscle.  These creature move slowly with their foot and they have the ability to make pearls.  The generic name given to all bivalves is clams.  Bivalves do not have a radula but rather use their gills to eat by filtering the water and eating whatever happens to be in it, this makes them omnivores.

When a piece of sand gets stuck inside a clam it irritates them and since they do not have the ability to spit it out they cover it with a mineral.  Here is a website explaining the pearl making process if you are interested - http://www.lifeslittlemysteries.com/197-how-do-oysters-make-pearls.html
    Ex. Oysters, Mussels, Scallops

Oysters

Blue Mussels

Scallops

Photos courtesy of Google Images

Cephalopods - Literally means head foot in Greek.  Their foot is divided into tentacles that have sucking disks on them.  The only present day cephalopods with a shell is a Nautilus.  These animals are the most complex of the mollusks and are extremely intelligent.  Some of these animals are poisonous and have the ability to shoot ink to escape from potential predators.

    Ex. Nautilus, Cuttlefish, Squid, and Octopus

Nautilus

Cuttlefish

Squid

Octopus

Photos courtesy of Google Images

1/25/12 7th Grade Notes - Mollusks

So today you were handed back your tests and on the whole everyone did fairly well.  A general reminder, 97 % of all animals on our Earth our invertebrates.  This is something that most people got wrong on the test and it is important to keep in mind when studying Life Science.

Today we started on the Phylum that deal with Mollusks.  There are three classes of Mollusks that exist which are Gastropods, Bivalves, and Cephalopods.  Tonight you are supposed to read pg. 330 to 333 tonight and answer complete questions # 1-2.  This homework will go into more specific details about the different classes of Mollusks.

Somethings that you guys already knew about these creatures are listed below...

Gastropods

Snail - slimy, slow, have a shell, move on a film of mucus, and they cannot hear, live on land and water.
Slug - slimy, slow, DO NOT have a shell, move on a film of mucus, they have poison and bright colors to prevent being eaten by predators.

Bivalves

Clam - two shells held together with muscle, make pearls, can eat them, clams is generic name to refer to mussels, scallops, and oysters.

Cephalopods

Octopus - 8 legs (tentacles), extremely smart, suction cups, squirts ink when it feels threatened.

Squids - Extremely fast, is long and skinny, swims tail end first, squirts ink when it feels threatened.

Gastropods

Bivalves

Cephalopods

All images found at Google Images

General characteristics that we wrote down in class about Mollusks were that they

• are invertebrates
• have gills
• contain a mantle - a soft layer of tissue that covers the internal organs
• contain a foot that allows them to move, dig, or catch prey.
• most of them have a open circulatory system
• are bilaterally symmetric

Here are two cool links to short clips on the octopus and squids.

http://news.discovery.com/videos/animals-giant-pacific-octopus-returns.html

http://video.nationalgeographic.com/video/player/national-geographic-channel/all-videos/?source=NavNGCHome

1/18/12 7th Grade Notes - Worm Activity

Hey guys.  for those of you who missed class we got to have some fun with those creepy crawly creatures called earthworms (segmented worms).  First, we looked at them in more detail and actually were able to SEE the many things we have talked about already.  A few things every group was able to find were the clitellum, the anterior end (mouth), and the posterior end (anus).   

http://kentsimmons.uwinnipeg.ca/16cm05/16labman05/lb6pg2.htm

Next we ran a few experiments to see how the worm responded to different stimuli.  Each group saw how the worm responded to touch of a cotton swab, vinegar on a cotton swab near either end, and one of the following habitats - light v. dark, cold v. room temperature, and moist v. dry.

It was discovered that the earthworm will back away from being touched and having a cotton swab of vinegar placed in front of it.  This is more true for the anterior end than the posterior end.  As far as habitats, summing up what every group found, earthworms prefer a moist, dark, and cold environment.  These characteristics closely mimic what the soil is like in most places earthworms are found so to most of you that was not a surprise.  

Here is a great link to more information about the external and internal anatomy of an earthworm if interested -- http://kentsimmons.uwinnipeg.ca/16cm05/16labman05/lb6pg2.htm.  This is what we are going to cover over the next few days so it will be a good guide for you guys.

Just a heads up, the test has been moved back a day to Tuesday, January 24.  See you all tomorrow.

1/17/12 7th Grade Notes - Worm Discussion

Flatworm

Roundworm

Earthworm

Courtesy of Google Images

Today we talked a little bit more about the three types of worms that exist in the world. Below is the table we filled out at the end of class.

	Flatworms	Roundworms	Segmented Worms
Phylum	Platyhelminthes	Nematoda	Annelids
Digestive System	No - Only 1 opening	Yes - Two openings Mouth & Anus	Yes - Two openings Mouth & Anus
Reproduction	Asexual - regeneration Sexual - Hermaphrodites that do not fertilize their own eggs	Asexual - Split in half Sexual - Hermaphrodites that do not fertilize their own eggs	Asexual - very rare Sexual - Hermaphrodites that do not fertilize their own eggs
Nervous System	No nervous system but a bunch of nerve cells	Yes, they have a brain and a nerve cord	Yes - they have a brain and a nerve cord
Circulatory System	Open circulatory system	Open circulatory system	Close circulatory system
Examples	Planarians, tapeworms	Hookworm, Trichina	Earthworm, Sandworm

One main difference I want to point out in the above chart is that flatworms do not have a digestive system while roundworms and segmented worms do. This is a huge adaptation that occurred allowing the roundworms and segmented worms to be more efficient eaters.

A second major adaptation that occurred in segmented worms was the fact it developed a close circulatory system. This allows the segmented worm to move blood faster throughout its body than a flatworm or roundworm.

Here is a cool website I found that interviews some of the different types of worms out there – http://yucky.discovery.com/flash/worm/pg000101.html

1/13/12 - 7th Grade Notes

Happy Friday everybody, I hope you got a lot out of class today. Today we filled out part of a KWL chart about worms. We only filled out the K (what you think you know), and the W (what you would like to know) part of the chart. I will be collecting the chart at the end of class on Tuesday so be sure to bring it to class and be ready to fill out the L (what you learned) part.

In our discussion about worms several of you had some great questions and we were able to get some of them answered. Let's start with some general characteristics of worms like we did for the sponges and cnidarians earlier in the week.

A worm's body structure is that it is

- an invertebrate

- bilaterally symmetrical

- contains cells/tissues/organs

- long and narrow without any legs

Worms reproduce both asexually and sexually. There are some species of worm that are hermaphrodites – contains both female and male sex organs – while in other species there are separate male and female animals. Hermaphrodites do not usually fertilize their own eggs so most of the time asexual reproduction refers to when a worm breaks into pieces.

Flatworms as you would imagine are flat and as soft as jelly. Some important words when it comes to flatworms are

Parasite – an organism that lives inside or on another organism.

Host – the organism that the parasite lives on or in.

Free-living organism – one that does not live in or on another organism.

Scavenger – An organism that feeds on dead or decaying material.

The two types of flatworms we talked about in class were planarians and tapeworms.

Planarians are interesting little creature that feed almost like a vacuum cleaner. Planarians swim up to food, stick their feeding tube into the food, release digestive juices into the food that begins to break down the food, and then they suck in the partially digested food. It is a pretty interesting process.

Here is a cool video on the process with the scientific terminology - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w0QzSYQGsnA

Tapeworms are the second kind of flatworm we looked learned about. These bad boys are a kind of parasitic worm that can live in more than host during their lifetime. The two videos I listed below I found interesting.

- http://animal.discovery.com/videos/monsters-inside-me-pork-tapeworm.html

- http://animal.discovery.com/videos/monsters-inside-me-meter-long-tapeworm.html

1/12/2012 - 7th Grade Notes

First off, I will layout the report that is now due WEDNESDAY - Jan. 18. Below is the exact same write-up you were given in class today except with the due date changed...

Species Report

Every one of you has selected a specific type of species that is classified as a sponge, cnidarian, or worm. All of these animals are very interesting in their own regard and I would like you to further investigate the one you have chosen. Every single one of these animals is an invertebrate but their similarities end there. Some of the things I would like to consider are the following –

• How it lives it life?
• What it feeds on?
• Does it have any defense mechanisms?
• What are its known predators?
• The animal’s lifespan?
• Its general habitat?
• How it reproduces?

A typed report is due Wednesday, January 18. You report should be at least 1 – 2 pages in length and include at least the following information –

- A description of the animal accompanied with a photo/picture of it

- The scientific name and phylum the species is a member of

- The animal’s habitat

- How it reproduces?

- Whether it is endangered or not?

- An interesting fact you learned about this species

- A resource list at the end of the report – at least 5

- Proper citation of photo/picture

The rubric for the assignment is posted below...

CATEGORY	4	3	2	1
Amount of Information	All topics are addressed and all questions answered with at least 2 sentences about each.	All topics are addressed and most questions answered with at least 2 sentences about each.	All topics are addressed, and most questions answered with 1 sentence about each.	One or more topics were not addressed.
Quality of Information	Information clearly relates to the main topic. It includes several supporting details and/or examples.	Information clearly relates to the main topic. It provides 1-2 supporting details and/or examples.	Information clearly relates to the main topic. No details and/or examples are given.	Information has little or nothing to do with the main topic.
Sources	5 sources given and the photo is properly cited in the report.	4 - 5 sources given.	2 to 3 sources given.	No sources given.
Mechanics	No grammatical, spelling or punctuation errors.	Almost no grammatical, spelling or punctuation errors	A few grammatical spelling, or punctuation errors.	Many grammatical, spelling, or punctuation errors.
Interesting Fact	Interesting fact included and explained thoroughly.	Interesting fact included and given reason of importance to student.	Interesting fact included but no reason to why it is important.	No interesting fact included.

In class today we talked about colonies and the two types that cnidarians form - coral reefs and Portuguese Man-of-War. Before I go into what we discussed in class I was really wondering why Portuguese Man-of-War are called that. You guys ever wonder that? Well, I found out it closely resembles ships that were used back in the day that were called Man-Of-War military ships. I have put the two images side-by-side and they are fairly similar...question answered.

source: http://members.iconn.net/~marlae/manofwar/profile.htm

Coral reefs were a big part of our discussion today. We looked at the article entitled Life's a bleach...and then you die by Rob Painting found at www.skepticalscience.com. The main topic of this article was coral bleaching and it's effects on everyone and everything in the world.

Coral bleaching is caused because of the rise in ocean temperature which then causes the coral to enable a defense mechanism (bleaching) that basically kicks off the algae that is living on them. This is done because the coral is being overwhelmed with oxygen from the algae that poisons them. Once the coral gives the algae the boot they run the risk of starvation, disease, and being engulfed in seaweed.

Coral bleaching is important because over half a billion people worldwide depend on coral reefs for food or income. Coral reefs also provide a the habitat for animals that are the lowest on the food chain. Without these animals, the predators begin to feel the pressure and before you know it, everything in the food chain is feeling its effects.

Coral bleaching is mainly caused by a rise in ocean temperature, which is in turn, caused by global warming. It is a serious problem and we all need to do our part to reverse the direction we are going before it is too late. I think everyone wants coral reefs to be around in the future, not just because they are beautiful but because of their environmental importance. Below is a picture from a blog entitled Oceanic Defense and you can see the same coral before and after bleaching has occurred.

Here are a few more links to USAToday articles that are talking about the effects of losing our coral reefs worldwide.

- http://www.usatoday.com/weather/climate/globalwarming/2007-12-13-coral-reefs_N.htm

- http://www.usatoday.com/tech/science/environment/2010-11-08-coral-reefs-ocean-acidification_N.htm

- http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/environment/2010-03-26-coral-reefs_N.htm

1/11/12 - 7th Grade Notes

Today in class we talked about the very basic animals that are on our Earth -- Sponges and Cnidarians. We discussed their body structure, how they reproduce, and what cells are important for them to obtain food. Below is the information that was written on the board along with some interesting links about these primitive water creatures.

SPONGES

Sponges have a few things that are important when talking about their body

structure.

- They are invertebrates

- They are asymmetrical (have no symmetry)

- They have no tissue or organs within their bodies

- They have spikes that support their bodies while providing protection against

predators

The cell type that traps food is called the collar cell.

Pores on a sponge allow water and food to travel into the central cavity of the

sponge.

Sponges reproduce both asexually and sexually. Asexual reproduction is called

budding while sexual reproduction is called fertilization.

Here is a cool video displaying some sponges during reproduction

-- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mVavqt4Sbyo

CNIDARIANS

Polyp

Medusa

Body Structure

Cnidarians unlike sponges have two body types - polyp and medusa. Polyp are vase-like structures that are attached to the bottom of the sea floor while the medusa has adapted to life in the ocean and can swim/float around. Medusas looks like an over-turned bowl. Cnidarians are invertebrates and have radial symmetry.

There stinging cells are the cells that trap their food.

Cnidarians reproduce both asexually and sexually. Their life cycle is a bit odd in that a medusa will release sperm and another medusa will release an egg. Once fertilization has occurred, the larva will settle and become a polyp. That polyp will asexually reproduce and pulling apart will occur where many disc-shaped structure break away from the polyp and overtime they mature into an adult medusa.

Here is a video of a Giant Green Anemone (polyp) Feeding at Monterey Bay Aquarium

http://www.montereybayaquarium.org/videos/Video.aspx?enc=0ZZ+8rD1FkZFMg4UwjaBnQ==

7th Grade 1/10/12

Homework

Select an animal of your choosing and write

- 3 adaptation that animal has made over time

- what Phylum it is a member of

- what kind of symmetry the animal has if any

Also write a paragraph about your experience in class with the activity and what you learned about adaptations and their real-world examples.

source: www.discovery.com

Polar Bears are one of my favorite animals and the adaptations they have made over time are simply amazing to me. A couple of ways they have adapted to their environment are that they

- have long stiff hair between their feet to protect against the cold and provide friction against the icy environment in which they live

- have hollow fur which traps air inside so they float when they are in the water

- dig dens that are several yards deep so they are able to raise young and survive through the harsh environment of the Arctic

- have blubber that allows them to retain heat

- have become strong swimmers being able to swim around 7 mph

Source: http://adaptations.tripod.com/polarbear.html

7th Grade - 1/9/12 Discussion Points

Good discussion yesterday about what makes an animal. To recap there are 5 main characteristics that allow us to call a species an animal.

1. It must be able to move (at some point of its life)

2. It must be able to obtain food, water, and oxygen

3. It must be able to reproduce

4. It must be able to maintain a stable environment within its body - homeostasis

5. It cells lack a cell wall

The second thing we covered in class was the hierarchical structure of an organism. From smallest part to largest an organism's body is arranged...

Cells --> Tissues --> Organs --> Systems --> Organism

From looking at your exit slips, I want to point out that although it is important to obtain water and food, most of you left out the important element of oxygen. THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT FOR ANIMALS OF ALL SIZES because it allows for cellular respiration.

A couple questions that were raised in both classes were whether having a brain or a heart determines animalness.

I did a little research and only those animals that have distinct body cavities possess a brain. So most invertebrates have a cluster of nerve cells that act like a brain but would technically not be brain such as sea sponges and starfish. If you are interested there is more information at http://www.pa.msu.edu/sciencet/ask_st/090893.html.

When it comes to talking about having a beating heart, only those animals that have a circulatory system are in need of a heart. Only the most primitive of animals lack a heart such as jellyfish. Here is some more information if you are interested - http://www.educationalvideos.com/jellyfish-have-no-brains-no-heart-and-no-blood/

The last question that I could not answer was whether or not all animals are multicellular or not. I thought for sure that they would in fact be multicellular but it turns out there used to be a class of protists called protozoa that are now considered animals. These species are unicellular but contain all the characteristics of an animal and have now been reclassified. Some examples of this animal are what we looked at under a microscope before break like the paramecium and amoeba. Here is a link of some cool videos featuring these animals - http://www.mcwdn.org/Animals/protozoavideos.html.