California Science Content Standards, Grade Seven

Focus on Life Science
Cell Biology

All living organisms are composed of cells, from just one to many trillions, whose details usually are visible only through a microscope. As a basis for understanding this concept:
EXP-Osmosis - cell, osmosis
VID-Osmosis - cell, osmosis

Students know cells function similarly in all living organisms.
EXP-Osmosis - cell, osmosis
VID-Osmosis - cell, osmosis

Students know the characteristics that distinguish plant cells from animal cells, including chloroplasts and cell walls.

Students know the nucleus is the repository for genetic information in plant and animal cells.

Students know that mitochondria liberate energy for the work that cells do and that chloroplasts capture sunlight energy for photosynthesis.

Students know cells divide to increase their numbers through a process of mitosis, which results in two daughter cells with identical sets of chromosomes.

Students know that as multicellular organisms develop, their cells differentiate.

Genetics

A typical cell of any organism contains genetic instructions that specify its traits. Those traits may be modified by environmental influences. As a basis for understanding this concept:

Students know the differences between the life cycles and reproduction methods of sexual and asexual organisms.

Students know sexual reproduction produces offspring that inherit half their genes from each parent.

Students know an inherited trait can be determined by one or more genes.

Students know plant and animal cells contain many thousands of different genes and typically have two copies of every gene. The two copies (or alleles) of the gene may or may not be identical, and one may be dominant in determining the phenotype while the other is recessive.

Students know DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) is the genetic material of living organisms and is located in the chromosomes of each cell.

Evolution

Biological evolution accounts for the diversity of species developed through gradual processes over many generations. As a basis for understanding this concept:

Students know both genetic variation and environmental factors are causes of evolution and diversity of organisms.

Students know the reasoning used by Charles Darwin in reaching his conclusion that natural selection is the mechanism of evolution.

Students know how independent lines of evidence from geology, fossils, and comparative anatomy provide the bases for the theory of evolution.

Students know how to construct a simple branching diagram to classify living groups of organisms by shared derived characteristics and how to expand the diagram to include fossil organisms.

Students know that extinction of a species occurs when the environment changes and the adaptive characteristics of a species are insufficient for its survival.

Earth and Life History (Earth Sciences)

Evidence from rocks allows us to understand the evolution of life on Earth. As a basis for understanding this concept:

Students know Earth processes today are similar to those that occurred in the past and slow geologic processes have large cumulative effects over long periods of time.

BCIS-Fast and Slow Change - geologic time, plate tectonics, geologic processes

Students know the history of life on Earth has been disrupted by major catastrophic events, such as major volcanic eruptions or the impacts of asteroids.

Students know that the rock cycle includes the formation of new sediment and rocks and that rocks are often found in layers, with the oldest generally on the bottom.

BCIS-Rocks - types of rocks, the rock cycle
EXP-Sweet Geology - Igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic rocks

Students know that evidence from geologic layers and radioactive dating indicates Earth is approximately 4.6 billion years old and that life on this planet has existed for more than 3 billion years.

Students know fossils provide evidence of how life and environmental conditions have changed.

Students know how movements of Earth's continental and oceanic plates through time, with associated changes in climate and geographic connections, have affected the past and present distribution of organisms.

Students know how to explain significant developments and extinctions of plant and animal life on the geologic time scale.

Structure and Function in Living Systems

The anatomy and physiology of plants and animals illustrate the complementary nature of structure and function. As a basis for understanding this concept:

Students know plants and animals have levels of organization for structure and function, including cells, tissues, organs, organ systems, and the whole organism.

Students know organ systems function because of the contributions of individual organs, tissues, and cells. The failure of any part can affect the entire system.

Students know how bones and muscles work together to provide a structural framework for movement.

EXP-Don't Push - muscles, bones

Students know how the reproductive organs of the human female and male generate eggs and sperm and how sexual activity may lead to fertilization and pregnancy.

Students know the function of the umbilicus and placenta during pregnancy.

Students know the structures and processes by which flowering plants generate pollen, ovules, seeds, and fruit.

EOW-4. Orange Slices - plant anatomy
EOW-12. Seed Search - seed dispersal
EOW-13. Color Changing Flowers - plant pigments, acid/base indicators

Students know how to relate the structures of the eye and ear to their functions.

EOW-31. The Singing Glass - vibration, friction, pitch
EOW-34. Grass Whistle - vibration
EOW-47. Bottle Tones and 48. Bottle Tones, Part 2 - pitch, vibration, scientific thought
EOW-52. Noisy String - vibration, resonance
EOW-93. The Bullroarer - sound, vibration, pitch
EOW-27. Got the Red Green Blues - additive and subtractive colors
EOW-37. Emergency Glasses - lenses, pinhole optics
EOW-45. Flame Color - combustion, light
EOW-62. Is That a Color Photo? - vision, light, illusions
EOW-109. Two Coins - vision, brain, illusion

Physical Principles in Living Systems (Physical Sciences)

Physical principles underlie biological structures and functions. As a basis for understanding this concept:

Students know visible light is a small band within a very broad electromagnetic spectrum.

Students know that for an object to be seen, light emitted by or scattered from it must be detected by the eye.

Students know light travels in straight lines if the medium it travels through does not change.

EXP-The Magnifying Glass - light, lens
EXP-Making Money Appear - light, refraction

Students know how simple lenses are used in a magnifying glass, the eye, a camera, a telescope, and a microscope.

EXP-The Magnifying Glass - light, lens

Students know that white light is a mixture of many wavelengths (colors) and that retinal cells react differently to different wavelengths.

EOW-27. Got the Red Green Blues - additive and subtractive colors
EOW-79. White Balance - vision, light, brain
EOW-65. Looking for Rainbows - spectrum, reflection, refraction

Students know light can be reflected, refracted, transmitted, and absorbed by matter.

EXP-The Magnifying Glass - light, lens
EXP-Making Money Appear - light,
EOW-65. Looking for Rainbows - spectrum, reflection, refraction

Students know the angle of reflection of a light beam is equal to the angle of incidence.

Students know how to compare joints in the body (wrist, shoulder, thigh) with structures used in machines and simple devices (hinge, ball-and-socket, and sliding joints).

Students know how levers confer mechanical advantage and how the application of this principle applies to the musculoskeletal system.

Students know that contractions of the heart generate blood pressure and that heart valves prevent back flow of blood in the circulatory system.

Investigation and Science-Experimentation

Scientific progress is made by asking meaningful questions and conducting careful investigations. As a basis for understanding this concept and addressing the content in the other three strands, students should develop their own questions and perform investigations.

EOW-33. The Right Answer - getting the right answer
EOW-43. Candles in a Jar and 44. Candles in a Jar, Part 2 - combustion, density, scientific thought
EOW-47. Bottle Tones and 48. Bottle Tones, Part 2 - pitch, vibration, scientific thought
EOW-82. Science Fair Panic, part 1 - scientific method, science fair projects
EOW-82. Science Fair Panic, part 2 - scientific method, science fair projects
EOW-82. Science Fair Panic, part 3 - scientific method, science fair projects
EOW-82. Science Fair Panic, part 4 - scientific method, science fair projects
EOW-68. Oxygen? No! - combustion, composition of air, properties of gases
EOW-86. The Hottest Part of a Flame - scientific observation, combustion, energy

Students will:

Select and use appropriate tools and technology (including calculators, computers, balances, spring scales, microscopes, and binoculars) to perform tests, collect data, and display data.

Use a variety of print and electronic resources (including the World Wide Web) to collect information and evidence as part of a research project.

Communicate the logical connection among hypotheses, science concepts, tests conducted, data collected, and conclusions drawn from the scientific evidence.

Construct scale models, maps, and appropriately labeled diagrams to communicate scientific knowledge (e.g., motion of Earth's plates and cell structure).

EXP-Scale Model of the Solar System
EXP-Drawing Life Sized Dinosaurs

Communicate the steps and results from an investigation in written reports and oral presentations.