Science Enrichment Activities

Science Enrichment Activities

Unit 1: Living Things

·Read pages 2-11 in your Science text. Then, answer the following questions: 1)Why do you think Jim and Francesca tested the effect of adding only chlorine gas to the water vapor and not other gases at the same time?2)Why is it important for scientists to keep a record of the exact procedures they followed and the exact data they collected?

·Using the Scientific Method: Re-read pages 9 and 10 in your text, and then consider the following question:Will gas or metal conduct more heat?Then, create an outline explaining how you would research this question using the Scientific Method. Be sure to carefully consider how you would carry out your plan and give plenty of detail to explain how you would test your hypothesis.

·Read theRanger Rickmagazine article “Dragons of the Sea” by Elizabeth Schleichert on text page 17. Then, answer the following questions: 1)Is the “leafy seadragon” a plant or an animal? Create a Venn Diagram wherein you compare and contrast how it is like a plant and how it is like an animal. Then, write your response on Reading and Writing Workbook page 1.2)How does Schleichert describe Lennie’s appearance?3)How does Lennie’s strange nose help him?

·Write an article about an animal you are familiar with. Your article can be written from your perspective as an observer or from the perspective of the animal itself, such as in the article on text page 17.

·Read text pages 22-23. Then, write a paragraph explaining why it is important to know if something is living or not.

·Read text pages 24-25. Research other parts of cells that are not mentioned or noted on the diagrams in your book. Describe the function of each cell part.

·Make a 3D model of a plant or animal cell. Use the information on text pages 24-25 to guide you. Use encyclopedias, reference books, and the internet to research different kinds of plant and animal cells. Use any kind of supplies you’d like. Label each organelle on your cell and write a short paragraph about the function of each cell part.

·Read text pages 26-27. Then, answer the following question:How do organ systems, such as the circulatory and the respiratory system, work together?Use resources such as books and the internet to help you.

·Write a story that begins by looking at an organism from far away. Describe it as you move closer and closer, until the cells are visible. What would you see each time you got closer?

·Read text pages 34-35. Then, choose one organism to research. Create an illustrated poster describing the characteristics of the organism and its classification. Your poster should include the following information: the kingdom that the organism belongs to, whether it is single-celled of multicellular, if it has a nucleus, how it obtains food, and if it is mobile.

·Read text pages 38-39. Then, research one type of bacterium, protist, or fungus. Use encyclopedias, reference books, or the internet to find information. Write an illustrated report about the organism. For example, you can research protists related to paramecia and describe which traits they have in common.

·What’s in a name? After reading text pages 36-40, use sources such as encyclopedias or the internet to research scientific names for a group of organisms that belong to the same genus. For example, the scientific name for a mountain lion isFelisconcolor, and the scientific name for a common house cat isFelisdomesticus. Create an illustrated poster that lists the scientific names for several different organisms of the same genus.

·After reading about Red Tide on text pages 42-43, think about the effects of Red Tide. Think about adjectives that describe the algae blooms that cause red tides. Create a fictional beach affected by Red Tide, and design a poster/sign using your adjectives that warn people to stay away from the beach. Warn them about the effects of the tide!