Kentucky State Standards for Science: Grade 10

KY.PS. Program of Studies 2006

H-STM. Big Idea: Structure and Transformation of Matter (Physical Science) - A basic understanding of matter is essential to the conceptual development of other big ideas in science. By high school, students will be dealing with evidence from both direct and indirect observations (microscopic level and smaller) to consider theories related to change and conservation of matter. The use of models (and an understanding of their scales and limitations) is an effective means of learning about the structure of matter. Looking for patterns in properties is also critical to comparing and explaining differences in matter. (Academic Expectations 2.1, 2.2, 2.4, 2.5)

SC-H-STM-U-1. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that the configuration of atoms in a molecule determines the molecule's properties. Shapes are particularly important in how molecules interact with others.

SC-H-STM-U-2. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that an enormous variety of biological, chemical and physical phenomena can be explained by changes in the arrangement and motion of atoms and molecules.

SC-H-STM-U-3. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that when elements are listed in order by their number of protons, the same sequence of properties appears over and over again in the list. The structure of the periodic table reflects this sequence of properties, which is caused by the repeating pattern of outermost electrons.

SC-H-STM-U-4. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that not all atoms of an element are truly identical. Some may vary in their number of neutrons (isotopes) or electrons (ions). These variations result in properties which are different than the more common forms of that element

SC-H-STM-U-5. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that changes of state occur when enough energy is added to or removed from the atoms/molecules of a substance to change their average energy of vibration. Most solids expand as they are heated, and if sufficient energy is added the atoms/molecules lose their rigid structure and become free to move past each other as a liquid. In gases the energy of vibration is enough that individual atoms/molecules are free to move independently.

SC-H-STM-U-6. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that elements are able to form an almost limitless variety of chemical compounds by the sharing or exchange of their electrons. The rate at which these combinations occur is influenced by a number of variables. The compounds produced may vary tremendously in their physical and chemical properties.

SC-H-STM-U-7. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that chemical reactions have a variety of essential real-world applications, such as oxidation and various metabolic processes.

SC-H-STM-U-8. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that a system may stay the same because nothing is happening or because things are happening but exactly counterbalance one another.

SC-H-STM-U-9. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that accurate record-keeping, openness and replication are essential for maintaining credibility with other scientists and society.

SC-H-STM-S-1. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will classify samples of matter from everyday life as being elements, compounds, or mixtures

SC-H-STM-S-2. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will investigate the kinetic molecular theory of matter

SC-H-STM-S-3. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will construct and/or interpret diagrams that illustrate ionic and covalent bonding

SC-H-STM-S-4. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will predict compound formation and bond type as either ionic or covalent

SC-H-STM-S-5. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will identify and test variables that affect reaction rates

SC-H-STM-S-6. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will use evidence/data from chemical reactions to predict the effects of changes in variables (concentration, temperature, properties of reactants, surface area and catalysts)

SC-H-STM-S-7. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will explore the relationships among temperature, particle number, pressure and volume in the Universal Gas Law

SC-H-STM-S-8. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will explain the organizational structure (design) and communicate the usefulness of the Periodic Table to determine potential combinations of elements

SC-H-STM-S-9. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will investigate the role of intermolecular or intramolecular interactions on the physical properties (solubility, density, polarity, boiling/melting points) of compounds

SC-H-STM-S-10. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will relate the chemical behavior of an element, including bonding, to its location on the periodic table

SC-H-STM-S-11. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will relate the structure of water to its function as the universal solvent

SC-H-STM-S-12. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will design and conduct experiments to determine the conductivity of various materials

SC-H-STM-S-13. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will create and/or interpret graphs and equations to depict and analyze patterns of change

SC-H-STM-S-14. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will explore real-life applications of a variety of chemical reactions (e.g., acids and bases, oxidation, rusting, tarnishing) and communicate findings/present evidence in an authentic form (transactive writing, public speaking, multimedia presentations)

SC-H-STM-S-15. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will generate investigable questions and conduct experiments or non-experimental research to address them, using evidence to defend conclusions

SC-H-MF. Big Idea: Motion and Forces (Physical Science) - Whether observing airplanes, baseballs, planets, or people, the motion of all bodies is governed by the same basic rules. At the middle level, qualitative descriptions of the relationship between forces and motion will provide the foundation for quantitative applications of Newton's Laws. These ideas are more fully developed at the high school level along with the use of models to support evidence of motion in abstract or invisible phenomena such as electromagnetism. (Academic Expectations 2.1, 2.2, 2.3)

SC-H-MF-U-1. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that representing and describing motion in a variety of ways provides data that can be used to construct explanations and make predictions about real-life phenomena.

SC-H-MF-U-2. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that the usefulness of a model can be tested by comparing its predictions to actual observations in the real world. But a close match does not necessarily mean that the model is the only 'true' model or the only one that would work.

SC-H-MF-U-3. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that all motion is relative to whatever frame of reference is chosen, for there is no motionless frame from which to judge all motion.

SC-H-MF-U-4. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that the strength of the gravitational force between objects is proportional to the masses and weakens rapidly with increasing distance between them.

SC-H-MF-U-5. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that electricity and magnetism are two inseparable aspects of the same force (electromagnetism). Moving electrical charges produce magnetic forces and moving magnetic fields produce electrical forces. Electrical current is due to the motion of charge and has a specific direction.

SC-H-MF-U-6. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that electromagnetic forces acting within and between atoms are vastly stronger than the gravitational forces acting between the atoms. At the atomic level, electric forces between oppositely charged electrons and protons hold atoms and molecules together and thus are involved in all chemical reactions. On a larger scale, these forces hold solid and liquid materials together and act between objects when they are in contact - as in sticking or sliding friction.

SC-H-MF-U-7. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that the forces that hold the nucleus of an atom together are much stronger than the electromagnetic force. That is why such great amounts of energy are released from the nuclear reactions in the sun and other stars.

SC-H-MF-S-1. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will design and conduct investigations involving the motion of objects and report the results in a variety of ways

SC-H-MF-S-2. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will investigate Newton's Laws of Motion and Gravitation. Experimentally test inertia and gravitational acceleration

SC-H-MF-S-3. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will experimentally test conservation of momentum. Use tables, charts and graphs in making arguments and claims in oral and written presentations

SC-H-MF-S-4. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will create and analyze graphs, ensuring that they do not misrepresent results by using inappropriate scales or by failing to specify the axes clearly

SC-H-MF-S-5. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will develop investigable questions that guide explorations of the interrelationship between electricity and magnetism

SC-H-MF-S-6. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will investigate the attraction and repulsion of electrical charges to predict the behavior of charged objects

SC-H-MS-S-7. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will create conceptual and mathematical models of motion and test them against real-life phenomena

SC-H-MF-S-8. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will explain why the strength of the nuclear force is responsible for the great energy release involved in nuclear reactions

SC-H-MF-S-9. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will predict which forces would be predominant in a given system and explain

SC-H-EU. Big Idea: The Earth and the Universe (Earth/Space Science) - The Earth system is in a constant state of change. These changes affect life on Earth in many ways. At the high school level, most of the emphasis is on why these changes occur. An understanding of systems and their interacting components will enable students to evaluate supporting theories of Earth changes. The use of models and observance of patterns to explain common phenomena is essential to building a conceptual foundation and supporting ideas with evidence at all levels. Patterns play an important role as students seek to develop a conceptual understanding of gravity in their world and in the universe. High school is the time to bring all of the ideas together to look at the universe as a whole. Students will use evidence to evaluate and analyze theories related to the origin of the universe and all components of the universe. (Academic Expectations 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 2.4)

SC-H-EU-U-1. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that gravity played an essential role in the formation of the universe and is one of the fundamental forces that controls the function of the universe and the systems within it.

SC-H-EU-U-2. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that current estimates of the ages of the Earth (4.6 billion years) and the universe (10+ billion years) are based on a variety of measurement techniques that have unique strengths and limitations. The same evidence that establishes the extreme age of the universe also indicates its vastness.

SC-H-EU-U-3. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that stars have cycles of birth and death, and the lives of large stars end in explosions that provide the elements to create new stars and planets. All living things on Earth are also formed from this recycled matter.

SC-H-EU-U-4. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that the speed of light is dwarfed by the vastness of the universe, resulting in the human view of the sky being essentially a 'look back in time' as we view light that was emitted long in the past and has been traveling across the cosmos to reach Earth.

SC-H-EU-U-5. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that the shape and location of the continents have been gradually changing for millions of years because density differences inside the mantle result in convection currents. These changes, as well as more rapid ones (e.g. earthquakes, volcanoes, tsunamis) can impact living organisms.

SC-H-EU-U-6. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that mathematical models and computer simulations are used in studying evidence from many sources to form a scientific account of the universe.

SC-H-EU-U-7. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that scientists rely on increasingly sophisticated methods of measurement in order to investigate a variety of phenomena that were previously immeasurable.

SC-H-EU-U-8. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that curiosity, honesty, openness and skepticism are highly regarded in science, and are incorporated into the way science is carried out.

SC-H-EU-S-1. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will compare methods used to measure the ages of geologic features

SC-H-EU-S-2. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will research the historical rise in acceptance of the theory of Plate Tectonics and the geological/biological consequences of plate movement

SC-H-EU-S-3. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will analyze the supporting evidence for the nebular theory of formation of the solar system

SC-H-EU-S-4. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will analyze the supporting evidence for the Big Bang theory of formation of the universe

SC-H-EU-S-5. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will explain the role of gravity in the formation and function of the universe

SC-H-EU-S-6. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will investigate, describe and document patterns of interaction of matter and gravity

SC-H-EU-S-7. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will describe the life cycle of stars and the products/consequences of their deaths

SC-H-EU-S-8. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will explain how technological solutions permit the study of phenomena too faint, small, distant or slow to be directly measured

SC-H-EU-S-9. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will employ scientific notation to communicate and compare astronomical phenomena

SC-H-EU-S-10. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will explore real-life implications of current findings in Earth/space research and communicate findings in an authentic form, exemplifying the traits of curiosity, honesty, openness and skepticism

SC-H-UD. Big Idea: Unity and Diversity (Biological Science) - All matter is comprised of the same basic elements, goes through the same kinds of energy transformations, and uses the same kinds of forces to move. Living organisms are no exception. At the high school level, an in-depth study of the specialization and chemical changes occurring at the cellular level builds upon the foundational ideas developed earlier to investigate deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and effects of alterations in DNA for an individual organism as well as for a species. Emphasis at every level should be placed upon the understanding that while every living thing is composed of similar small constituents that combine in predictable ways, it is the subtle variations within these small building blocks that account for both the likenesses and differences in form and function that create the diversity of life. (Academic Expectations 2.1, 2.3, 2.4, 2.5)

SC-H-UD-U-1. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that the many body cells in an individual can be very different from one another even though they are all descended from a single cell and thus have essentially identical genetic instructions. Different parts of the instructions are used in different types of cells.

SC-H-UD-U-2. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that within every cell are specialized parts for the transport of materials, energy transfer, protein building, waste disposal, information feedback and even movement. In addition, most cells in multi-cellular organisms perform specialized functions that others do not.

SC-H-UD-U-3. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that DNA, composed of 4 nucleic acids, serves as the blueprint for the production of a variety of proteins. These dynamic and complicated proteins facilitate practically every function/process that occurs within the cell.

SC-H-UD-U-4. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that the information passed from parents to offspring is coded in DNA molecules. The sorting and recombination of genes through sexual reproduction results in a great variety of gene combinations that can be used to make predictions about the potential traits of offspring.

SC-H-UD-U-5. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that some new gene combinations make little difference, some can produce offspring with new and perhaps enhanced capabilities, while some may reduce the ability of the offspring to survive.

SC-H-UD-U-6. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that the degree of kinship between organisms or species can be estimated from the similarity of their DNA sequences, which often closely matches their classification based on anatomical similarities.

SC-H-UD-U-7. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that in all organisms and viruses, the instructions for specifying the characteristics are carried in nucleic acids. The chemical and structural properties of nucleic acids determine how the genetic information that underlies heredity is both encoded in genes and replicated.

SC-H-UD-S-1. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will analyze the parts within a cell responsible for particular processes and create analogous models for those processes

SC-H-UD-S-2. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will identify a variety of specialized cell types and describe how these differentiated cells contribute to the function of an individual organism as a whole

SC-H-UD-S-3. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will investigate the role of genes/chromosomes in the passing of information from one generation to another (heredity)

SC-H-UD-S-4. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will graphically represent (e.g., pedigrees, punnet squares) and predict the outcomes of a variety of genetic combinations

SC-H-UD-S-5. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will investigate the roles of genetic mutation and variability in contributing to the survival of offspring

SC-H-UD-S-6. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will describe the structure of DNA and explain its role in protein synthesis, cell replication and reproduction

SC-H-UD-S-7. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will describe and classify a variety of chemical reactions required for cell functions

SC-H-UD-S-8. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will describe the processes by which cells maintain their internal environments within acceptable limits

SC-H-UD-S-9. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will compare internal, external and metabolic characteristics of organisms in order to classify them into groups using taxonomic nomenclature to describe and justify these classifications

SC-H-UD-S-10. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will compare the structures and functions of viruses to cells and describe the role of viruses in causing a variety of diseases or conditions (e.g., AIDS, common cold, smallpox, warts)

SC-H-UD-S-11. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will identify and investigate areas of current research/innovation in biological science. Make inferences/predictions of the effects of this research on society and/or the environment and support or defend these predictions with scientific data

SC-H-BC. Big Idea: Biological Change (Biological Science) - The only thing certain is that everything changes. At the high school level, students evaluate the role natural selection plays in the diversity of species. Modern ideas of evolution provide a scientific explanation for three main sets of observable facts about life on Earth: the enormous number of different life forms we see about us, the systematic similarities in anatomy and molecular chemistry we see within that diversity, and the sequence of changes in fossils found in successive layers of rock that have been formed over more than a billion years. (Academic Expectations 2.1, 2.2, 2.5, 2.6)

SC-H-BC-U-1. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that the survival of any given species is not assured. There are a variety of factors (e.g. reproductive success, mutation, availability of resources, competition) that may determine if a species flourishes, declines, or eventually becomes extinct.

SC-H-BC-U-2. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that the Earth's present-day species developed from earlier, distinctly different species through a process of natural selection. All living things share a common genetic heritage.

SC-H-BC-U-3. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that some organisms have greater adaptive capabilities than others, giving them a greater chance of survival under changing environmental conditions. These adaptations may be patterns of behavior as well as physical characteristics.

SC-H-BC-U-4. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that the endangerment/ and/or extinction of a species cannot be slowed or prevented without sufficient data to model the interactions of the factors involved.

SC-H-BC-U-5. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that in science the term theory is reserved to describe only those ideas that have been well tested through scientific investigation. Scientific theories are judged by how well they fit with other theories, the range of observations they explain, how well they explain observations and their usefulness in predicting new findings. Scientific theories usually grow slowly through contributions from many investigators.

SC-H-BC-S-1. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will identify evidence of change in species using fossils, DNA sequences, anatomical similarities, physiological similarities and embryology

SC-H-BC-S-2. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will explain the role of natural selection in speciation, adaptation, diversity and phylogeny

SC-H-BC-S-3. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will compare variations, tolerances and adaptations (behavioral and physiological) of plants and animals in different biomes

SC-H-BC-S-4. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will generate possible solutions to real-world problems of endangered and extinct species and predict the impact of a variety of change

SC-H-BC-S-5. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will predict the likelihood of survival for a variety of existing species based upon predicted changes in environmental conditions (e.g., global warming, continental drift) and propose methods to prevent the extinction of species with insufficient ability to adapt

SC-H-BC-S-6. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will distinguish between a scientific law, theory, hypothesis and unsupported supposition/claim

SC-H-BC-S-7. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will investigate the historical development and revision of a variety of accepted scientific laws, theories and claims

SC-H-ET. Big Idea: Energy Transformations (Unifying Concepts) - Energy transformations are inherent in almost every system in the universe - from tangible examples at the elementary level, such as heat production in simple Earth and physical systems to more abstract ideas beginning at middle school, such as those transformations involved in the growth, dying and decay of living systems. The use of models to illustrate the often invisible and abstract notions of energy transfer will aid in conceptualization, especially as students move from the macroscopic level of observation and evidence (primarily elementary school) to the microscopic interactions at the atomic level (middle and high school levels). Students in high school expand their understanding of constancy through the study of a variety of phenomena. Conceptual understanding and application of the laws of thermodynamics connect ideas about matter with energy transformations within all living, physical and Earth systems. (Academic Expectations 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 2.4, 2.5)

SC-H-ET-U-1. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that transformations that occur within the nuclei of atoms release vastly greater energy than those that involve only electrons, and result in the emission of radiation and/or transformation of elements.

SC-H-ET-U-2. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that while the total amount of energy in the universe is constant, the amount that is available for useful transformations is always decreasing. Systems within the universe will cease to function once the energy differential becomes zero.

SC-H-ET-U-3. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that waves, including electromagnetic radiation, are an important form of energy transfer. Waves are governed by rules that can be investigated and used to predict/explain their behavior.

SC-H-ET-U-4. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that many elements and compounds are involved in continuous cyclic processes where they are stored by and/or flow between organisms and the environment. These processes require a continuous supply of energy to occur.

SC-H-ET-U-5. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that radiant energy from the sun is stored in a chemical form in plants as a result of photosynthesis. This energy transformation allows plants to use simple molecules, such as carbon dioxide and water, to assemble the complex molecules needed to increase their mass.

SC-H-ET-U-6. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that energy stored in food is released by a series of internal chemical reactions that reorganize the molecules into a form useable by the organism.

SC-H-ET-U-7. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that a variety of carbon compounds are essential to the processes that occur in all organisms.

SC-H-ET-U-8. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that heat is a manifestation of the random motion and vibrations of atoms or molecules within a substance. Interactions between or among atoms or molecules naturally move toward states of higher disorder.

SC-H-ET-U-9. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that many different sources of energy are used for a variety of purposes, including powering machines designed to do useful work. Regardless of function or energy source, the useful energy output of any machine is always less than the total energy input.

SC-H-ET-U-10. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that all Earth systems/processes require either an internal or external source of energy to function. Changes to any component, or to the quantity or type of energy input, may influence all components of the system.

SC-H-ET-U-11. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that weather and climate are the direct or indirect result of transfer of solar energy, and changes in one part of the system may influence all of the others. The complexity of the system and the number of variables involved requires very complex mathematical models in order to make accurate predictions.

SC-H-ET-U-12. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that technological problems often create a demand for new scientific knowledge, and new technologies make it possible for scientists to conduct their research more effectively or to conduct new lines of research. The availability of new technology often sparks scientific advances.

SC-H-ET-U-13. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that technology affects society because it solves practical problems and serves human needs. Science affects society by stimulating thought or satisfying curiosity, or by influencing views of the world, or by providing knowledge necessary for new technological advances.

SC-H-ET-S-1. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will classify and describe nuclear reactions and their products

SC-H-ET-S-2. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will investigate the forces inside the nucleus and evaluate the risk/benefits of nuclear energy

SC-H-ET-S-3. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will apply the law of conservation of energy and explore heat flow in real-life phenomena

SC-H-ET-S-4. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will investigate waves, the rules describing wave behavior and energy transfer via waves in real life phenomena (e.g., nuclear medicine, industrial applications)

SC-H-ET-S-5. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will investigate the flow of matter and energy between organisms and the environment and model the cyclic nature of this process

SC-H-ET-S-6. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will explain the metabolic process of photosynthesis and describe the molecules it assembles to store solar energy

SC-H-ET-S-7. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will describe the metabolic processes that allow energy stored in food to be made available to the organism

SC-H-ET-S-8. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will explore the composition and function of the carbon compounds involved in metabolism

SC-H-ET-S-9. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will apply the concept of entropy to molecular interactions and to interactions within the universe

SC-H-ET-S-10. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will analyze a variety of energy sources, their potential uses and their relative costs/benefits

SC-H-ET-S-11. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will investigate the relationship of energy input vs. useful energy output in mechanical systems

SC-H-ET-S-12. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will model and explain the relationships and energy flow existing in various Earth systems

SC-H-ET-S-13. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will use weather data to model the complex interactions responsible for weather and climate

SC-H-ET-S-14. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will describe how science and technology interact. Research and investigate the impact of technology on society and how technological advances have driven scientific research

SC-H-I. Big Idea: Interdependence (Unifying Concepts) - It is not difficult for students to grasp the general notion that species depend on one another and on the environment for survival. But their awareness must be supported by knowledge of the kinds of relationships that exist among organisms, the kinds of physical conditions that organisms must cope with, the kinds of environments created by the interaction of organisms with one another and their physical surroundings, and the complexity of such systems At the high school level, the concept of an ecosystem should bring coherence to the complex array of relationships among organisms and environments that students have encountered. Students growing understanding of systems in general will reinforce the concept of ecosystems. Stability and change in ecosystems can be considered in terms of variables such as population size, number and kinds of species, productivity and the effect of human intervention. (Academic Expectations 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 2.4)

SC-H-I-U-1. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that human beings are part of the Earth's ecosystems. Human activities can, deliberately or inadvertently, alter the equilibrium in ecosystems.

SC-H-I-U-2. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that unique among organisms, humans have the capability to impact other species on a global scale both directly (e.g. selective breeding, genetic engineering, foreign species introductions) and indirectly (e.g. habitat crowding, pollution, climate change).

SC-H-I-U-3. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that the appearance of new species always impacts the environment. In some cases this impact can have global and profound significance (e.g. when ancient bacteria transformed the atmosphere to an oxygen-rich environment).

SC-H-I-U-4. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that every ecosystem contains natural checks and balances, both biotic and abiotic, that serve to limit the size and range of the populations contained within it.

SC-H-I-U-5. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that human creativity, inventiveness and ingenuity have brought new risks as well as improvements to human existence. People control technology and are ultimately responsible for its effects.

SC-H-I-U-6. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that science/technology occasionally provides the means to do questionable things. Decisions about doing these things require exercising a sense of responsibility. Just because something can be done does not mean it should be done.

SC-H-I-U-7. Program of Studies: Understandings - Students will understand that the critical assumptions behind any line of reasoning must be made explicit, so that the validity of the position being taken can be judged.

SC-H-I-S-1. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will explore ways to eradicate or lessen environmental problems caused by human interaction (e.g., examine programs for habitat restoration or wildlife protection, automotive/industrial emissions standards)

SC-H-I-S-2. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will investigate changes in ecosystems and propose potential solutions to problems by documenting and communicating solutions to others through multi-media presentations

SC-H-I-S-3. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will analyze and describe the effects of events (e.g., fires, hurricanes, deforestation, mining, population growth and municipal development) on environments from a variety of perspectives. Use data to propose ways of lessening impacts perceived as negative

SC-H-I-S-4. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will examine existing models of global population growth and the factors affecting population change (e.g., geography, diseases, natural events, birth/death rates). Propose and defend solutions to identified problems of population change

SC-H-I-S-5. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will analyze examples of environmental changes resulting from the introduction, removal, or reintroductions of indigenous or non-indigenous species to an ecosystem. Use information to predict future impacts of similar changes in other ecosystems

SC-H-I-S-6. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will analyze and synthesize research, for questions about, theories and related technologies that have advanced our understanding of interdependence

SC-H-I-S-7. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will explore the causes, consequences and possible solutions to persistent, contemporary and emerging global issues relating to environmental quality

SC-H-I-S-8. Program of Studies: Skills and Concepts - Students will investigate controversial scientific proposals (e.g., human cloning, genetic modification of crops, nuclear waste storage), use scientific evidence/data to support or defend a position and debate the ethical merits of implementing the proposed actions

KY.AE. Academic Expectation

AE.1. Students are able to use basic communication and mathematics skills for purposes and situations they will encounter throughout their lives.

1.1. Students use reference tools such as dictionaries, almanacs, encyclopedias, and computer reference programs and research tools such as interviews and surveys to find the information they need to meet specific demands, explore interests, or solve specific problems.

1.2. Students make sense of the variety of materials they read.

1.3. Students make sense of the various things they observe.

1.4. Students make sense of the various messages to which they listen.

1.5-1.9. Students use mathematical ideas and procedures to communicate, reason, and solve problems.

1.10. Students organize information through development and use of classification rules and systems.

1.11. Students write using appropriate forms, conventions, and styles to communicate ideas and information to different audiences for different purposes.

1.12. Students speak using appropriate forms, conventions, and styles to communicate ideas and information to different audiences for different purposes.

1.13. Students make sense of ideas and communicate ideas with the visual arts.

1.14. Students make sense of ideas and communicate ideas with music.

1.15. Students make sense of and communicate ideas with movement.

1.16. Students use computers and other kinds of technology to collect, organize, and communicate information and ideas.

AE.2. Students shall develop their abilities to apply core concepts and principles from mathematics, the sciences, the arts, the humanities, social studies, practical living studies, and vocational studies to what they will encounter throughout their lives.

2.1. Science: Students understand scientific ways of thinking and working and use those methods to solve real-life problems.

2.2. Science: Students identify, analyze, and use patterns such as cycles and trends to understand past and present events and predict possible future events.

2.3. Science: Students identify and analyze systems and the ways their components work together or affect each other.

2.4. Science: Students use the concept of scale and scientific models to explain the organization and functioning of living and nonliving things and predict other characteristics that might be observed.

2.5. Science: Students understand that under certain conditions nature tends to remain the same or move toward a balance.

2.6. Science: Students understand how living and nonliving things change over time and the factors that influence the changes.

KY.CC. Core Content for Assessment v.4.1

SC-HS-1.1. Structure and Transformation of Matter: By high school, students will be dealing with evidence from both direct and indirect observations (microscopic level and smaller) to consider theories related to change and conservation of matter. The use of models (and an understanding of their scales and limitations) is an effective means of learning about the structure of matter. Looking for patterns in properties is also critical to comparing and explaining differences in matter.

SC-HS-1.1.1. Physical Science: Students will classify or make generalizations about elements from data of observed patterns in atomic structure and/or position on the periodic table.

SC-HS-1.1.2. Physical Science: Students will understand that the atom's nucleus is composed of protons and neutrons that are much more massive than electrons. When an element has atoms that differ in the number of neutrons, these atoms are called different isotopes of the element.

SC-HS-1.1.3. Physical Science: Students will understand that solids, liquids, and gases differ in the distances between molecules or atoms and therefore the energy that binds them together. In solids, the structure is nearly rigid; in liquids, molecules or atoms move around each other but do not move apart; and in gases, molecules or atoms move almost independently of each other and are relatively far apart. The behavior of gases and the relationship of the variables influencing them can be described and predicted.

SC-HS-1.1.4. Physical Science: Students will understand that in conducting materials, electrons flow easily; whereas, in insulating materials, they can hardly flow at all. Semiconducting materials have intermediate behavior. At low temperatures, some materials become superconductors and offer no resistance to the flow of electrons.

SC-HS-1.1.5. Physical Science: Students will explain the role of intermolecular or intramolecular interactions on the physical properties (solubility, density, polarity, conductivity, boiling/melting points) of compounds.

SC-HS-1.1.6. Physical Science: Students will identify variables that affect reaction rates; predict effects of changes in variables (concentration, temperature, properties of reactants, surface area, and catalysts) based on evidence/data from chemical reactions.

SC-HS-1.1.7. Physical Science: Students will construct diagrams to illustrate ionic or covalent bonding; predict compound formation and bond type as either ionic or covalent (polar, nonpolar) and represent the products formed with simple chemical formulas.

SC-HS-1.1.8. Physical Science: Students will explain the importance of chemical reactions in a real-world context; justify conclusions using evidence/data from chemical reactions.

SC-HS-1.2. Motion and Forces: At the middle level, qualitative descriptions of the relationship between forces and motion will provide the foundation for quantitative applications of Newton's Laws. These ideas are more fully developed at the high school level along with the use of models to support evidence of motion in abstract or invisible phenomena such as electromagnetism.

SC-HS-1.2.1. Physical Science: Students will select or construct accurate and appropriate representations for motion (visual, graphical, and mathematical); defend conclusions/explanations about the motion of objects and real-life phenomena from evidence/data.

SC-HS-1.2.2. Physical Science: Students will explain the relationship between electricity and magnetism; propose solutions to real life problems involving electromagnetism.

SC-HS-1.2.3. Physical Science: Students will understand that the electric force is a universal force that exists between any two charged objects. Opposite charges attract while like charges repel.

SC-HS-2.3. The Earth and the Universe: The Earth system is in a constant state of change. These changes affect life on earth in many ways. Finally, at the high school level, most of the emphasis is on why these changes occur. An understanding of systems and their interacting components will enable students to evaluate supporting theories of earth changes. High school is the time to bring all of the ideas together to look at the universe as a whole. Students will use evidence to evaluate and analyze theories related to the origin of the universe and all components of the universe.

SC-HS-2.3.1. Earth/Space Science: Students will explain phenomena (falling objects, planetary motion, satellite motion) related to gravity; describe the factors that affect gravitational force.

SC-HS-2.3.2. Earth/Space Science: Students will describe the current scientific theory of the formation of the universe (Big Bang) and its evidence; explain the role of gravity in the formation of the universe and its components.

SC-HS-2.3.3. Earth/Space Science: Students will identify the origin of heavy elements found in stars and planets.

SC-HS-2.3.4. Earth/Space Science: Students will understand that stars have life cycles of birth through death that are analogous to those of living organisms. During their lifetimes, stars generate energy from nuclear fusion reactions that create successively heavier chemical elements.

SC-HS-2.3.5. Earth/Space Science: Students will understand that the Sun, Earth, and the rest of the solar system formed approximately 4.6 billion years ago from a nebular cloud of gas and dust.

SC-HS-2.3.6. Earth/Space Science: Students will compare the limitations/benefits of various techniques (radioactive dating, observing rock sequences, and comparing fossils) for estimating geological time; justify deductions about age of geologic features.

SC-HS-2.3.7. Earth/Space Science: Students will explain real-life phenomena caused by the convection of the Earth's mantle; predict the consequences of this motion on humans and other living things on the planet.

SC-HS-2.3.8. Earth/Space Science: Students will predict consequences of both rapid (volcanoes, earthquakes) and slow (mountain building, plate movement) earth processes from evidence/data and justify reasoning.

SC-HS-3.4. Unity and Diversity: At the high school level, an in-depth study of the specialization and chemical changes occurring at the cellular level builds upon the foundational ideas developed earlier to investigate DNA and effects of alterations in DNA for an individual organism as well as for a species. Emphasis at every level should be placed upon the understanding that while every living thing is composed of similar small constituents that combine in predictable ways, it is the subtle variations within these small building blocks that account for both the likenesses and differences in form and function that create the diversity of life.

SC-HS-3.4.1. Biological Science: Students will explain the role of DNA in protein synthesis.

SC-HS-3.4.2. Biological Science: Students will understand that most cell functions involve chemical reactions. Food molecules taken into cells react to provide the chemical constituents needed to synthesize other molecules. Both breakdown and synthesis are made possible by a large set of protein catalysts, called enzymes. The breakdown of some of the food molecules enables the cell to store energy in specific chemicals that are used to carry out the many functions of the cell.

SC-HS-3.4.3. Biological Science: Students will describe cell regulation (enzyme function, diffusion, osmosis, homeostasis); predict consequences of internal/external environmental change on cell function/regulation.

SC-HS-3.4.4. Biological Science: Students will understand that plant cells contain chloroplasts, the site of photosynthesis. Plants and many microorganisms (e.g., Euglena) use solar energy to combine molecules of carbon dioxide and water into complex, energy-rich organic compounds and release oxygen to the environment. This process of photosynthesis provides a vital link between the Sun and energy needs of living systems.

SC-HS-3.4.5. Biological Science: Students will explain the relationship between sexual reproduction (meiosis) and the transmission of genetic information; draw conclusions/make predictions based on hereditary evidence/data (pedigrees, punnet squares).

SC-HS-3.4.6. Biological Science: Students will understand that in all organisms and viruses, the instructions for specifying the characteristics are carried in nucleic acids. The chemical and structural properties of nucleic acids determine how the genetic information that underlies heredity is both encoded in genes and replicated.

SC-HS-3.4.7. Biological Science: Students will classify organisms into groups based on similarities; infer relationships based on internal and external structures and chemical processes.

SC-HS-3.4.8. Biological Science: Students will understand that multicellular animals have nervous systems that generate behavior. Nerve cells communicate with each other by secreting specific molecules. Specialized cells in sense organs detect light, sound, and specific chemicals enabling animals to monitor what is going on in the world around them.

SC-HS-3.5. Biological Change: The only thing certain is that everything changes. The stage is set for high school students to evaluate the role natural selection plays in the diversity of species. Modern ideas of evolution provide a scientific explanation for three main sets of observable facts about life on earth: the enormous number of different life forms we see about us, the systematic similarities in anatomy and molecular chemistry we see within that diversity and the sequence of changes in fossils found in successive layers of rock that have been formed over more than a billion years (Science for All Americans, p. 67).

SC-HS-3.5.1. Biological Science: Students will predict the impact on species of changes to 1) the potential for a species to increase its numbers, (2) the genetic variability of offspring due to mutation and recombination of genes, (3) a finite supply of the resources required for life, or (4) natural selection; propose solutions to real-world problems of endangered and extinct species.

SC-HS-3.5.2. Biological Science: Students will predict the success of patterns of adaptive behaviors based on evidence/data; justify explanations of organism survival based on scientific understandings of behavior.

SC-HS-4.6. Energy Transformations: The use of models to illustrate the often invisible and abstract notions of energy transfer will aid in conceptualization, especially as students move from the macroscopic level of observation and evidence (primarily elementary school) to the microscopic interactions at the atomic level (middle and high school levels). Students in high school expand their understanding of constancy through the study of a variety of phenomena. Conceptual understanding and application of the laws of thermodynamics connect ideas about matter with energy transformations within all living, physical and earth systems.

SC-HS-4.6.1. Unifying Concepts: Students will explain the relationships and connections between matter, energy, living systems, and the physical environment; give examples of conservation of matter and energy.

SC-HS-4.6.2. Unifying Concepts: Students will predict wave behavior and energy transfer; apply knowledge of waves to real life phenomena/investigations.

SC-HS-4.6.3. Unifying Concepts: Students will understand that electromagnetic waves, including radio waves, microwaves, infrared radiation, visible light, ultraviolet radiation, x-rays, and gamma rays, result when a charged object is accelerated.

SC-HS-4.6.4. Unifying Concepts: Students will describe the components and reservoirs involved in biogeochemical cycles (water, nitrogen, carbon dioxide, and oxygen); explain the movement of matter and energy in biogeochemical cycles and related phenomena.

SC-HS-4.6.5. Unifying Concepts: Students will describe and explain the role of carbon-containing molecules and chemical reactions in energy transfer in living systems.

SC-HS-4.6.6. Unifying Concepts: Students will understand that heat is the manifestation of the random motion and vibrations of atoms.

SC-HS-4.6.7. Unifying Concepts: Students will explain real world applications of energy using information/data; evaluate explanations of mechanical systems using current scientific knowledge about energy.

SC-HS-4.6.8. Unifying Concepts: Students will describe the connections between the functioning of the Earth system and its sources of energy (internal and external); predict the consequences of changes to any component of the Earth system.

SC-HS-4.6.9. Unifying Concepts: Students will explain the cause and effect relationship between global climate and weather patterns and energy transfer (cloud cover, location of mountain ranges, oceans); predict the consequences of changes to the global climate and weather patterns.

SC-HS-4.6.10. Unifying Concepts: Students will identify the components and mechanisms of energy stored and released from food molecules (photosynthesis and respiration); apply information to real-world situations.

SC-HS-4.6.11. Unifying Concepts: Students will explain the difference between alpha and beta decay, fission, and fusion; identify the relationship between nuclear reactions and energy.

SC-HS-4.6.12. Unifying Concepts: Students will understand that the forces that hold the nucleus together, at nuclear distances, are usually stronger than the forces that would make it fly apart.

SC-HS-4.7. Interdependence: At the high school level, the concept of an ecosystem should bring coherence to the complex array of relationships among organisms and environments that students have encountered. Students growing understanding of systems in general will reinforce the concept of ecosystems. Stability and change in ecosystems can be considered in terms of variables such as population size, number and kinds of species, productivity and the effect of human intervention (adapted from Benchmarks for Science Literacy, 1993).

SC-HS-4.7.1. Unifying Concepts: Students will analyze relationships and interactions among organisms in ecosystems; predict the effects on other organisms of changes to one or more components of the ecosystem.

SC-HS-4.7.2. Unifying Concepts: Students will evaluate proposed solutions from multiple perspectives to environmental problems caused by human interaction; justify positions using evidence/data.

SC-HS-4.7.3. Unifying Concepts: Students will predict the consequences of changes to any component (atmosphere, solid Earth, oceans, living things) of the Earth System; propose justifiable solutions to global problems.

SC-HS 4.7.4. Unifying Concepts: Students will understand that evidence for one-celled forms of life, the bacteria, extends back more than 3.5 billion years. The changes in life over time caused dramatic changes in the composition of the Earth's atmosphere, which did not originally contain oxygen.

SC-HS-4.7.5. Unifying Concepts: Students will predict the consequences of changes in resources to a population; select or defend solutions to real-world problems of population control.