2019 - 2020 Classes
Our upcoming 7th grade STEM class will experience our STEM class PLUS a STEM Exploration class.
STEM Exploration will cover:
STEM Exploration will cover:
- Quarter 1: 3D Printing
- Quarter 2: Astronomy
- Quarter 3: Science in Science Fiction
- Quarter 4: Statistics and Math in Sports
2019 - 2020 Classroom STEM Supply List
An exciting new school year is approaching! In preparation for the start of school, you will find the necessary school supplies for 7th grade STEM and STEM Exploration Wheel Classes.
The following required items will be kept in your backpack for personal daily use:
The following required items will be kept in your backpack for personal daily use:
- 1 Composition Book for STEM (required)
- A very sturdy Pocket Folder to organize handouts (required)
- #2 Pencils w/ erasers
- Package of Graph Paper
- Package of Lined Notebook Paper
- 12” Standard/Metric Ruler
- Protractor
- Colored Pencils
- Colored Markers
- Scissors
- Glue Sticks
- Post-It Notes
- 3 x 5 Index Cards
- Ziplock Bags: Gallon & Quart
- Hand Sanitizer
Last Year's Curriculum (below)
2018 - 2019 Curriculum for 7/8 STEM
Quarter 4: Our theme will be Technology & Plant Science
May 20 - May 25: We are completing the design of our own board game that is related to what we learned this year in STEM; with our own rules, our own design, and our own questions! We will be sharing and playing our games in our classes on Tuesday!
May 13 - May 17: On Monday, students will present their Mars Colony designs. Beginning on Tuesday, we will be start our end of year project: Designing our own board game that is related to what we learned this year in STEM; with our own rules, our own design, and our own questions!
May 6 - May 10: Any outstanding student 3D models MUST be turned in on WEDNESDAY. REMEMBER: Each model must be designed so that no or minimal filament support is needed or it will need to be redesigned.
We will finish our Mars Colony design on Friday, that takes care of all of the colonist's needs for survival.
April 29 - May 3: We will continue designing and refining our 3D printed models. We have discussed the requirement that each model be designed so that no or minimal filament support is needed. Those models that are properly designed with this requirement in mind will be 3D printed so that the designer can take their model home. Students whose design requires excess support will be asked to redesign their models. If properly redesigned, they will be allowed to 3D print their models and can also take them home.
We will also begin our Mars Colony design this week. Students will brainstorm within groups to design a Mars Colony that takes care of all of the colonist's needs for survival. This project is due on Wed, May 8th.
April 22 - 26: We will be taking the Cambridge tests this week. Remember, there is NO TALKING during or following the test until we get the "All Clear". Students will continue to work on their 3D models in TinkerCad.
April 15 - 19: We will take the remainder of our AZ Merit tests this week. Remember, there is NO TALKING during or following the test until we get the "All Clear".
April 8 - 12: We will have our AZ Merit Writing test on Monday. The remainder of the week will be spent learning more about 3D Printing.
April 1 - 5: We will be planting our Tower Garden seedlings this week. Additionally, we will be observing our plants and tracking data such as water temperature, pH, TDS, etc., throughout these final weeks of school. We will be starting our 3D printing unit mid-week. Below are some great videos to watch to get a grasp of the technology involved.
March 18 - 29: We will be brainstorming which plants we will want for our Tower Garden. Construction of the Tower Garden will take place over the week of March 25. Utilizing Nearpod & PowerPoint slides, we will learn about plants, photosynthesis, cellular respiration, vascular and non-vascular plants. Photosynthesis worksheet homework is due on March 29, and the Cellular Respiration worksheet will be due on April 1. Quiz over photosynthesis and cellular respiration will be on Tuesday, April 2.
March 4 - 8: Students will present their final theory and plan at the end of the simulation via a NearPod Questionnaire on March 5th. In celebration of International Women's Day and Women's History Month, we will b learning about some prominent women in science & engineering.
February 25 - March 1: We will conclude our unit on Forensic Pathology with a Project-Based Learning simulation. Students will determine a theory as to what sort of illness is affecting a community and plan what sort of precautions should have been taken to prevent the outbreak. Students will complete the project this week and present their findings at the end of the simulation.
February 19 - 22: We will begin our unit on Forensic Pathology with a Project-Based Learning simulation. Students will determine what sort of illness is affecting a community and what sort of precautions should have been taken to prevent the outbreak. Students will complete the project next week and present their findings at the end of the simulation.
February 11 - 15: We will conclude our unit on Forensic Environmental Science. We will discuss invasive species and human impact on our global environment.
February 4 - 8: We will begin our unit on Forensic Environmental Science. Our first lessons will be over understanding the career field and then learning about the properties of water and the pH scale.
January 28 - 31: We will conclude our skeletal system lessons this week, culminating in a quiz. Next week we will focus primarily on Forensic Anthropology. Quiz on Thursday this week over the Skeletal System (except for Cohort D, their's will be on Monday)
January 22 - 25: We will continue our unit on Forensic Anthropology, focusing primarily on the human skeletal system.
January 14 - 18: Cohorts will present their Mock Trial on Monday - Tuesday. We will begin our unit on Forensic Anthropology this week. The skeletal system will be presented along with a discussion on the engineering aspect of the skeleton.
January 10 - 11: We will work on finalizing our Mock Trial for presentation on Friday.
December 17 - 21: We will begin unscripted Mock Trials to prepare for the paper-pencil Mock Crime the week after the break. The due date for the Forensic Toxicology RETAKE is now Wednesday, Dec. 19.
December 10 - 14: We will begin Mock Trials to prepare for the paper-pencil Mock Crime the week after the break. The last day to take the Forensic Toxicology RETAKES is Friday, Dec. 14.
December 3 - 7: We will complete our unit over Forensic Toxicology. The QUIZ over this unit will be on Wednesday. Students have received 2 study guides over the notes. We will do a Whodunnit on Thursday, and a Toxicology Activity on Friday. (Note: The last day for students to take the RETAKES for the past quiz over Forensic Engineering, will be Friday)
November 26 - 30: We will continue to learn more about the field of Forensic Toxicology. We will visit two great websites: The N-Squad from Rice University and The History of Forensic Toxicology in America: The Poisoner's Handbook. Worksheets associated with these sites are due on Thursday. N-Squad (Cohorts L, I, V) & Poisoner's Handbook (All Cohorts)
November 19 - 21: Quiz (on Monday for Cohorts D, V, I, L and Tuesday for Cohort E). Students will be quizzed over the Engineering Design Process, Newton's Laws of Motion, and what type of questions Forensic Engineers need to consider when investigation cases. We will continue to learn more about the field of Forensic Toxicology. NOTE: Students had a quiz this week over Forensic Engineering. If you missed the quiz, it will be marked as MISSING and you will receive a ZERO until the quiz is completed. The last day to take the quiz is Friday, November 30.
November 13 - 16: Students will be introduced to the field of Forensic Toxicology.
November 5 - 9: We will learn about the Engineering Design Process. Continuing our focus on Engineering, we will further investigate Newton's Laws of Motion. To help understand Newton's First Law of Motion - Inertia, students will use the Engineering Design Process to brainstorm, design, and build an Inertia Lander during class. This lesson will help them understand how inertia is one of the key concepts that Forensic Engineers investigate during transportation accidents.
October 29 - November 2: We will continue to delve into Forensic Engineering. Several engineering failures will be presented and students will analyze the cases and understand what type of questions Forensic Engineers need to consider when investigating those cases:
October 18 - 24: We will explore Cryptography and how mathematics, statistics, and pattern recognition is important to understanding code making and breaking. We will create a Caesar Cipher wheel.
October 15 - 17: We will start out the quarter by delving into a few simple legal cases and how you would judge the facts in the cases.
May 13 - May 17: On Monday, students will present their Mars Colony designs. Beginning on Tuesday, we will be start our end of year project: Designing our own board game that is related to what we learned this year in STEM; with our own rules, our own design, and our own questions!
May 6 - May 10: Any outstanding student 3D models MUST be turned in on WEDNESDAY. REMEMBER: Each model must be designed so that no or minimal filament support is needed or it will need to be redesigned.
We will finish our Mars Colony design on Friday, that takes care of all of the colonist's needs for survival.
April 29 - May 3: We will continue designing and refining our 3D printed models. We have discussed the requirement that each model be designed so that no or minimal filament support is needed. Those models that are properly designed with this requirement in mind will be 3D printed so that the designer can take their model home. Students whose design requires excess support will be asked to redesign their models. If properly redesigned, they will be allowed to 3D print their models and can also take them home.
We will also begin our Mars Colony design this week. Students will brainstorm within groups to design a Mars Colony that takes care of all of the colonist's needs for survival. This project is due on Wed, May 8th.
April 22 - 26: We will be taking the Cambridge tests this week. Remember, there is NO TALKING during or following the test until we get the "All Clear". Students will continue to work on their 3D models in TinkerCad.
April 15 - 19: We will take the remainder of our AZ Merit tests this week. Remember, there is NO TALKING during or following the test until we get the "All Clear".
April 8 - 12: We will have our AZ Merit Writing test on Monday. The remainder of the week will be spent learning more about 3D Printing.
April 1 - 5: We will be planting our Tower Garden seedlings this week. Additionally, we will be observing our plants and tracking data such as water temperature, pH, TDS, etc., throughout these final weeks of school. We will be starting our 3D printing unit mid-week. Below are some great videos to watch to get a grasp of the technology involved.
March 18 - 29: We will be brainstorming which plants we will want for our Tower Garden. Construction of the Tower Garden will take place over the week of March 25. Utilizing Nearpod & PowerPoint slides, we will learn about plants, photosynthesis, cellular respiration, vascular and non-vascular plants. Photosynthesis worksheet homework is due on March 29, and the Cellular Respiration worksheet will be due on April 1. Quiz over photosynthesis and cellular respiration will be on Tuesday, April 2.
March 4 - 8: Students will present their final theory and plan at the end of the simulation via a NearPod Questionnaire on March 5th. In celebration of International Women's Day and Women's History Month, we will b learning about some prominent women in science & engineering.
February 25 - March 1: We will conclude our unit on Forensic Pathology with a Project-Based Learning simulation. Students will determine a theory as to what sort of illness is affecting a community and plan what sort of precautions should have been taken to prevent the outbreak. Students will complete the project this week and present their findings at the end of the simulation.
February 19 - 22: We will begin our unit on Forensic Pathology with a Project-Based Learning simulation. Students will determine what sort of illness is affecting a community and what sort of precautions should have been taken to prevent the outbreak. Students will complete the project next week and present their findings at the end of the simulation.
February 11 - 15: We will conclude our unit on Forensic Environmental Science. We will discuss invasive species and human impact on our global environment.
February 4 - 8: We will begin our unit on Forensic Environmental Science. Our first lessons will be over understanding the career field and then learning about the properties of water and the pH scale.
January 28 - 31: We will conclude our skeletal system lessons this week, culminating in a quiz. Next week we will focus primarily on Forensic Anthropology. Quiz on Thursday this week over the Skeletal System (except for Cohort D, their's will be on Monday)
January 22 - 25: We will continue our unit on Forensic Anthropology, focusing primarily on the human skeletal system.
January 14 - 18: Cohorts will present their Mock Trial on Monday - Tuesday. We will begin our unit on Forensic Anthropology this week. The skeletal system will be presented along with a discussion on the engineering aspect of the skeleton.
January 10 - 11: We will work on finalizing our Mock Trial for presentation on Friday.
December 17 - 21: We will begin unscripted Mock Trials to prepare for the paper-pencil Mock Crime the week after the break. The due date for the Forensic Toxicology RETAKE is now Wednesday, Dec. 19.
December 10 - 14: We will begin Mock Trials to prepare for the paper-pencil Mock Crime the week after the break. The last day to take the Forensic Toxicology RETAKES is Friday, Dec. 14.
December 3 - 7: We will complete our unit over Forensic Toxicology. The QUIZ over this unit will be on Wednesday. Students have received 2 study guides over the notes. We will do a Whodunnit on Thursday, and a Toxicology Activity on Friday. (Note: The last day for students to take the RETAKES for the past quiz over Forensic Engineering, will be Friday)
November 26 - 30: We will continue to learn more about the field of Forensic Toxicology. We will visit two great websites: The N-Squad from Rice University and The History of Forensic Toxicology in America: The Poisoner's Handbook. Worksheets associated with these sites are due on Thursday. N-Squad (Cohorts L, I, V) & Poisoner's Handbook (All Cohorts)
November 19 - 21: Quiz (on Monday for Cohorts D, V, I, L and Tuesday for Cohort E). Students will be quizzed over the Engineering Design Process, Newton's Laws of Motion, and what type of questions Forensic Engineers need to consider when investigation cases. We will continue to learn more about the field of Forensic Toxicology. NOTE: Students had a quiz this week over Forensic Engineering. If you missed the quiz, it will be marked as MISSING and you will receive a ZERO until the quiz is completed. The last day to take the quiz is Friday, November 30.
November 13 - 16: Students will be introduced to the field of Forensic Toxicology.
November 5 - 9: We will learn about the Engineering Design Process. Continuing our focus on Engineering, we will further investigate Newton's Laws of Motion. To help understand Newton's First Law of Motion - Inertia, students will use the Engineering Design Process to brainstorm, design, and build an Inertia Lander during class. This lesson will help them understand how inertia is one of the key concepts that Forensic Engineers investigate during transportation accidents.
October 29 - November 2: We will continue to delve into Forensic Engineering. Several engineering failures will be presented and students will analyze the cases and understand what type of questions Forensic Engineers need to consider when investigating those cases:
- What happened?
- Why did it happen?
- What should the engineers have done in order to prevent it from happening?
- What would new engineers need to concern themselves with to make sure nothing like this happens again in the future?
October 18 - 24: We will explore Cryptography and how mathematics, statistics, and pattern recognition is important to understanding code making and breaking. We will create a Caesar Cipher wheel.
October 15 - 17: We will start out the quarter by delving into a few simple legal cases and how you would judge the facts in the cases.