Course Syllabus

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syllabus 8th grade science a

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Welcome

We are pleased that you selected this course to fulfill your unique educational needs. You are now a member of the Mizzou Academy's global student body.

 

Course Description

Science 8A takes an integrative approach to teach science by using crosscutting concepts that link all branches of science. The concepts include patterns; cause and effect; scale, proportion, and quantity; systems and system models; energy and matter; structure and function; and stability and change.  Students will explore life science, physical science, and earth science concepts together. This course will focus on forces and motion as well as an introduction to space systems. Throughout all lessons, there will be an emphasis on scientific processes and engineering design.

Required Materials

Lesson 1

  • Activity: Egg Drop
    • Raw Eggs
    • Recycled materials. Consider finding old cardboard boxes, food containers like egg cartons, old newspapers, etc.  
    • Recommended: “dummy” eggs for testing, like plastic Easter eggs or candy eggs. 
    • Paper towels 
    • Camera to record drop before and after. 

Lesson 2

  • Activity:Test Track
    • Books or something else to lift one end of a ramp
    • Timer (stopwatch, phone with stopwatch function etc.)
    • Ruler or meter stick
    • Ball or marble
    • Cardboard to use as a ramp
  • Activity: Build an Accelerometer
    • Index card
    • String
    • Washer or small weight
    • ruler

Lesson 3

  • Friction Lab
    • A small object that can slide across a surface (such as a bottle cap or coin)
    • Ruler
    • Four different flat surfaces such as tile, wood, wax paper, sandpaper, carpet, aluminum foil, concrete or paper

Lesson 4

  • Activity: Explore Forces of Circular Motion
    • String
    • Small soft toy
  • Activity: Experiment with Momentum
    • Basketball or similar sized ball
    • Ping pong ball or similar sized ball
    • Meter stick

Lesson 5

  • Activity:
    • Dumbbell or can of food less than 2.3 kg
    • Timer
    • Ruler or meter stick
  • Activity: Lever Challenge
    • Ruler
    • Marker
    • Masking tape
    • Tennis ball

Lesson 6

  • Activity: “Seeing Light”
    • 2 glasses with smooth sides
    • tonic water
    • tap water
    • black paper
    • sunlight
  • Activity: Build a Balloon Rocket
    • Balloon
    • Plastic straw
    • String
    • tape

Lesson 7

None

Lesson 8

  • Activity: Comparing Crystals
    • Table salt
    • Epsom salt (magnesium sulfate)
    • Magnifying lens
  • Activity: Modeling the Rock Cycle
    • Crayons
    • Hot water
    • Tweezers or small tongs
    • Plastic knives

Lesson 9

  • Activity: Exploring Invisible Forces
    • 2 bar magnets
    • small objects some magnetic and others not
  • Activity: Creating Invisible Fields
    • 2 meters of insulated copper wire
    • 6 V battery
    • D size battery
    • Large iron nail
    • Paper clips

Lesson 10

  • Activity: Exploring Forces
    • Stack of 40 pennies or other coins
    • Heavy ball or marble
    • Several other balls of varying mass
    • Paper towel tube
    • 4 books
    • string
    • foam
    • rubber bands
    • popsicle sticks
    • plastic spoons
    • tape
  • Activity: Creating Your Own Crater Model
    • Shallow pan or box
    • Flour
    • Cocoa powder
    • Balls or marbles of different mass
    • ruler

Exams

The Midterm Exam is over Lessons 1-5.

 Note: Before taking this exam, complete the study guide, located in the course modules. Also refer to Skill Group 10 in our Student Study Skills and Resources library.

This exam is proctored. Your proctor or teacher will enter the access code for you to begin your exam. When you begin, you will have 2 hours.

During the exam you are NOT allowed to navigate away from this exam page or use any other resources to assist you in the exam unless otherwise specified on this exam page.* 

Your exam is 40 questions, 2 points each; Choose the one best answer. 

 *As a reminder from your syllabus, not complying with the rules of the exam may result in an exam score of zero. Refer to Academic Integrity policy in your syllabus for more information.

The Final Exam is over Lessons 6-10.

 Note: Before taking this exam, complete the study guide, located in the course modules. Also refer to Skill Group 10 in our Student Study Skills and Resources library.

This exam is proctored. Your proctor or teacher will enter the access code for you to begin your exam. When you begin, you will have 2 hours.

During the exam you are NOT allowed to navigate away from this exam page or use any other resources to assist you in the exam unless otherwise specified on this exam page.* 

Your exam is 40 questions, 2 points each; Choose the one best answer. 

 *As a reminder from your syllabus, not complying with the rules of the exam may result in an exam score of zero. Refer to Academic Integrity policy in your syllabus for more information.

You do not need any extra materials with you to complete the midterm or final exam.

Grades

Your final grade will be based on the number of points you earn on assignments and exams.

To pass the course, you must earn a minimum of 60 percent in the exams assignment group.

You will be able to see your exam percentage in the "Exams" column in your gradebook.

The following grading scale applies only to students who meet this standard:

Grading Scale
Grade Percentage
A 90–100
B 80–89
C 70–79
D 60–69
F 0–59

After completing the course, unofficial transcripts will be available in the Tiger Portal. See this page for information on requesting official transcripts. 

Canvas and Technical Support - middle school

Canvas is the where course content, grades, and communication will reside for this course.

Technical Requirements

The most up-to-date requirements can be found here: 

 

Course Summary:

Date Details Due