Gizmos for Alberta - Science: 7th Grade (Alberta Curriculum and Program of Studies adopted 2014)

This correlation lists the recommended Gizmos for this province's curriculum standards. Click any Gizmo title below for more information.

A: : Interactions and Ecosystems

1.1: : Outcomes for Science, Technology and Society (STS) and Knowledge

A.1: : Students will: Investigate and describe relationships between humans and their environments, and identify related issues and scientific questions

A.1.2: : describe examples of interaction and interdependency within an ecosystem (e.g., identify examples of dependency between species, and describe adaptations involved; identify changing relationships between humans and their environments, over time and in different cultures—as, for example, in aboriginal cultures)

A.1.3: : identify examples of human impacts on ecosystems, and investigate and analyze the link between these impacts and the human wants and needs that give rise to them (e.g., identify impacts of the use of plants and animals as sources of food, fibre and other materials; identify potential impacts of waste products on environments)

A.2: : Students will: Trace and interpret the flow of energy and materials within an ecosystem

A.2.1: : analyze an ecosystem to identify biotic and abiotic components, and describe interactions among these components

A.2.2: : analyze ecosystems to identify producers, consumers and decomposers; and describe how energy is supplied to and flows through a food web, by:

A.2.2.a: : describing and giving examples of energy and nutrient storage in plants and animals

A.2.2.b: : describing how matter is recycled in an ecosystem through interactions among plants, animals, fungi, bacteria and other microorganisms

A.2.2.c: : interpreting food webs, and predicting the effects of changes to any part of a web

A.2.3: : describe the process of cycling carbon and water through an ecosystem

A.2.4: : identify mechanisms by which pollutants enter and move through the environment, and can become concentrated in some organisms (e.g., acid rain, mercury, PCBs, DDT)

A.3: : Students will: Monitor a local environment, and assess the impacts of environmental factors on the growth, health and reproduction of organisms in that environment

A.3.2: : investigate and interpret evidence of interaction and change (e.g., population fluctuations, changes in weather, availability of food or introduction of new species into an ecosystem)

A.4: : Students will: Describe the relationships among knowledge, decisions and actions in maintaining life-supporting environments

A.4.1: : identify intended and unintended consequences of human activities within local and global environments (e.g., changes resulting from habitat loss, pest control or from introduction of new species; changes leading to species extinction)

A.4.2: : describe and interpret examples of scientific investigations that serve to inform environmental decision making

1.2: : Skill Outcomes

A.IP: : Initiating and Planning

A.IP.1: : Students will: Ask questions about the relationships between and among observable variables, and plan investigations to address those questions

A.IP.1.1: : identify science-related issues (e.g., identify a specific issue regarding human impacts on environments)

A.IP.1.2: : identify questions to investigate arising from practical problems and issues (e.g., identify questions, such as: “What effects would an urban or industrial development have on a nearby forest or farming community?”)

A.IP.1.3: : state a prediction and a hypothesis based on background information or an observed pattern of events (e.g., predict changes in the population of an organism if factor X were increased, or if a species were introduced or removed from the ecosystem; propose factors that will affect the population of a given animal species)

A.PR: : Performing and Recording

A.PR.1: : Students will: Conduct investigations into the relationships between and among observations, and gather and record qualitative and quantitative data

A.PR.1.4: : estimate measurements (e.g., estimate the population of a given plant in a one square metre quadrat, and use this figure to estimate the population within an area of 100 square metres)

A.AI: : Analyzing and Interpreting

A.AI.1: : Students will: Analyze qualitative and quantitative data, and develop and assess possible explanations

A.AI.1.2: : compile and display data, by hand or computer, in a variety of formats, including diagrams, flow charts, tables, bar graphs and line graphs (e.g., illustrate a food web, based on observations made within a given environment)

B: : Plants for Food and Fibre

2.1: : Outcomes for Science, Technology and Society (STS) and Knowledge

B.1: : Students will: Investigate plant uses; and identify links among needs, technologies, products and impacts

B.1.4: : investigate practical problems and issues in maintaining productive plants within sustainable environments, and identify questions for further study (e.g., investigate the long-term effects of irrigation practices or fertilizer use)

B.2: : Students will: Investigate life processes and structures of plants, and interpret related characteristics and needs of plants in a local environment

B.2.1: : describe the general structure and functions of seed plants (e.g., describe the roots, stem, leaves and flower of a common local plant)

B.2.4: : describe the processes of diffusion, osmosis, conduction of fluids, transpiration, photosynthesis and gas exchange in plants

B.2.5: : describe life cycles of seed plants, and identify example methods used to ensure their germination, growth and reproduction (e.g., describe propagation of plants from seeds and vegetative techniques, such as cuttings; conduct a germination study; describe the use of beehives to support pollination)

B.4: : Students will: Identify and interpret relationships among human needs, technologies, environments, and the culture and use of living things as sources of food and fibre

B.4.1: : investigate and describe the development of plant varieties through selective breeding, and identify related needs and problems (e.g., identify needs leading to the development of new grain varieties; identify problems arising from the development of new plant varieties that require extensive fertilization)

2.2: : Skill Outcomes

B.PR: : Performing and Recording

B.PR.1: : Students will: Conduct investigations into the relationships between and among observations, and gather and record qualitative and quantitative data

B.PR.1.3: : observe and record data, and create simple line drawings (e.g., describe plant growth, using qualitative and quantitative observations; draw and describe plant changes resulting from an experimental procedure)

B.AI: : Analyzing and Interpreting

B.AI.1: : Students will: Analyze qualitative and quantitative data, and develop and assess possible explanations

B.AI.1.2: : use and/or construct a classification key (e.g., distinguish among several grain varieties, using a classification guide or key)

B.AI.1.3: : compile and display data, by hand or computer, in a variety of formats, including diagrams, flow charts, tables, bar graphs and line graphs (e.g., prepare a record of a plant’s growth that charts its development in terms of height, leaf development, flowering and seed production)

C: : Heat and Temperature

3.1: : Outcomes for Science, Technology and Society (STS) and Knowledge

C.2: : Students will: Describe the nature of thermal energy and its effects on different forms of matter, using informal observations, experimental evidence and models

C.2.1: : compare heat transmission in different materials (e.g., compare conduction of heat in different solids; compare the absorption of radiant heat by different surfaces)

C.2.2: : explain how heat is transmitted by conduction, convection and radiation in solids, liquids and gases

C.2.3: : describe the effect of heat on the motion of particles; and explain changes of state, using the particle model of matter

C.2.4: : distinguish between heat and temperature; and explain temperature, using the concept of kinetic energy and the particle model of matter

C.3: : Students will: Apply an understanding of heat and temperature in interpreting natural phenomena and technological devices

C.3.3: : compare and evaluate materials and designs that maximize or minimize heat energy transfer (e.g., design and build a device that minimizes energy transfer, such as an insulated container for hot drinks; evaluate different window coatings for use in a model home)

3.2: : Skill Outcomes

C.IP: : Initiating and Planning

C.IP.1: : Students will: Ask questions about the relationships between and among observable variables, and plan investigations to address those questions

C.IP.1.2: : identify questions to investigate arising from a problem or issue (e.g., ask a question about the source of cold air in a building, or about ways to prevent cold areas)

C.IP.1.4: : design an experiment, and control the major variables (e.g., design an experiment to evaluate two alternative designs for solar heating a model house)

C.PR: : Performing and Recording

C.PR.1: : Students will: Conduct investigations into the relationships between and among observations, and gather and record qualitative and quantitative data

C.PR.1.1: : identify data and information that are relevant to a given problem or issue

C.PR.1.3: : use instruments effectively and accurately for collecting data and information (e.g., accurately read temperature scales and use a variety of thermometers; demonstrate skill in downloading text, images, and audio and video files on methods of solar heating)

C.PR.1.4: : carry out procedures, controlling the major variables (e.g., show appropriate attention to controls in investigations of the insulative properties of different materials)

C.AI: : Analyzing and Interpreting

C.AI.1: : Students will: Analyze qualitative and quantitative data, and develop and assess possible explanations

C.AI.1.1: : compile and display data, by hand or computer, in a variety of formats, including diagrams, flow charts, tables, bar graphs and line graphs (e.g., construct a database to enter, compare and present data on the insulative properties of different materials)

C.AI.1.3: : identify and evaluate potential applications of findings (e.g., the application of heat transfer principles to the design of homes and protective clothing)

C.AI.1.4: : test the design of a constructed device or system (e.g., test a personally-constructed heating or cooling device)

D: : Structures and Forces

4.1: : Outcomes for Science, Technology and Society (STS) and Knowledge

D.1: : Students will: Describe and interpret different types of structures encountered in everyday objects, buildings, plants and animals; and identify materials from which they are made

D.1.1: : recognize and classify structural forms and materials used in construction (e.g., identify examples of frame structures, such as goal posts and girder bridges, examples of shell structures, such as canoes and car roofs, and examples of frame-and-shell structures, such as houses and apartment buildings)

D.1.2: : interpret examples of variation in the design of structures that share a common function, and evaluate the effectiveness of the designs (e.g., compare and evaluate different forms of roofed structures, or different designs for communication towers)

D.1.5: : identify points of failure and modes of failure in natural and built structures (e.g., potential failure of a tree under snow load, potential failure of an overloaded bridge)

D.4: : Students will: Demonstrate and describe processes used in developing, evaluating and improving structures that will meet human needs with a margin of safety

D.4.2: : identify environmental factors that may affect the stability and safety of a structure, and describe how these factors are taken into account (e.g., recognize that snow load, wind load and soil characteristics need to be taken into account in building designs; describe example design adaptations used in earthquake-prone regions)

4.2: : Skill Outcomes

D.IP: : Initiating and Planning

D.IP.1: : Students will: Ask questions about the relationships between and among observable variables, and plan investigations to address those questions

D.IP.1.1: : identify practical problems (e.g., identify a problem related to the stability of a structure)

D.IP.1.2: : propose alternative solutions to a practical problem, select one, and develop a plan (e.g., propose an approach to increasing the stability of a structure)

D.PR: : Performing and Recording

D.PR.1: : Students will: Conduct investigations into the relationships between and among observations, and gather and record qualitative and quantitative data

D.PR.1.2: : organize data, using a format that is appropriate to the task or experiment (e.g., use a database or spreadsheet for recording the deformation of components under different loads)

D.AI: : Analyzing and Interpreting

D.AI.1: : Students will: Analyze qualitative and quantitative data, and develop and assess possible explanations

D.AI.1.3: : test the design of a constructed device or system (e.g., test and evaluate a prototype design of a foundation for a model building to be constructed on sand)

D.AI.1.4: : evaluate designs and prototypes in terms of function, reliability, safety, efficiency, use of materials and impact on the environment

E: : Planet Earth

5.1: : Outcomes for Science, Technology and Society (STS) and Knowledge

E.1: : Students will: Describe and demonstrate methods used in the scientific study of Earth and in observing and interpreting its component materials

E.1.1: : investigate and interpret evidence that Earth’s surface undergoes both gradual and sudden change (e.g., recognize earthquakes, volcanoes and landslides as examples of sudden change; recognize glacial erosion and river erosion as examples of gradual/incremental change)

E.1.3: : identify and explain the purpose of different tools and techniques used in the study of Earth (e.g., describe and explain the use of seismographs and coring drills, as well as tools and techniques for the close examination of rocks; describe methods used in oil and gas exploration)

E.1.4: : explain the need for common terminology and conventions in describing rocks and minerals, and apply suitable terms and conventions in describing sample materials (e.g., use common terms in describing the lustre, transparency, cleavage and fracture of rocks and minerals; apply the Mohs’ scale in describing mineral hardness)

E.2: : Students will: Identify evidence for the rock cycle, and use the rock cycle concept to interpret and explain the characteristics of particular rocks

E.2.2: : describe characteristics of the three main classes of rocks—igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic—and describe evidence of their formation (e.g., describe evidence of igneous rock formation, based on the study of rocks found in and around volcanoes; describe the role of fossil evidence in interpreting sedimentary rock)

E.2.4: : investigate and interpret examples of weathering, erosion and sedimentation

E.3: : Students will: Investigate and interpret evidence of major changes in landforms and the rock layers that underlie them

E.3.3: : describe evidence for crustal movement, and identify and interpret patterns in these movements (e.g., identify evidence of earthquakes and volcanic action along the Pacific Rim; identify evidence of the movement of the Pacific plate relative to the North American plate)

E.3.4: : identify and interpret examples of gradual/incremental change, and predict the results of those changes over extended periods of time (e.g., identify evidence of erosion, and predict the effect of erosional change over a year, century and millennium; project the effect of a given rate of continental drift over a period of one million years)

5.2: : Skill Outcomes

E.PR: : Performing and Recording

E.PR.1: : Students will: Conduct investigations into the relationships between and among observations, and gather and record qualitative and quantitative data

E.PR.1.1: : carry out procedures, controlling the major variables

E.PR.1.2: : estimate measurements (e.g., estimate the thickness of sedimentary layers)

E.PR.1.5: : organize data, using a format that is appropriate to the task or experiment (e.g., use diagrams to show the shape and thickness of different layers in a rock outcrop)

E.AI: : Analyzing and Interpreting

E.AI.1: : Students will: Analyze qualitative and quantitative data, and develop and assess possible explanations

E.AI.1.2: : interpret patterns and trends in data, and infer and explain relationships among the variables (e.g., interpret example graphs of seismic data, and explain the lag time between data received at different locations)

Correlation last revised: 9/9/2024

Alberta - Science: 7th Grade

Alberta Curriculum and Program of Studies | Adopted: 2014

A: : Interactions and Ecosystems

B: : Plants for Food and Fibre

C: : Heat and Temperature

D: : Structures and Forces

E: : Planet Earth