Investigations in Science 7 – October 26, 2018

Announcements:

 Last call for all Medieval Times forms and money. They were due on
October 12. If your child wants to attend we must have the forms and
money by Wednesday, October 31 in order to have enough tickets
 No costumes on Halloween
 End of the quarter is quickly approaching. Make sure your child is turning in
all Z work and staying on top of their grades.

Coming Up:

 Cellular Respiration

Dates:

 October 26 – Red Ribbon Week – FMS Gear/Colors Day

 October 26 – SGA Dance at 7:00 pm
 October 31 – No After School Activities
 November 1 – PTA Meeting at 7:00 pm
 November 6 - No School
 November 7 - Early Release Day
 November 7 – No After School Activities
 November 8 – No After School Activities
 November 9 - Medieval Times Field Trip
 November 12 - Early Release Day
 November 12 – Parent/Teacher Conferences
 November 13 - Early Release Day
 November 20 – No After School Activities
 November 21 - Early Release Day
 November 22-23 – No School
 November 29 – FMS vs. Rosa Parks Basketball Game
 December 6 – International Night
  December 11 – Winter Concert at Blake HS at 7:00 pm
 December 20 – Volleyball Tournament

What we did this week:

This week was a lab centered week. Labs EVERY DAY! Monday, we focused
on photosynthesis. We did a chromatography lab where students rub a piece of
spinach on chromatography paper using a coin. The bottom of the chromatography
paper (filter paper) is then placed in rubbing alcohol. The plant material starts to
move up the filter paper by the end of the class and the different materials will
separate. We will notice that the material inside the cells contains both green and
yellow pigments. Students discover that the function of a plant’s pigment is to
absorb light energy for photosynthesis.
Another lab we conducted this week was allowing the students to see the
type of cells that takes in carbon dioxide so that it can go through photosynthesis.
We had a leaf and put some clear finger nail polish on the underside of the leaf
(carbon dioxide enters through the bottom of the leaf so the cells can only be
found there). We applied a 2nd coat and then waited for the nail polish to dry.
Once it was dry, we put a piece of clear tape on top of the nail polish and carefully
pulled the tape off. Attached to the clear piece of tape was the nail polish and the
cells from the underside of the leaf. We put the tape on a slide and looked
through the microscope to be able to identify ‘guard cells’ and the ‘stomata.’
Wednesday, Cycling of Matter during Photosynthesis, takes a look at what
the molecules are doing while going through photosynthesis. We used different
color beads to represent different elements: carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. We
made molecules with the beads of both water and carbon dioxide to represent the
REACTANTS or what is needed before the chemical reaction of photosynthesis.
Students then rearranged the same beads to create molecules of glucose and
oxygen which are the PRODUCTS or what is created because of a chemical
reaction, of photosynthesis. Students should notice that the number of atoms (or
beads), is the same for the reactants and products. The atoms just get
rearranged and attach to new things to make new molecules.
Thursday, we started off with a lab to show evidence of photosynthesis in
plants. We looked a chemical called bromothymol blue. It is a dark blue color and
in the presence of carbon dioxide, it turns yellow. We watched a demonstration of
someone blowing bubbles through a straw into the bromothymol blue and watching
the color change from blue to yellow. Then we watched a demonstration of 3
different air tight test tubes which all contained carbon dioxide rich bromothymol
blue (so they were yellow in color). Two of the tubes contained a plant elodea. One
of those test tubes that contained elodea was wrapped in foil so that light could
not get to the plant. The other two test tubes were placed in direct light. We
noticed the test tubes that had elodea and in the direct light, the bromothymol
blue changed from yellow to blue because the elodea was using the carbon dioxide
to go through photosynthesis. The test tube that was wrapped in foil and no light
could travel to the plant, the bromothymol blue stayed the yellow color because it
was unable to go through photosynthesis and was not able to use the carbon
dioxide. You can see the experiment at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KpgZG9T0y34
Today we will start learning about cellular respiration. Cellular respiration is
a way that cells produce energy. We got the colored beads back out that we used
last week and first created the same reactants and products for photosynthesis.
We had beads that represented carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. We put them
together in groupings to create molecules. Then, using 5 clues listed on the
worksheet, students were trying to guess what the chemical formula is for cellular
respiration. Students are not marked incorrect if they didn't guess correctly.