Course title

Pre-requisite

Course description

SCI320 - AS Environmental Science†

Major Concepts/Skills:This is an interdisciplinary study combining the natural sciences and social sciences. Students will gainan understanding of environmental resources; how natural processes work and how these processes areinterconnected. Key environmental laws will be addressed alongside the scientific principles that underpinissues of sustainability and environmental science. The local desert environment and real-world case studieswill be emphasized. Laboratory and research activities will include application of proper sampling techniquesfor water; soil; air; and populations; groundwater well monitoring; wetlands-river system monitoring;investigations; and air quality monitoring.

AS Environmental (Management) Science Syllabus: AS Environmental Science

AS Environmental Science Curriculum Scope and Sequence

Semester 1 Fall

Week

Topic

Concepts Covered

Key Vocabulary

Labs and Activities

Materials

1-2

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Scientific method/ Lab Safety and equipment

(ongoing throughout the year)

Basics of scientific method. How to create each part lab.

Graphing- bar and line graph

Dependent variable; independent variable

Control

Lab Equipment

Inference

Observation

Quantitative

Qualitative

?††††† Lab Equipment

?††††† Bubble gum lab

?††††† Quantitative vs Qualitative Lab

?††††† AVID Magazine Ad

?††††† AVID Procedure Writing

?††††† AVID LENSES (Data Analysis) Student Handout

?††††† AVID LENSES Teacher Reference

?††††† Scientific Method

Lab equipment

Bubble gum

3-5

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Biosphere- Human populations

Carrying capacity

LEDC MEDC

Overpopulation

Underpopulation

Optimum population

Demographic transition

Malthus and Boserup population models

Tragedy of the Commons

Theory of demographic transition

MEDC

LEDC

Emigration

Immigration

Crude death rates

Crude birth rates

Doubling time

Age structure diagrams

Population pyramids

Total fertility rates

Rule of seventy

Replacement fertility

Theory of demographic transition

?††††† Population Pyramids (Shows Age Structure)

?††††† World in the Balance video

?††††† Mitotic Bean Lab (see google folder- Great activity for population growth)

(see formula sheet)

?††††† Material World

?††††† Demographic transition (see folder)

?††††† Demographics- Age Structure Lab Data (in folder)

?††††† Tragedy of the Commons (in folder)

?††††† Crash Course Malthus

?††††† Malthus Boserup

?††††† World in the Balance Video

?††††† World in the Balance Worksheet

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Beans

Plastic cups

Material World Posters

M and M?s

Straws

Plastic bowls

6-8

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Ecosystems

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Characteristics of ecosystems

Biotic & abiotic factors

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Biotic

abiotic

Food web

Succession

Biodiversity

Trophic levels

Food chains

Primary productivity

Photosynthesis

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Eco-bottles lab

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Fish

Elodea

Duck weed

Plants

Pond snails

Water pH meter

Dissolved oxygen probe

Water conditioner

Five gallon water clear plastic bottles

Food coloring

Aquarium Gravel

Aquimam Test Strips

9-10

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Biomes

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Climate

Biomes

Convection

Biomes project (see File)

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15

Aquatic Biomes; Human impact; Methods to conserve and preserve

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16

Hydrosphere

Water stores

Groundwater

Aquifer

Transpiration

Infiltration

Hidden groundwater pollution lab (see folder)

Plastic shoe boxes

Soil

Sodium hydroxide pellets

Phenolphthalein

Pipettes

17

Hydrosphere- water impoundment systems water pollution

Water pollution

Water impoundment systems

eutrophication

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Finals

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Semester 2 - Spring

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Week

Topic

Concepts Covered

Key Vocabulary

Labs/ Hands-On Activities

Materials

1

Layers of the atmosphere

The structures of the atmosphere

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The importance of their characteristics

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Troposphere

Stratosphere

Mesosphere

Thermosphere

Exosphere

Ozone Layer

Layering of the atmosphere

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Heat Transfer & Density Lab

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2

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Air movement

Patterns of air movement in the troposphere

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Effect on regional climates and local weather

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Albedo Lab

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3-4

Meteorology

Weather forecasting

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Weather maps

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5

Air pollution

Human activity effect on the atmosphere

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Air Quality lab investigation

UV Sunscreen Lab

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6-7

Lithosphere

Layers of the earth

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Tectonic plates

Crust

Core

Mantle

†Lithosphere

Asthenosphere

†Body Waves (Primary & Secondary)

†Primary Waves

Secondary Waves

Love Waves

Paleo-Magnetism

Convection Currents

†Sea Floor Spreading

†Destructive Plate Boundary

Constructive Plate Boundary

Conservative Plate Boundary

Continental Crust

Oceanic Crust

Geosphere

Subduction

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Layers of the earth foldable link

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Convection in the Mantle

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Oreo cookie plate tectonic mini lab link

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Plate Tectonics Flipbook

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Seismic waves slinky lab link

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8-9

Natural disasters

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Mass Movement

Earthquakes

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Tsunamis

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Volcanoes

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Witness: disaster in Japan video

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10-11

Soil and erosion

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Mass Movement

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Edible soil

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Soil texture lab

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12-13

Energy

Earth?s resources and human impact

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14-15

Sustainability

Waste management

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Conservation

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Land management

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16

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17

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Finals

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School country

School state

School city

School / district Address

School zip code

Requested competency code

Date submitted

Approved

Approved competency code

• LINT
• Integrated science

Approved date

Online / Virtual