STEM Skills and Connections
Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) skills and connections are integrated into all units in the course. Through scientific research, experimentation, and engineering design processes, students will conduct investigations, design solutions to problems, and communicate findings while discovering practical applications that pertain to science and technology. Students will make practical connections between the knowledge students gain and real-world issues in science and technology. Students will also analyse the contributions made by First Nations, Metis, and Inuit communities as their knowledge has led to the creation of Indigenous scientific and technical systems.
Human Organ Systems
In this unit, students will learn how organ systems are components of a larger system (the body) and, as such, work together and affect one another. They will learn that organ structures are linked to their functions and that systems in the human body work together to meet our basic needs. They will also start to understand that the choices we make affect our organ systems and, in turn, our overall health.
Forces Acting on Structures and Mechanisms
In this unit, students will learn how structures and mechanisms throughout our environment have forces that act on and within them. They will learn that we can measure forces in order to determine how they affect structures and mechanisms and use this information to guide the design of new structures and mechanisms. They will also start to understand that forces that result from natural phenomena have an effect on society and the environment.
Properties of and Changes in Matter
In this unit, students will learn that there are three states of matter and how matter that changes state is still the same matter. They will learn that physical change refers to the fact that a substance can be changed from one form to another and that chemical change implies the formation of a new substance. They will also start to understand that the properties of materials determine their use and may have an effect on society and the environment.
Conservations of Energy and Resources
In this unit, students will learn that energy sources are either renewable or non-renewable and that although energy can neither be created nor destroyed, it can be transformed. They will learn that choices about using energy and resources have both immediate and long-term impacts. They will also start to understand that conservation (reducing our use of energy and resources) is one way to reduce the impacts of energy and resource use.
Coding
In the Coding Unit, students will use coding in investigations and to model concepts. Students will assess the impact of coding and of emerging technologies on everyday life and in STEM-related fields.
