7

th
Grade Life Science Kathryn Corey 2014/2015

Course Description
The middle school life science course is designed to give students the necessary
skills for a smooth transition from elementary life science standards to high school
biology standards. The purpose is to give all students an overview of common
strands in life science including: diversity of organisms, classification, structure
and function of cells, systems of the human body, heredity, and genetics. Theories
about the origin of life will be presented from a Biblical Worldview and compared
with the evolutionists perspective.
Course Objectives:
By the end of the year, students will be able to do the following:
1. Investigate the diversity of living organisms and how they can be compared
scientifically
2. Describe the structure and function of cells, tissues, organs, and organ
systems
3. Recognize how biological traits are passed on to successive generations
4. Examine the dependence of organisms on one another and their environments
5. Discuss the creation / evolution controversy and be able to defend their
beliefs based on Biblical references

Teacher Information
Class Verse:
The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge. -
Psalm 19:1-2


Contact Information
E-mail: kcorey@cornerstonecougars.org or kascorey@gmail.com
Home Phone: 678-417-6593 cell: 404-695-7997
The best way to contact me is through Cornerstone e-mail.

Weebly Address (teacher webpage)
http://mrscoreyssciencecorner.weebly.com/

Category Weights
Major Category 60%
Tests
Papers
Projects (Science Fair)

Minor Category: 30%
Homework
Classwork
Labs

Semester Exams: 10%

Grading Scale
Middle School students earn numerical and letter grades.
Numerical Letter
Grades Grade
90-100 A
80-89 B
74-79 C
70-73 D
Below 70 F
Incomplete I



Honor Pledge
At Cornerstone students are expected to honor their word. Every student writes
an Honor Pledge on each assessment to authenticate his/her work: I pledge that I
did not give or receive any unauthorized help on any part of this assessment.
Homework
Homework is an integral part of the instructional program. Assignments are
designed to reinforce concepts, prepare for future activities and expand
instruction. Homework provides opportunities for independent work and discipline,
and helps students develop good study skills.
It should be expected that the core courses can require the following amount of
homework per night:
Fifth Grade: 15 minutes per core course
Sixth Grade: 15 minutes per core course
Seventh Grade: 20 minutes per core course
Eighth Grade: 20-25 minutes per core course
Studying for tests and working on long-term projects will require additional time.
Cornerstone Christian Academy is purposefully committed to supporting quality
family time and ministry opportunities. Therefore, Middle School students will be
assigned less homework on Wednesdays. Nightly study is still expected.
If a student receives a grade below a 75 on any homework assignment, they have
until the day before the test on that chapter to re-do the assignment for a
possible 75.


Late Assignments
Assignments are to be turned in on time. The grade for any late assignment will
drop a minimum of ten points for each day that the assignment is late for up to
three days. After the third day, the assignment will have a failing grade, but it
must still be completed for mastery sake.

Make-Up Work
All work missed because of an absence must be made up to the satisfaction of the
teacher. Students are allowed the same number of days as they were absent to
complete the work due to an excused absence.
Students who miss school for an unexcused reason are to take any make-up tests
on the first day upon returning to school. Tests will not be administered in advance.
There will be an academic penalty against Middle School students who miss school
for an unexcused reason. Middle School students will receive a maximum of 80% of
the earned grade for missed work due to an unexcused absence.
Eighth grade students are granted excused absences to visit other schools for
interviewing, shadowing or testing for the following school year. These absences
must be scheduled and communicated to the Middle School teachers in advance.

Exams
Scheduled semester examinations are administered in the Middle School. Students
are not allowed to take semester exams early. Students who miss taking an exam
can expect to take the missed exam on the first day of return to school. It is the
responsibility of the student to notify the teacher of the need to make up an
exam.

RenWeb Grade Book
Grades will be posted at maximum one week from the assignment turn in date for
most assessments and posted at maximum two weeks for papers and major
projects.

ParentsWeb
Parents are responsible for knowing and understanding the information published
on ParentsWeb. ParentsWeb contains information such as school calendar, lunch
calendar, class schedule for each child, grades for Middle School students,
financial information for each family, and a school directory as well as all
Cornerstone forms and handouts.
The first time you log into ParentsWeb, you must register as a First Time User
and log in with the e-mail you provided to Cornerstone. ParentsWeb will then assign
you your first password and send it to that same e-mail address. You may continue
to use that password or change it to one more familiar to you.

Class Resources
Textbook: Life Science, Glencoe, 2008
List of daily class supplies (agenda, science binder, science book, pencil,
highlighter, paper)
Units
Semester 1- Lifes Structure and Function
Exploring and Classifying Life
Cells
Cell Processes
Cell Reproduction
Heredity
Semester 2- Human Body Systems
Plants and Plant Processes
Ecosystems

Science Fair Project
All middle school students will be expected to complete a science fair project.
Instruction in class will supplement the Science Fair Student Guide. Benchmark
grading along the way will keep students on track and a timeline for completion will
be provided. The experiment itself and the majority of the written work will be
performed at home. One test grade each semester will be taken; the first
semester test grade will be based on completion of the benchmarks and the second
semester test grade will be based on performance at the Science Fair.

Quiz/Test Schedule
Tests will be scheduled after each chapter
Quizzes are typically administered every two weeks but are ultimately at the
discretion of the teacher and may be unannounced.