Space Unit

Hi,

We will be commencing three distinct projects tomorrow;

- Scale of the Solar System
- Space News
- Mars Major Project

Here is a video link that we will be watching tomorrow to help kick start the unit!

Solar System Scale 

Busy week!

Hi Parents,

With our electricity unit wrapping up, and with Space on the horizon, we want to remind everyone of the unit test for electricity on Tuesday.  I also just uploaded the major unit project for space to the students google drive.  This is a big project that we will make sure the students are well set up for prior to the break.  They are encouraged to work on it over the holidays, but don't over do it!

Electricity Presentations

Many students were ready to do their presentations today, unfortunately, not everyone was.  Time management is a very useful skill, and the fact that some students did not work the most efficiently over the class time provided for this project, is a bit disappointing.  Hopefully all projects can get completed asap, and we can move on.  We have a unit test scheduled for early next week, and then we want to start our Space Unit before the holidays!  Merry Christmas!

Electricity flows along....

Hi Parents,

Our electricity unit is flowing along.  Mr. Furgeson is doing a good job covering all the basics and engaging the students in some good hands on activities.  Our electricity math still requires nightly review by students as year after year this content proves to be some of the most challenging in the course.  I've pic'd a photo of the main equations that the students should know.

It's Electrifying!

Our student teacher Mr. Furgeson is flowing with electricity!  The students are well into the unit now and most recently have been working on energy reduction, and in completing a "foldable" outlining major points thus far in the unit.  The Static electricity lab was well done, and we look forward to our current electricity lab!

Pizza Party

Thanks again to all the students and parents who are supporting our exchange fundraiser.  We are having some great pizza today at lunch for a great cause.  Thanks again.  Mr.M.

Static Electricity Lab!

The students are hard at work with their electrifying unit.  Today the students worked through about 1/2 way on the static electricity lab.  As always, students should be reviewing notes at home, and planning ahead.  Ms. Polumbo and I took part in ugly sweater day earlier this week.

Chem, Electricity and Pizza!

The Chem unit is now complete and we have already moved on to Electricity.  Don't forget tomorrow is the last day to prepay for Pizza for this Friday.  It is an important fundraiser for our Yukon Exchange group.  Thanks very much!

Tests and Pizza

Hi Parents,

With the possibility of a snow day tomorrow, I'd like to remind everyone that in Academic Science we don't have classes off.  This doesn't mean you risk yourself in unsafe conditions to get here, but it is a reminder that our students don't take a yellow bus to school, so the expectation is that so long as it's safe, we'll see you tomorrow.

The test is scheduled, but if it's unsafe for many students to get to ND, then we will review and look ahead to our electricity unit.  Also, the students were supplied with some review exercises that were uploaded through Hapara to their OCSB email files.

Now for the fun stuff...

As part of our fundraising efforts for our exciting YMCA ND-Yukon we will be starting some pizza Friday's during lunch in our room 104.  It's pretty simple.  The basic order will be 5$ for two great slices of Gabriel's pizza and a drink.  Please see the attached form for more details.  If your son/daughter has a friend in another homeroom, that they would like to invite, then have them see me asap on Monday for an order form.  Thanks for your support.  Mr.M.

Yukon Feed the Eagles Pizza Fundraiser!

End of Chemistry!

It's been a crazy couple of weeks as we wrap up Chemistry. We have completed a few labs, and the students did an amazing job on the elements project.  The mystery gas lab and the flame test are worth asking your kids about; lots of good science and fun.  Today we are finishing up with a molecular model lab and a review for the big unit test on Monday!

Chem Unit

Today the classes are finishing up their Atoms project.  Many students were done at the start of class and this translates into a level 4 for preparedness.  Well done.  Next up is a review of chemical and physical properties prior to our labs next week.

The Unit is progressing well and we are still on pace to have our unit ending test late next week or early the following week. Everyone should be reviewing nightly!

Atoms, atoms and more atoms

Today we started our Atom's project.  Each student has been assigned an element to research and present.  We will have one more class for research and then we will have very brief presentations. Next up we will have a molecular model lab and before you know it we will be transitioning into electricity!

Molecules

Hi Parents!

It was great to meet many of you last night!  Today we pressed on with atomic structure and learned about covalent and ionic bonding.  These are new concepts and can be very tricky to grasp without nightly review.  Some practice homework was given.  Have a great weekend.

Atomic Structure

The last couple days and for the next few, the students need to be reviewing and completing the daily assignments concerning the ATOM.  This is fundamental to building knowledge in this unit and in chemistry in general.  Many students are doing fine as they are concentrating in class and participating actively in the practice quiz's etc.  However, some kids will soon become frustrated and fall behind if they don't keep up with the sequential learning.  Mr.M.

pH and Bohr-Rutherford Diagrams

The students saw an interesting Demo today showing Nature's natural ability to determine acids and bases.  The famous Red Cabbage Juice pH demo was successful and the students learned the basics of the pH scale.

We continue to work on Atomic Structure.  Today we expanded on our Model of the Atom understanding and got right into drawing Bohr-Rutherford diagrams.  This is a big learning expectation for the unit and students need to be completing all work for homework and reviewing nightly to ensure understanding of these important concepts.  The unit progresses quickly, and we build knowledge into tougher upcoming concepts.

Tomorrow is Take your Grade 9 Kid to work day.  I expect all students to be out there in the real work being inspired.

Next week

The tests are being marked form the Ecosystem Unit.  Well done for the most part.  Tomorrow we will likely go over the tests, and then keep pushing on in Chemistry.  The students have been left with some homework in Basic Chemistry.  Topics such as Particle Theory and the behaviour of Water through temperature changes should be reviewed and understood before we move forward.  Enjoy the rest of the weekend!

Outdoor Club Trip

Don't forget to get your forms and money in asap to be a part of one of the most exciting trips of the year.  We take the first 8 students who are interested, and have their paperwork in order.  This is an excellent trip, one of the highlights of the year! #outdoorclub

Pond Water Lab

Just one of many examples of unique and interesting microscopic life as seen under the microscope during the last couple days!  Don't forget to review for the test on Tuesday!  Have a great weekend!

The Pond Water Lab...

The students had a successful pond water lab today.  We saw some amazing and fascinating microscopic life.  Most groups were able to complete their scientific diagrams for sample A by the end of class.  Tomorrow we will complete the lab.

Next week we will have a review before our Major Unit ending test for Ecosystems.  Up next is Chemistry.

Presentation Day

The students have been completing a project on Bioaccumulation, and preparing for their major Unit Presentations!  Great stuff so far.

ALSO, please ask your son/daughter about our exciting annual Outdoor Club Trip to Lake Placid! With many previous students graduated, we are now hopeful to really focus on our grade 9s for these exciting opportunities.

The proposed trip is scheduled for next Thursday to Saturday.  All details in the handout.

Global Issues Project!

We have started our Global Environmental Issues Project!  Students by now will have either decided to work independently or within a small group, and should have chosen a unique global issue to focus on, and to share with the class next week.  The students will have some class time for this, but will also be encouraged to network with their peers outside of class time.

We are also learning about Motivated Blindness and Bias Towards Normalcy as it applies to critical thinking in the documentary Cowspiracy.  Busy times!

Don't forget to encourage your child to review their notes nightly, even if there is no official homework.

Succession and Invasive Species

At the midpoint of the Unit, we now switch gears to broader concepts and more project based learning.  Today we started learning about Succession in Nature and about the growing problem of Invasive Species.  We will be starting a Project tomorrow on Env. Issues.

Marks have been posted for evaluated work to date.  Students should be reminded that teachers can asses not only product, but through observation and conversation as well.

Happy Thanksgiving!

The Students have all been given a codename that will appear in a spreadsheet alongside all their scores for for labs, assignments, projects, quizzes and tests.  This will help them realize where they stand in the course and if they are missing any assignments.

Awesome Graphs!

A clear relationship is shown in these graphs between predators and prey!  Well Done!

Mid Unit...

Both classes are now wrapping up their predator prey lab, and reviewing for the mid unit quiz tomorrow!  The predator prey lab is a major lab that covers many expectations from the Ecosystems Strand, students should be touching this lab up during our homeroom time.  Student's should always be completing questions and or reviewing their notes for a minimum of 10 minutes each night.  Quiz Thursday, PD day Friday!

It was great to be back today!

As fun as our 3 day Specialist High Skills Major Certification camp was, it is nice to be back.  All the work the students completed over the week with the supply teacher could be tested on our quiz next week.  We are accepting the graphs for assessment.

Today we started the predator prey lab.  This is a complicated lab, but most groups were able to follow the instructions and get some good data!  We will continue working on the lab on Monday.

There is a Mass during our class next Wednesday, and don't forget about the PD day next Friday.  have a great weekend.  Mr.M.

Wild Canada!

The students viewed a portion of an excellent nature video in class today.  The Nature of Things "Wild Canada" episode 3 showcased our amazing Prarie and Boreal Forest ecosystems and how they have evolved over the years.  The notes we took in class are very important for review prior to the next quiz.

The food footprint concept and graphing assignment should be continued at home tonight.  I can not promise any additional time tomorrow during class.

I will be camping with our Environmental Science class Tuesday to Thursday this week.  This is an amazing course and one I hope our present grade 9's consider for grade 11.  We will be learning all about forestry and will receive valuable industry certifications in canoeing, hiking and navigation.  I will not be able to update the blog during this time.

Carp Fair!

Hi Parents!

I realized that we has some extra space on the bus for the Carp Fair.  This is an annual trip I do with my grade 11 Environmental Science students.  Rather than have some wasted seats on the bus, I held a name draw to fairly select 10 students from our period 1 science class.  Obviously, this is not ideal, as I would like to have taken all 34 students, but this simply was not possible.

I hope the 10 lucky scientists are able to make it tomorrow.  There is no cost for this trip.  Thanks.

Mr.M.

Ecosystems!

We are off and running with our Ecosystems Unit.  The students were outside yesterday beginning our Unit.  We were making observations and connections to the terminology we are learning.  Science is always engaging outside!

Next up...Ecosystems!

With the Unit tests now being completed for our Safety and Scientific Method Unit, we will start our Ecosystems Unit.  Here is an intro video that we will be viewing to kick things off.

Ecosystems Intro Video

Unit Test Tomorrow!

We finished up the burning candle lab and we will have our Unit test tomorrow.  Students should be reviewing the following...
- Graphing
- Lab Safety
- Variables
- Observations
- Safety symbols and key locations in the lab
- The Scientific Method

**All students should now have an online access code to help them study from home via the online textbook.**

Have a great night!

The Burning Candle Lab!

One of the best labs for data collection was completed today in class.  The burning candle lab was done really well, and the students had another opportunity to refine those graphing skills.  We will be completing the write up on Monday.  Students are reminded that the graphing assignment that was handed out yesterday will be discussed on Monday.

Our first Unit test will be next week and will likely be on Tuesday or Wednesday.  Have an amazing weekend!

Drops on a Penny Graphing

Today we worked on our graphs for the penny lab.  Most students completed the lab and are now onto our next graphing activity.  For homework, the students should be completing the skateboarding graphing assignment.  Our focus is on learning all about controlled and measured variables and how to present data in graphical form. Have a great evening!

Big water bubbles from the penny lab!

Please note that is Mr. Ferguson our new Practice Teacher!  Mr. M. has much more hair!

Observations!

We are now just completing our Observation Lab!  The students should know all about Qualitative and Quantitative Observations, as well as what an Inference is.  The Specimen lab was a lot of fun.

The "Drops on a penny Lab" will be a great opportunity for us to start learning about controlled and measured variables, as well as some basic graphing techniques.  So far, some great inquiry and scientific skills have been demonstrated by most students.  Mr. M.

A great first week!

We finished up week 1 with our safety quiz. Looks like everyone did well and we can now start some introductory labs on Monday. Next week we will be looking at variables, observations and the scientific method. Have a wonderful weekend. Mr. M.

Science Strands and Safety

Another great morning!  Both classes are now well on their way to getting into the "real" science next week.  We are completing some safety lessons, and the first assignments look exceptional! There are a few who still have not submitted their work, we look forward to seeing them tomorrow!  A stunning example of of a level 4+++ can be seen below.  Well done Jen!

We will also complete our safety quiz tomorrow.  Not too much study is required, perhaps just a little 5 minute review of what we have been doing in class.  This is a good routine to get established, and it will serve you well in the remainder of the course.  Happy Thursday Night!

What is Science?

Hi Parents,

Thank you to all the parents who are on top of all the paperwork; this is much appreciated.  All students should have brought home the following forms to be signed (Technology, Information and a Student Verification Form).  It is also useful to you to have printed off the course info form directly from this blogs first post.  The activity fee of 20$ is also very much appreciated.

Both classes are now well into our introductory Scientific Method Unit.  Students are learning about the process of science and what Strands or Units we will be covering this year. The title page assignments will be collected for grading tomorrow. We will be beginning our discussion on Lab Safety tomorrow as well.

If your son or daughter, or any of their High School Friends, are interested in learning more about our HS Non Contact Hockey team, then they should come see me.  We look forward to another outstanding season of Eagle's Hockey starting real soon!

Mr.M.

First day of school!

Hi Parents and Students,

Today was a very good first day of school for the year!  It was a pleasure to meet all the new students and to get talking Science.  Today, especially for our 9D class first period, we took care of a lot of the first day logistics of high school.  By now, all students should have a locker and the tools they need for success in Science.  Suggested items (tools) could include a 1 inch binder, pencil, blue pen, red pen and ruler. As discussed in class, additional items could include graph paper and a graph paper lab book; these are only suggestions and not mandatory.  We can always help a student obtain the items they need for success.

Our 9P class got right into a discussion of "What is Science?" and we should be prepared to continue that tomorrow.  Both classes will begin our introductory safety sessions, and our Scientific Method Unit tomorrow.

Parents, please check the link at the bottom of the first blog post.  This is our course general course description.  This will give you an idea of what we are planning to study this year.

Have a great evening!  Mr.M.

Students and Parents,

Welcome to our Blog.  I will try and update the blog with useful information from time to time. Grade 9 Science is a lot of fun.  The Science Dept. here at Notre Dame try hard to make our curriculum delivery interesting and dynamic.  Science is great as it is very hands on, and our course contains four very distinct and fun units!  We will study Ecosystems, Chemistry, Electricity and Space.

Students should be prepared for daily learning that includes reading, discussion, research, labs, video analysis and lots more.  Science will have homework from time to time, but most importantly will be the fact that all students should be reviewing their daily work each and every night for a minimum of 15 minutes.  We do a lot in a period of 75 minutes and all students can benefit from going over this at home at their own pace with no distractions.

As the Specialist High Skills Major Environment teacher for our grade 11 program, my grade 9 students often benefit from additional experiential learning opportunities as we invite them along to "fill up a bus" when we visit local attractions that relate to Earth and Environmental Science.  These outings are a lot of fun, and I encourage our Grade 9 students to participate in these optional outings if they are invited.

I will try and provide everything a student needs in this course, however, I will list a few items that would be good for the student to have.
- pencils with erasers, blue and red pens, ruler and calculator
- a coiled 1 subject  graph-paper "notebook" for Labs.

Please visit the link to our course description, print out and return the signed portion.  Mr. Monaghan


Link to Course Description