Earth Science and Science classes

Earth Science

Entry requirements:

for students, entering grade 4 or 5, at least 1 year study at SchoolNova, Math level 4

Brief syllabus of Earth Science

• What is Earth Science? Six Spheres of the Earth
• Earth’s Place in the Universe: Milky Way Galaxy. Solar System. The Sun. The Moon. Search for Earth-like exoplanets in the Universe.
• Planet Earth: orbit, axis, tilt; poles; equator, tropics, polar circles; day and night; seasons; solstices and equinoxes. The Globe and coordinates.
• Earth’s Remarkable (Sur)Face: natural wonders of the World.
• Internal structure of the Earth: core, mantle, crust; Earth’s composition.
• Lithosphere: tectonic plates, continental drift, types of the plate boundaries; geologic processes; landscape formation.
• Volcano: parts, types; distribution around the world; eruption; volcanic landforms; hot spot volcanism.
• Earthquakes: magnitude, distribution; seismic waves, seismogram; greatest earthquakes; earthquake hazards, tsunami.
• Hydrosphere: hydrologic cycle; fresh water (rivers, streams, lakes, wetlands); groundwater (aquifers); saltwater (seas, waves, tides).
• Cryosphere: frozen water (glaciers, permafrost, icebergs); Ice Age.
• The World Ocean: ocean floor, depth, temperature, salinity; currents, global ocean circulation (conveyor belt, overturning); Gulf Stream.
• Atmosphere: layers, temperature, air pressure and density; atmospheric gases; evolution of the Earth’s atmosphere.
• What is weather? Air masses and atmospheric fronts; wind (Wind Rose, global and local winds, jet stream); clouds (formation, floating condition); precipitation; weather forecast; severe weather (thunderstorms, tropical cyclones, winter storms).
• Tornado: formation, classification, damage; historical examples.
• Hurricane: origin, structure, path, classification; storm surge; greatest hurricanes.
• Magnetosphere: Earth’s magnetic field; magnetic poles; solar wind; Aurora Borealis (Northern Lights).

Science 1 and 2

Entry requirements: for students, entering grades 5 or 6, at least 1 year study at SchoolNova, Math level 5

Brief syllabus of Science. Combined syllabus (topics to be covered over a 2-year sequence)

• • Observation: how do our five senses work?
• • Measurement: the history of measurements; units of measurement; concept of measurement accuracy/precision/bias; Imperial/US customary Systems of Measurement; Metric System and International System of Units.
• • Math for Science: scientific notation; conversion of units; orders of magnitude.
• • Matter in Physics: atoms; physical properties of matter; mass, volume, density, temperature; states of matter (solid, liquid, gas and plasma).
• • Matter in Chemistry: chemical elements, compounds, mixtures; inorganic and organic molecules.
• • Forces of Nature: gravitational vs electromagnetic.
• • Energy: forms of energy, energy transformation and conservation.
• • Time: the fourth dimension.
• • Change of matter: phase transitions and chemical reactions.
• • What is life? The cell (discovery, diversity, general cell types, major organelles in plant and animal cells); biological macromolecules (lipids, sugars, proteins, DNA); gene, genome, genetic code.
• • Bacteria: types, reproduction; helpful and pathogenic bacteria, antibiotics.
• • Viruses: discovery, general characteristics, replication; immune response, vaccination.
• • What is an atom? Concept of a model in science; discovery of electron, nucleus, proton; atomic models; modern view of the atom; Periodic Table of Elements explained.
• • Nuclear reactions: isotopes, radioactivity, background radiation; nuclear fusion, nucleosynthesis; nuclear fission, nuclear chain reaction, Manhattan Project, atomic bomb; nuclear power.
• • Waves: vibration; wave parameters (amplitude, wavelength, frequency), types of waves; natural wave phenomena.
• • Sound waves: properties and behavior of sound; pitch and loudness; echo and echolocation.
• • Light waves: observed properties and behavior of light; famous experiments; modern concept; visible, infrared and ultraviolet light; electromagnetic spectrum; light sources; Sun spectrum.
• • Light meets matter: transmission, refraction, dispersion, reflection, absorption, scattering of light; apparent colors of objects; color vision.
• • Space Science: how to study Cosmos?
• • Solar System: architecture, origin, evolution; minor members of the Solar System family (asteroids, meteoroids, comets).
• • Stars: properties, structure, and evolution of stars in general; discovery of exoplanets.
• • Galaxies and black holes.
• • Space missions: past, present, future.