A demonstrate safe practices during laboratory and field investigations as outlined in Texas Education Agency-approved safety standards; and

B practice appropriate use and conservation of resources, including disposal, reuse, or recycling of materials.

A plan and implement comparative and descriptive investigations by making observations, asking well defined questions, and using appropriate equipment and technology;

B design and implement experimental investigations by making observations, asking well defined questions, formulating testable hypotheses, and using appropriate equipment and technology;

C collect and record data using the International System of Units (SI) and qualitative means such as labeled drawings, writing, and graphic organizers;

D construct tables and graphs, using repeated trials and means, to organize data and identify patterns; and

E analyze data to formulate reasonable explanations, communicate valid conclusions supported by the data, and predict trends.

A analyze, evaluate, and critique scientific explanations by using empirical evidence, logical reasoning, and experimental and observational testing, so as to encourage critical thinking by the student;

B use models to represent aspects of the natural world such as human body systems and plant and animal cells;

C identify advantages and limitations of models such as size, scale, properties, and materials; and

D relate the impact of research on scientific thought and society, including the history of science and contributions of scientists as related to the content.

A use appropriate tools, including life science models, hand lenses, stereoscopes, microscopes, beakers, Petri dishes, microscope slides, graduated cylinders, test tubes, meter sticks, metric rulers, metric tape measures, timing devices, hot plates, balances, thermometers, calculators, water test kits, computers, temperature and pH probes, collecting nets, insect traps, globes, digital cameras, journals/notebooks, and other necessary equipment to collect, record, and analyze information; and

B use preventative safety equipment, including chemical splash goggles, aprons, and gloves, and be prepared to use emergency safety equipment, including an eye/face wash, a fire blanket, and a fire extinguisher.

A recognize that radiant energy from the Sun is transformed into chemical energy through the process of photosynthesis; and

B diagram the flow of energy through living systems, including food chains, food webs, and energy pyramids.

A distinguish between physical and chemical changes in matter.

A illustrate the transformation of energy within an organism such as the transfer from chemical energy to thermal energy; and

B demonstrate and illustrate forces that affect motion in organisms such as emergence of seedlings, turgor pressure, geotropism, and circulation of blood.

A predict and describe how catastrophic events such as floods, hurricanes, or tornadoes impact ecosystems;

B analyze the effects of weathering, erosion, and deposition on the environment in ecoregions of Texas; and

C model the effects of human activity on groundwater and surface water in a watershed.

A analyze the characteristics of objects in our solar system that allow life to exist such as the proximity of the Sun, presence of water, and composition of the atmosphere; and

B identify the accommodations, considering the characteristics of our solar system, that enabled manned space exploration.

A observe and describe how different environments, including microhabitats in schoolyards and biomes, support different varieties of organisms;

B describe how biodiversity contributes to the sustainability of an ecosystem; and

C observe, record, and describe the role of ecological succession such as in a microhabitat of a garden with weeds.

A examine organisms or their structures such as insects or leaves and use dichotomous keys for identification;

B explain variation within a population or species by comparing external features, behaviors, or physiology of organisms that enhance their survival such as migration, hibernation, or storage of food in a bulb; and

C identify some changes in genetic traits that have occurred over several generations through natural selection and selective breeding such as the Galapagos Medium Ground Finch (Geospiza fortis) or domestic animals and hybrid plants.

A investigate and explain how internal structures of organisms have adaptations that allow specific functions such as gills in fish, hollow bones in birds, or xylem in plants;

B identify the main functions of the systems of the human organism, including the circulatory, respiratory, skeletal, muscular, digestive, excretory, reproductive, integumentary, nervous, and endocrine systems;

C recognize levels of organization in plants and animals, including cells, tissues, organs, organ systems, and organisms;

D differentiate between structure and function in plant and animal cell organelles, including cell membrane, cell wall, nucleus, cytoplasm, mitochondrion, chloroplast, and vacuole;

E compare the functions of cell organelles to the functions of an organ system; and

F recognize the components of cell theory.

A investigate how organisms respond to external stimuli found in the environment such as phototropism and fight or flight; and

B describe and relate responses in organisms that may result from internal stimuli such as wilting in plants and fever or vomiting in animals that allow them to maintain balance.

A define heredity as the passage of genetic instructions from one generation to the next generation;

B compare the results of uniform or diverse offspring from asexual or sexual reproduction; and

C recognize that inherited traits of individuals are governed in the genetic material found in the genes within chromosomes in the nucleus.