9th grade Science
7 units matched to the Minnesota K-12 Academic Standards.
Focus areas
- High school life, chemistry, Earth and space, and physics benchmarks
- Science and engineering practices: explaining with evidence and models
- How science connects to people and communities in Minnesota and beyond
Units
Unit 1
Cells from Cells
How cells copy their DNA and divide by mitosis, the stages in order, why cells divide for growth and healing, and what can go wrong when cell growth isn't controlled.
Benchmark: 9L.3.1.1.2; 9L.1.1.1.1 · DNA and chromosomes, and how mitosis and differentiation build an organism
Unit 2
Reproduction
How organisms reproduce with one parent or two, why sexual reproduction creates variety, the parts of a flower, and the strengths and weaknesses of each approach.
Benchmark: 9L.4.1.1.2 · how heritable variations come from meiosis, errors in copying and mutations
Unit 3
Atoms & Electrons
Protons, neutrons and electrons, drawing electron shells for the first 20 elements, valence electrons, periodic table groups and periods, and ions and isotopes.
Benchmark: 9C.3.1.1.1 · using the periodic table to predict the properties of elements
Unit 4
Electrons & Compounds
How valence electrons decide whether atoms gain, lose or share electrons, ionic and covalent compounds, and reading simple chemical formulas.
Benchmark: 9C.3.2.1.1; 9C.2.2.1.2 · outer electrons and the outcome of simple reactions, and conservation of atoms
Unit 5
Electric Current
Static electricity, current, voltage and resistance, solving V = I × R, series and parallel circuits, electrical safety, and electricity generation in BC.
Benchmark: 9P.1.2.1.1; 9P.3.1.1.2 · electric current, circuits and magnetic fields
Unit 6
Photosynthesis & Respiration
The reactants, products and location of photosynthesis and cellular respiration, why they are complementary, and how they link plants, animals and the carbon cycle.
Benchmark: 9L.3.1.1.3; 9L.3.1.1.4 · how photosynthesis stores energy and cellular respiration releases it
Unit 7
Evolution & Selection
Practices variation, adaptation, natural and artificial selection, mutations, the evidence for evolution from fossils and rock layers, and how new species can form.
Benchmark: 9L.3.2.1.4; 9L.3.2.1.5 · the causes of evolution, and how natural selection leads to adaptation
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