Grade 9 Science: how to help at home
What your child learns in Grade 9 science in the Alberta Curriculum, and simple things to try at home.
The Big Ideas this year
- Unit A: Biological Diversity: how living things pass on their characteristics, and how human activity affects variety among and within species
- Unit B: Matter and Chemical Change: the properties of materials, the periodic table and what happens during chemical change
- Unit C: Environmental Chemistry: how chemical substances move through the environment and affect living things
- Unit D: Electrical Principles and Technologies: how electrical energy is generated, controlled, measured and used efficiently
- Unit E: Space Exploration: how technology has changed what we know about space, and the challenges and issues of exploring it
Easy ways to practise science at home
- Turn everyday questions into investigations: “Which paper towel holds the most water?”
- Read a science news story together and ask what evidence it gives.
- Look up how a household machine works, such as a bike gear, a lamp or a fridge.
- Have your child draw and label a diagram of something they just learned.
What each unit covers
Biodiversity & Heredity
Why variety within and between species helps living things survive, how symbiosis works, sexual and asexual reproduction, the basics of DNA, genes and chromosomes, and how people and nature influence which traits are passed on.
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.
Elements & Compounds
Elements, compounds and mixtures, reading chemical formulas, physical and chemical properties and changes, density, and common household chemicals, including why some should never be mixed.
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.
Chemical Change
Telling a chemical change from a physical change, reading simple word and symbol equations, why mass is conserved, what speeds a reaction up, exothermic and endothermic changes, and WHMIS safety.
Chemistry & the Environment
The pH scale, acid rain and neutralization, nutrients and fertilizer runoff, indicator species, how substances such as mercury build up in food chains, and why the amount of a substance matters for safety.
Static Electricity
Positive and negative charges and the particles behind them, charging by friction, contact and induction, conductors and insulators, and electrical safety in a thunderstorm.
Circuits & Ohm's Law
Circuit components and their jobs, current, potential difference and resistance with their symbols and SI units, calculating with V = I × R, and how current, voltage and resistance behave in series and parallel circuits.
Electrical Energy
The difference between electricity and electrical energy, energy in joules and kilowatt-hours, cost of electricity, efficiency of devices, and the benefits and challenges of sources such as hydro, wind, solar, nuclear and gas.
Space Exploration
How optical and radio telescopes work, how scientists measure distance and motion in space, what satellites are used for, life-support needs for space travel, Canada's part in space exploration, and the risks and issues of using space.
What the report card levels look like at home
- Beginning
- Just getting started with this idea. Short, regular practice with lots of support helps most.
- Approaching
- Understands parts of it and is building confidence. Keep practising the tricky parts.
- Meeting
- Has it! Mixed review now and then keeps it strong.
- Exceeding
- Applies it confidently, even in new or harder situations. Try challenge mode and real-life problems.
Your child’s teacher decides the level on the report card. Read the Alberta report card guide.
Common questions
How can I help my Grade 9 child with science?
Turn everyday questions into investigations: “Which paper towel holds the most water?” Read a science news story together and ask what evidence it gives. Keep sessions short, about 10 to 15 minutes, and stop on a success.
What does my child learn in Grade 9 science in Alberta?
The Alberta Curriculum Grade 9 science units include biodiversity & heredity, reproduction, elements & compounds, atoms & electrons, chemical change, chemistry & the environment.
Free printable Grade 9 science practice sheet
Questions from every unit, with an answer key.