National Common Core Standards: Grade 8 specific (as well as general category 6-8 Middle School Standards)

ELA/Literacy:

8.RI.1: Cite the textual evidence that most strongly supports an analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.

8.RI.2: Determine a central idea of a text and analyze its development over the course of the text, including its relationship to supporting ideas; provide an objective summary of the text.

8.RI3: Analyze how a text makes connections among and distinctions between individuals, ideas, or events (e.g., through comparisons, analogies, or categories).

8.RI.6: Analyze how a text makes connections among and distinctions between individuals, ideas, or events (e.g., through comparisons, analogies, or categories).

8.RI.9: Analyze a case in which two or more texts provide conflicting information on the same topic and identify where the texts disagree on matters of fact or interpretation.

CCRA.R.1: Read closely to determine what the text says explicitly and to make logical inferences from it; cite specific textual evidence when writing or speaking to support conclusions drawn from the text.

CCRA.R.3: Analyze how and why individuals, events, or ideas develop and interact over the course of a text.

CCRA.R.8: Delineate and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, including the validity of the reasoning as well as the relevance and sufficiency of the evidence.

CCRA.R.10: Read and comprehend complex literary and informational texts independently and proficiently.

8.L.6 Acquire and use accurately grade-appropriate general academic and domain-specific words and phrases; gather vocabulary knowledge when considering a word or phrase important to comprehension or expression.

6-8.RST.1: Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of science and technical texts.

6-8.RST.2: Determine the central ideas or conclusions of a text; provide an accurate summary of the text distinct from prior knowledge or opinions.

6-8.RST.3: Follow precisely a multistep procedure when carrying out experiments, taking measurements, or performing technical tasks.

6-8.RST.4: Determine the meaning of symbols, key terms, and other domain-specific words and phrases as they are used in a specific scientific or technical context relevant to grades 6-8 texts and topics.

6-8.RST.7: Integrate quantitative or technical information expressed in words in a text with a version of that information expressed visually (e.g., in a flowchart, diagram, model, graph, or table).

6-8.RST.8: Distinguish among facts, reasoned judgment based on research findings, and speculation in a text.

6-8.RST.9: Compare and contrast the information gained from experiments, simulations, video, or multimedia sources with that gained from reading a text on the same topic.

Next Generation Science Standards (Middle School)

The following performance expectations developed using elements from NRC document, A Framework for K-12 Science Education:

MS. Earth’s Systems MS-ESS3-1. Construct a scientific explanation based on evidence for how the uneven distributions of Earth’s mineral, energy, and groundwater resources are the result of past and current geoscience processes. [Clarification Statement: Emphasis is on how these resources are limited and typically non-renewable, and how their distributions are significantly changing as a result of removal by humans. Examples of uneven distributions of resources as a result of past processes include but are not limited to petroleum (locations of the burial of organic marine sediments and subsequent geologic traps), metal ores (locations of past volcanic and hydrothermal activity associated with subduction zones), and soil (locations of active weathering and/or deposition of rock).]

MS. Human Impacts MS-ESS3-3. Apply scientific principles to design a method for monitoring and minimizing a human impact on the environment.* [Clarification Statement: Examples of the design process include examining human environmental impacts, assessing the kinds of solutions that are feasible, and designing and evaluating solutions that could reduce that impact. Examples of human impacts can include water usage (such as the withdrawal of water from streams and aquifers or the construction of dams and levees), land usage (such as urban development, agriculture, or the removal of wetlands), and pollution (such as of the air, water, or land).]

MS. Matter and Energy in Organisms and Ecosystems MS-LS2-1. Analyze and interpret data to provide evidence for the effects of resource availability on organisms and populations of organisms in an ecosystem. [Clarification Statement: Emphasis is on cause and effect relationships between resources and growth of individual organisms and the numbers of organisms in ecosystems during periods of abundant and scarce resources.]

MS-LS2-4. Construct an argument supported by empirical evidence that changes to physical or biological components of an ecosystem affect populations. [Clarification Statement: Emphasis is on recognizing patterns in data and making warranted inferences about changes in populations, and on evaluating empirical evidence supporting arguments about changes to ecosystems.]

Louisiana Academic Standards (Middle School-Grade 8)

Grade Level Expectations

Science Science as Inquiry As students in Grades 5-8 extend their knowledge, what they know and are able to do includes:

The Abilities Necessary to Do Scientific Inquiry:

• Generate testable questions about objects, organisms, and events that can be answered through scientific investigation (SI-M-A1).
• Identify problems, factors, and questions that must be considered in a scientific investigation (SI-M-A1).
• Use a variety of sources to answer questions (SI-M-A1). Design, predict outcomes, and conduct experiments to answer guiding questions (SI-M-A2).
• Identify independent variables, dependent variables, and variables that should be controlled in designing an experiment (SI-M-A2).
• Identify the difference between description and explanation (SI-M-A4).
• Use data and information gathered to develop an explanation of experimental results (SI-M-A4).
• Identify patterns in data to explain natural events (SI-M-A4).
• Develop models to illustrate or explain conclusions reached through investigation (SI-M-A5).
• Identify and explain the limitations of models used to represent the natural world (SI-M-A5).
• Use evidence to make inferences and predict trends (SI-M-A5).
• Recognize that there may be more than one way to interpret a given set of data, which can result in alternative scientific explanations and predictions (SI-M-A6).
• Distinguish between observations and inferences (SI-M-A7).
• Use evidence and observations to explain and communicate the results of investigations (SI-M-A7).

Earth and Space Science

As students in Grades 5-8 extend their knowledge, what they know and are able to do includes:

Structure of Earth

Distinguish between chemical and mechanical (physical) weathering and identify the role of weathering agents (e.g., wind, water, ice, gravity) (ESS-M-A4). Determine the results of constructive and destructive forces upon landform development with the aid of geologic maps of Louisiana (ESS-M-A7). Describe how humans' actions and natural processes have modified coastal regions in Louisiana and other locations (ESS-M-A8).

Earth History

Describe how processes seen today are similar to those in the past (e.g., weathering, erosion, lithospheric plate movement) (ESS-M-B3).

Science and the Environment

As students in Grades 5-8 extend their knowledge, what they know and are able to do includes: * Illustrate possible point and non-point source contributions to pollution and natural or human induced pathways of a pollutant in an ecosystem (SE-MA3). * Analyze the consequences of human activities on global earth systems (SE-M-A4). * Describe the relationship between plant type and soil compatibility (SE-M-A9). * Distinguish among several examples of erosion (e.g., stream bank, topsoil, coastal) and describe common preventive measures (SE-M-A10).

Social Studies:

Standard 3-Geography Skills 8.3.1 Locate and describe the physical and political features of Louisiana

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National Common Core Standards (High School 9-12)

ELA/Literacy

RH.9-10.2 Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary source; provide an accurate summary of how key events or ideas develop over the course of the text.

RST.9-10.8 Assess the extent to which the reasoning and evidence in a text support the author's claims.

RST.11-12.1Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of primary and secondary sources, connecting insights gained from specific details to an understanding of the text as a whole.

RST.11-12.2 Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary source; provide an accurate summary that makes clear the relationships among the key details and ideas.

RST.11-12.3 Evaluate various explanations for actions or events and determine which explanation best accords with textual evidence, acknowledging where the text leaves matters uncertain.

RH.11-12.7 Integrate and evaluate multiple sources of information presented in diverse formats and media (e.g., visually, quantitatively, as well as in words) in order to address a question or solve a problem.

Next Generation Science Standards (High School 9-12)

The following performance expectations developed using elements from NRC document, A Framework for K-12 Science Education:

HS. Interdependent Relationships in Ecosystems Students who demonstrate understanding can:

HS-LS2-6. Evaluate the claims, evidence, and reasoning that the complex interactions in ecosystems maintain relatively consistent numbers and types of organisms in stable conditions, but changing conditions may result in a new ecosystem. [Clarification Statement: Examples of changes in ecosystem conditions could include modest biological or physical changes, such as moderate hunting or a seasonal flood; and extreme changes, such as volcanic eruption or sea level rise.]

HS-LS2-7. Design, evaluate, and refine a solution for reducing the impacts of human activities on the environment and biodiversity.* [Clarification Statement: Examples of human activities can include urbanization, building dams, and dissemination of invasive species.]

HS. Earth’s Systems Students who demonstrate understanding can:

HS-ESS2-2. Analyze geoscience data to make the claim that one change to Earth’s surface can create feedbacks that cause changes to other Earth systems. [Clarification Statement: Examples should include climate feedbacks, such as how an increase in greenhouse gases causes a rise in global temperatures that melts glacial ice, which reduces the amount of sunlight reflected from Earth’s surface, increasing surface temperatures and further reducing the amount of ice. Examples could also be taken from other system interactions, such as how the loss of ground vegetation causes an increase in water runoff and soil erosion; how dammed rivers increase groundwater recharge, decrease sediment transport, and increase coastal erosion; or how the loss of wetlands causes a decrease in local humidity that further reduces the wetland extent.] http://www.nextgenscience.org/hsess-es-earth-systems

Louisiana Academic Standards (High School 9-12)

Grade Level Expectations

Science

Science as Inquiry The Abilities Necessary to Do Scientific Inquiry

Choose appropriate models to explain scientific knowledge or experimental results (e.g., objects, mathematical relationships, plans, schemes, examples, roleplaying, computer simulations) (SI-H-A4).

Give an example of how new scientific data can cause an existing scientific explanation to be supported, revised, or rejected (SI-H-A5).

Write and defend a conclusion based on logical analysis of experimental data (SI-H-A6) (SI-H-A2).

Environmental Science (Recommended for Grades 11/12)

Ecological Systems and Interactions Analyze the consequences of changes in selected divisions of the biosphere (e.g., ozone depletion, global warming, acid rain) (SE-H-A5) (SE-H-A7).

Illustrate the flow of carbon, water, cite and explain examples of organisms' adaptations to environmental pressures over time (SE-H-A8). Give examples and describe the effect of pollutants on selected populations (SE-H-A11).

Environmental Awareness and Protection Determine the interrelationships of clean water, land, and air to the success of organisms in a given population (SE-H-C1).

Relate environmental quality to quality of life (SE-H-C2).

Analyze the effect of common social, economic, technological, and political considerations on environmental policy (SE-H-C3).

Analyze the risk-benefit ratio for selected environmental situations (SE-H-C4).

Describe the relationship between public support and the enforcement of environmental policies (SE-H-C5).

Personal Choices and Responsible Actions Identify the advantages and disadvantages of using disposable items versus reusable items (SE-H-D1).

Discuss how education and collaboration can affect the prevention and control of a selected pollutant (SE-H-D2) (SE-H-D3).

Determine local actions that can affect the global environment (SE-H-D4).

Describe how accountability toward the environment affects sustainability (SE-H-D5).

Social Studies: World Geography

Standard 2-Physical Systems Students answer geographic questions about Earth’s physical systems to explain ecosystems and natural processes.

WG.2.4. Explain and give examples of natural human processes that shape Earth’s surface and identify specific locations where the processes occur

Standard 6-Environment and Society Students analyze ways in which humans adapt to, modify, and depend upon Earth’s physical environment.

WG.6.1 Describe technological advances that have allowed humans to modify the environment and analyze the impact of these advances on the environment

WG.6.2 Identify challenges posed by the physical environment and evaluate strategies that will allow humans to more effectively deal with these challenges

WG.6.3 Analyze the distribution of resources and describe their impact on human systems (past, present, and future)

WG.6.4 Assess the role of government and business in preserving or consuming natural resources and protecting or destroying the physical environment