Introduction
Welcome to our Science class! We hope that you will stay curious and bring a variety of perspectives to your learning. This course is about science and so much more!
In this course, you will notice there are different science strands incorporated into each learning activity. For example, in the first half of a learning activity, you may explore topics related to Biology and later begin learning about Earth and Space Science.
Why this approach? Great question! When learning and practicing science, learning about sustainable ecosystems and climate change (Biology), matter and natural elements (Chemistry), principles and applications of electricity (Physics), and space exploration (Earth and Space Science) all impact social, environmental, and economic factors of our world.
In summary, all four strands of science are related to our changing world. This course will introduce you to a new way of thinking about science and how its applications can address real-world issues.
Before we get started, let me introduce you to your first learning guide Kyra. Kyra is an environmental technician.
Career connection: Environmental technician
Shores of Georgian Bay, Ontario
Hi! I’m Kyra (she/her). I’m glad you could join me here on the shores of Georgian Bay. There’s a lot we can learn by observing the surroundings. Some things are easy to notice, like the wind, the number of flies buzzing around our heads, or the feeling of the Sun on our faces. Other things around us are harder to detect but technology allows us to learn more about it. For example, how much oxygen is dissolved in the water, the number of different gases in the air and their concentration, or the type of bacteria living on the bottom of the lake are important to know and are detected in different ways.
Islands of Georgian Bay of Lake Huron at Killarney Provincial Park
Georgian Bay, located in south-central Ontario and part of Lake Huron's coast, is a very important place to many people. It’s an old and sacred body of water also known as Mnidoo-gamii in Anishinaabemowin. Note: There are different variations of spelling Mnidoo-gamii, another possibility is Mnindoo-gamii. Mnindoo-Gamii (Press the icon to access pronunciation) translates to "The Great Lake of the Spirit." This place of beauty provides many with bounty, rest, and safety.
Many Indigenous communities have a connection with the land, water, and sky. It’s a place to feel at ease and comfort.
Think
Think of a place in nature that you have visited or would like to visit. What about this place would make someone feel connected to the natural environment, whether it is big or small, near or far?
Join the discussion
Part 1
Share the place in nature you think would make someone feel connected to the natural environment on the discussion board. Avoid using any personal information. Instead, consider the following questions when formulating your answer:
- What does this place in nature appear as? Is there water, trees, grass...?
- Are there any distinctive senses to experience?
- How might one feel if they visited this place? Would they feel calm, energized, peaceful...?
- What is special about this place in nature that would make someone feel connected to the environment?
- What meaning could this place hold for someone?
Part 2
Read through your classmates’ posts and comment on two posts. Start by introducing yourself and asking any questions that you may have about the place in nature they described.
Since this is the first discussion post of the course, it is very important that you review the following tips for online discussions. Be mindful of appropriate online discussion etiquette and be respectful of your online classroom community when posting or replying.
Press Show Tips button to know more.
Join in - Discussions are shared learning spaces. It’s true that the more you participate, the more you will gain in your own learning journey. Invite others to join in by expressing yourself in a comfortable and conversational manner. Consider how you will extend the thinking and learning of others. How will your contribution build on the ideas of others? How can you provide meaningful and helpful feedback to your peers?
In support of inclusion - Everyone’s opinions and thoughts count. Be respectful of others when you share your thinking or respond to the thinking of others. Be open to changing your mind and considering new and different ways of understanding.
Use examples from the course - Depending on the discussion topic, it’s always a good idea to relate what you are learning and sharing to the experiences that you have had in the course. It’s a great way to reinforce your learning.
Think before you post - Note that discussion posts and replies are visible to others. They are not private chats. Consider the value, relevance, and tone of your post so that it is appropriate for everyone in your class, including your teacher.
As you explore each learning activity, reflect upon the various Learning Skills and Work Habits that you use. You will find a Learning Skills and Work Habits survey at the end of each Consolidation section for you to complete.
The sky
Discover more
Take a moment to generate ideas of what an environmental technician does. Use your preferred search engine and enter the terms "environmental technician job description". Examine the results to further your understanding of the career.
These search terms are provided as suggestions only. You are encouraged to search for additional resources to support your understanding.
Environmental technician
What my friends think we do
What my mom thinks we do
What society thinks we do
What we think we do
What we really do
A lot of different ideas can come to mind when you think about someone who works in an environmental field. An environmental technician helps to monitor the health of ecosystems.
Explore the following carousel which depicts some of the responsibilities of an environmental technician.
Learning journal
As you progress through the course, you will use a tool to help you record your thinking during your learning. Whenever you notice the learning journal you will know it is time to record your thinking and information. How you use your journal is ultimately up to you.
Your learning journal entries can be presented in a variety of ways. They do not all need to be in the same format. The following are some suggestions:
- handwritten journal
- online journal
- video recordings
- pictures
- audio recordings
Your learning journal will be an important way to organize your learning. The content should be organized in a way that makes the most sense to you and will likely vary depending on the topic. This is a personal decision based on how you learn best, but it is important that you have a consistent place for your notes. The following are some ideas to include:
- tables
- T-charts to compare or contrast
- mind maps
- flow charts
Record your answers in a way that will make sharing later easy. Feel free to include images directly in your journal. Links to resources or videos are also acceptable.
It will also help you with the culminating tasks for the course as well as the learning tasks in each unit.
What you should include in your journal
Each journal entry should include the following:
Part 1: Unit and learning activity number
Part 2: Identification of the prompt you are choosing to answer
Part 3: The required content, written by you with evidence of your learning
How you present the three parts is up to you!
In your first learning journal entry, use the following prompts to record the role or job description of the career to which you were introduced.
Career connection
- My learning guide was a(n):
- Write a short job description.
Observing the sky
In addition to the skills and training needed to become an environmental technician, exploring stories passed down from Indigenous Elders can support and enhance scientific knowledge—also known as “Two-Eyed Seeing” or Etuaptmumk. Learning about the health of the Earth from a variety of perspectives only strengthens your knowledge of science. Among First Nations, Métis, and Inuit communities, there are similar stories about how the pattern in the sky reflects patterns on land.
“We often explain Etuaptmumk - Two-Eyed Seeing by saying it refers to learning to see from one eye with the strengths of Indigenous knowledges and ways of knowing, and from the other eye with the strengths of Western knowledges and ways of knowing ... and learning to use both these eyes together, for the benefit of all... The guiding principle of Two-Eyed Seeing further helps us to acknowledge the distinct and whole nature of Indigenous knowledge and ways of knowing (i.e., such are represented as a whole eye). Similarly, it helps us recognize the distinct nature of Western knowledge and ways of knowing (i.e., such are also represented as a whole eye). At the same time, Two-Eyed Seeing asks that these two eyes work together (i.e., as they do in binocular vision).”
Source: Institute for Integrative Science & Health. (n.d.). Two-eyed seeing. SaskToday. http://www.integrativescience.ca/Principles/TwoEyedSeeing/
Sometimes objects in the sky make a spectacular display. Observing a meteor can be very special!
Explore this!
Check out the following video from NASA to learn more about the meteor showers that occur every August in North America.
Courtesy Nasa/JPL-Caltech
Kyra: The Sun sometimes doesn’t feel as special as a meteor. But the Sun is special to all of us living on Earth. Observations of the sky are important. They tell us about the land around us. They also tell us about where the Earth is in space.
Where is the Sun?
In Ontario, over the course of a year, the Sun changes its height overhead as it passes through the sky. The Sun is at the highest point in the sky in the summer and the lowest point in the winter. The following animation depicts the position of the Sun in the sky at midday throughout the year.
It travels a longer path overhead in the summer leading to earlier sunrises and late sunsets. In the winter, the Sun doesn’t rise as high, so it takes a shorter path from the eastern horizon to the lower horizon.
One question people ask when observing the sky is if the objects in the sky are moving or if we on Earth are moving? Imagine you’re riding a train that’s stopped at a station. You observe your surroundings out of the train window. Another train is stopped, too. Then you observe motion. Is your train moving, or is it the other train?
Explore this!
Explore the following video created by Jason Shron of Rapido trains to experience model trains moving relative to each other.
Observations of the sky
Learning journal
How can we use observations from the sky to answer if the sky is moving or if the Earth is moving? Both Indigenous ways of knowing, and modern scientific thinking use patterns to make sense of things.
Is the sky moving or is the Earth moving?
Use the information in the following section to complete the activity.
Complete the following table in your learning journal or access the following fillable and printable document Observations of the Sky to complete the activity.
Movement of the Sun
Solstice & equinox
Many First Nations stories involve the ideas of circles and cycles: the seasons, the day, moon cycles, baskets, hoops, life stages, animal migration, plant and animal reproduction. The cycle of life is never ending! The Sun moves from its lowest point at the winter solstice to its highest point at the summer solstice and then back again. Or is it our planet that’s moving? It’s hard to tell!
For people living in the high arctic, the time around the winter solstice is 24-hour darkness. You can imagine the feelings people get when the Sun rises again closer to spring!
Once again, explore the following animation which depicts the change in height of the Sun in the sky over the course of a year.
Agriculture
To grow a plant outdoors it is important for the conditions to be just right. For this reason, the invention of the calendar shortly followed the invention of agriculture. Even for those who forage, hunt, or gather it’s important to know the best time to tap a maple tree, when to fish, or the best time to collect berries or mushrooms.
Eclipses
During an eclipse we can clearly observe the Moon block the Sun. From this observation we can tell that objects in the sky move differently. We can also predict that the Moon must be closer than the Sun.
Explore this!
Check out the following video to learn more about solar eclipses.
Movement of the Moon
Calendars
Most cultures started using the moon cycles to mark a month. Doing some simple calculations, if each moon cycle is about 28 days, then a year in this 13-cycle calendar works out to 364 days, not 365 days! Over several decades, that one day difference can add up to be a whole month off the seasons. This was different for other cultures that used a twelve-moon calendar. That’s why the Gregorian calendar, which is widely used around the world today, uses 12 longer months (30 or 31 days) plus one shorter month (February). You may also know that February 29th comes once every 4 years because a year is about 365 ¼ days long so the calendar needs to catch up!
The following image from the Oneida nation depicts the 13 moons of Turtle Island. There are 13 segments on the turtle’s back that are named according to the activities that occur during each moon cycle. The edge of the shell has 28 small plates, one for each day in the cycle.
Explore the following interactive entitled Oneida Moon Calendar to learn more about how the cycles of the moon relate to the activities of the community month to month, over the course of the year.
Religion
The importance of the moon cycle can be found in many cultures and religions. They help individuals keep track of important events and mark celebrations. The following image depicts the phases of the moon in the night sky.
Phases of the Moon
Studying the phases of the Moon we can clearly observe that the Moon must move around the Earth as depicted in the following animation.
Arrangement of the stars
Press the following tabs to explore how the arrangement of the stars in the night sky relates to storytelling, the zodiac, and navigation.
The Big Dipper is one of the most common constellations in the sky all over the world. In certain African cultures it is known as the Big Gourd. To Ancient Greeks and many First Nations peoples, this constellation takes the shape of a bear. The Mi’kmaw people call this bear Muin whose movement around the sky tells the story of the cycle of life as the bear is born, grows, is hunted, and then his spirit returns to his cave to be reborn.
As depicted in the following image, the Big Dipper is located below the North Star in the winter while the bear is sleeping in the cave. The constellation appears to rotate clockwise around the North Star throughout the year as the hunters are chasing it in the sky.
Many cultures have made interpretations of the path the Sun takes and what constellation lies on that pathway. The constellations are known as a zodiac. The 12 constellations in the following diagram correspond to the zodiac signs used in horoscopes. In the city, with lots of light around, it’s hard to observe the lion in Leo in the sky. However, with more darkness around it makes it easier to observe the fainter stars to complete the image. Just like the Big Dipper, zodiac constellations appear in different parts of the sky, or sometimes they hide below the horizon for months. Is it the constellations that are moving, or is it our planet that’s moving? It’s still hard to tell!
The constellations also move during the night. The following image shows the timelapse of the stars over one night. The one exception we can observe in the Northern hemisphere is called Giwedin'anung (Press the icon to access pronunciation) in Anishinaabemowin, the North Star, or Polaris. This can be used for navigation because if you keep Polaris in the same place as you move you can be sure you’re moving in the same direction all night long! You may have also noticed that the stars closer to Polaris move a shorter distance while the stars father from Polaris move further across the sky. Does that mean that different stars are moving at different speeds? Or could this be a clue that the Earth is moving? Is our planet spinning?
Discover more
An excellent star story you can explore online is one of Wilfred Buck telling the Inenew (Cree) story of Mista Muskwa (The Big Bear) and Tehpakoop Pinesisuk (The Seven Birds). Mista Muskwa is represented by the “Big Dipper” and Tehpakoop Pinesisuk is represented by “Corona Borealis.” Using an online search engine of your choice, use the search words "Wilfred Buck tells the story of Mista Muskwa" to get you started.
Movement of the planets
Press the following tabs to explore the movement of planets with respect to each other and other objects in the sky.
Many cultures around the world noticed how some bright objects moved differently from the other stars. Over many days we can observe how the path these objects take appears as they are wobbling. In fact, the word “planet” comes from the ancient Greek word for “wandering”. Today we call this pattern retrograde motion. Does that mean that planets are moving in a different way to stars? Or could this be a clue that the Earth is moving? Or could both be true?
The Mayan civilization made careful observations of the appearance of Venus. Even though it’s a planet, it's sometimes also known as the evening star because it’s the first object in the night sky to appear as the Sun sets. To the Mayans this planet was associated with the god Kukulkan and war. The brightness and location of Venus was understood as a sign from Kukulkan and helped the Mayans to determine important events, like when a new emperor should be chosen or when to go to war.
The idea of objects in the sky moving in circles is commonly interpreted by many. Determining if the Sun is the centre of the solar system (heliocentric) or if the Earth is at the centre (geocentric) isn’t so clear. Using advanced mathematical knowledge, astronomers Ibn Al-Shatir and later Nicholas Copernicus were able to find that both the Earth and the planets move around the Sun. In this way we can explain retrograde motion.
Comets, meteors, auroras
Comets
Cultures around the world noticed comets as they appeared in the sky. Even for civilizations with sophisticated observatories like the Greeks, Chinese, and Mayan, were not able to predict when comets would appear. For this reason, many cultures consider them as signs of the arrival of an important event. Today we know that comets move around the Sun on larger orbits than the planets. Larger orbits mean that comets could take centuries or longer to reappear making it hard to make observations over time.
Explore this!
Check out the following video of the comet ISON.
Meteors
Every mid-summer in Ontario people can observe the Perseid meteor shower at night. When some meteor showers occur at the same time each year, it gives us a hint that the meteors must come from a particular place along Earth’s orbit around the Sun. The leftover dust and rocks from a passing comet leave a trail. As Earth passes through this trail the dust and rocks pass through the atmosphere and heat up to the point that they give off light energy. Is this another example of evidence that the Earth is moving?
Explore this!
Access the following video to learn more about the dust ring around Venus.
Credit: NASA’s Scientific Visualization Studio/Tom Bridgman
Auroras and the afterlife: Inuit perspectives
Earth passes through solar radiation that is unevenly emitted. To Inuit communities, the bright colouration we call aurora is believed to be a sign of spirits from the afterlife revealing themselves. Many Northern cultures associate aurora with death or spirits. Based on scientific evidence, the aurora is made when the atmosphere interacts with radiation from the Sun. The aurora appearing different over time is evidence that the Sun’s energy is not evenly emitted in all directions.
Explore this!
Explore the following video from the Canadian Space Agency to learn more about auroras, which are also known as the Northern Lights.
Extension activity
To dig deeper and learn more, try to complete the following activity to observe the Sun.
The light from the Sun is too strong to observe directly. Astronomers use filters on solar telescopes to observe the Sun. Another strategy is to make an image of the Sun using a camera or a lens. The first camera created was a pinhole camera. You can make a pinhole camera out of common materials found around the home. The idea is to reuse things that would otherwise go to recycling or the landfill.
Explore this!
Check out the following video to learn more about creating your own pinhole camera.
Think
The video detailed the steps to building a pinhole camera, but how does the image get projected on to the inner surface of the box?
As depicted in the following image from the Canadian Space Agency, rays of sunlight at different angles pass through the small hole in the aluminum foil. After entering the box, the rays continue travelling until they hit the white piece of paper on the far side of the box. The darker spots on the paper are where the Moon is casting a shadow over the Sun. The person observing the image stands with their back to the Sun and places their eye in front of the larger opening next to the pin hole.
Learning journal
If you chose to dig a bit deeper to learn more, add images from your pinhole camera to your learning journal.
What did you discover? Do you get a better image on a clear day or when the Sun is hiding a bit behind a cloud? Is it clearer when the Sun is high overhead or when the Sun is closer to the horizon? Does it work to observe the Moon?
A pinhole camera is a great tool for observing a solar eclipse. No solar eclipse today? No worries! The following image depicts what you could observe with your pinhole camera.
First person perspective of a solar eclipse projected on to the inner surface of a homemade cereal box pinhole projector.
You may want to hold on to your pinhole camera. It may be helpful later in this unit.
Take a break!
Excellent work! You have just completed the section on observing the sky from Earth. Now is a great time to take a break before you move on to the next section on sustainability and the sustainable development goals by the United Nations.
Sustainability
Science group: Why did you become an environmental technologist?
Kyra: That’s a good question.
I wanted to make a difference.
We know there are many challenges out there and people are needed to study the environment. For me, I feel strongly about this place where I am. I want to make sure it’s going to be there to sustain future generations.
I know that sounds like a big responsibility! How can one person make a difference when a place is as large as this?
There are many tools out there to help us solve problems. When we think of a problem that needs to be solved, we can use an engineering design approach. Let’s explore this approach in the following original video of chimpanzees trying to get bananas that are out of their reach. How do the chimpanzees solve this problem?
Explore this!
Check out the following video of footage from the Kohler Study depicting chimpanzees working together to solve a problem.
The preceding video displayed a process of problem solving. Problem solving is not linear but requires many steps that may need to be repeated. This logical process could include some of the following steps:
Even if we can’t tell what’s going on inside the chimpanzee’s head, do you notice evidence of the engineering design approach in the video?
Now that we have a method of solving problems, how about a way to think about solutions?
Sustainable Development Goals in action
The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals consist of a list of 17 actions to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all.
Explore this!
Explore the following video to learn more about the Sustainable Development Goals.
When we think about place that is important to us, we want to make sure it’s protected for future generations.
Consumption and production also go hand in hand. Every culture on Earth has a tradition of using the resources around to make things that improve the quality of our lives. A question to consider is do we need to keep producing even more things, or can we be satisfied with “enough”. Are we reducing harm in the way that we make the things we use every day? That’s why it’s important for an environmental technician to inform polluters about corrections they need to take to comply with regulations.
Explore the following interactive entitled Goal 12: Responsible Consumption and Production to learn more about why addressing this goal is important to sustainable development.
Unsustainable patterns of consumption and production lead to pollution, loss of biodiversity, and climate change. An increase in human consumption over time results in further reliance on resources found in nature. The interactive provides an outline of statistics gathered by the United Nations as to why addressing the goal is important and the role it plays in creating a sustainable planet. If we consumed goods responsibly, such as food, then 17% of total food would not be wasted at the consumer level. This can be different for everyone, but an example includes using every part of a vegetable including the skin and stems. If each household used electronics for a longer lifespan this would result in a decreased production of electronics each year, and the amount of electronic waste would decrease in the environment.
Now it’s your turn. Explore each of the following Sustainable Development Goals and possible solutions. There are many solutions possible!
Check out the following interactive entitled United Nations Sustainable Development Goals to learn more about each of the 17 goals.
What does it all mean?
We are all connected to where we live in some way. We can use observations from the sky to tell us about the place we live in. In so many ways we are connected to the land, to the water, and to the air. To preserve the spaces around us it’s important to think about sustainability.
Preserving nature
Now it’s time revisit the discussion from the start of this activity where you had a chance to share your place in nature. Here we will focus on suggesting how sustainable choices can help to preserve places in nature.
Join the discussion
Task 1
Your task is to choose someone else’s place in nature. What problem might harm this environment? You may need to put yourself in their place to understand what makes the place unique. Then, suggest an action or solution and how it could help to protect this place. You may choose to relate it to a Sustainable Development goal to support your post. How could this solution make sure that the place in nature will be there for future generations?
Refer to the information in the learning activity as well as your learning journal for ideas.
Share your response in writing, a video, or as a picture on the discussion board.
As you craft your response, be sure to use the following checklist to keep your work focused.
Preserving nature checklist
Task 2
Review the work of at least three of your classmates and offer ideas to your peers on possible ways to improve their action or solution plan. Make sure you are respectful when you offer your ideas! If you need to review how to effectively give constructive criticism, explore the following section before developing your post.
How to give constructive criticism
Giving and accepting constructive criticism can be difficult if not done kindly and appropriately. Using a technique known as the compliment sandwich can help when providing feedback. First you want to start with a positive comment, consider this to be the first slice of the bread for our sandwich. Next you want to provide critical feedback which is the middle of our sandwich. Consider this to be the "meat" of this compliment sandwich. It's a good idea to think about the overall expectations of a task when sharing things that need improvement. Lastly, you want to end with a positive comment, consider this to be the second slice of bread of the sandwich. In fact, the best way to end your feedback is to include suggestions for improvements. Think: “I liked...”; “...could have been better...”; “How to do ... better is …"
Learning journal
Vocabulary: Use your learning or other sources to record and describe each of the following terms in a way that makes sense to you. As you complete the learning activity fill in the definition and key terminology pertaining to the vocabulary.
- ecosystem
- solstice
- eclipse
- phases of the moon
- constellation
- zodiac
- Polaris
- retrograde motion
- heliocentric
- geocentric
- comet
- meteor
- aurora
- Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
Aurora Borealis in the sky near Thunder Bay, Ontario
Learning journal
Record your reflection in your learning journal. Consider the following questions.
- What are SDGs and why are they important?
- What’s another question you could ask an environmental technician?
Meteors and the Milky Way observed in the sky at Lake Simcoe, Ontario.
Portfolio
When you are ready, share your learning journal entries from Learning Activity 1.1 with your teacher for feedback.
Learning skills reflection
Survey
It is important to reflect on your learning at the end of each learning activity. It will help you and your teacher understand where you are in your learning and what areas you may need to review further. Take a few minutes to complete the following Learning Skills Reflection Survey.
Connecting to transferable skills
Recently, Ontario worked with other provinces in Canada to outline a set of competencies that are requirements to thrive. Ontario then developed its transferable skills framework as a set of skills for students to develop over time. These competencies are ones that are important to have in order to be successful in today’s world.
Read through the framework and the student look-fors (Opens in new window). Copy this document into your notes - you'll refer to it in each unit.