I taught this course once at Ahlul-Bayt Islamic School.  It follows the Ontario curriculum and units include:

 

• Understanding Life Systems: Cells,

• Understanding Structures and Mechanisms: Systems in Action,

• Understanding Matter and Energy: Fluids, and

• Understanding Earth and Space Systems: Water Systems.

 

I thoroughly enjoyed teaching this course.  It lends itself very well to simple experiments, demonstrations, and case studies as well as some more elaborate student-directed projects.  My Grade 8 students were always enthusiastic and engaged and they made teaching this course easy and fun.  

 

 

 

 

 

Osmosis Experiment: This simple experiment uses an egg to demonstrate osmosis in a hypotonic (vinegar) and hypertonic (corn syrup or honey) solution.  When I tried teaching this topic without the experiment, I found students did not have anything in mind beyond pure memorization to anchor the concepts involved.  It is simple and cheap and I have adjusted it for use in Gr. 10 Science and Gr. 12 Biology as well as in this course. 

 

Clay: I posed the question of "Will Clay Float?" to the class and showed them that it will quickly sink when it is compressed into a ball.  Small groups then played around with the clay in a bucket of water, eventually concluding that the surface area was directly related to the clay's ability to float.  This led us to explore the variable and constants in this situation and the concept of buoyancy.

 

Rube Goldberg Machine: This is a classic project for the physics portion of grade 8 and it's always a hit.  I even did it myself when I was in grade 8, and I also used it as a bonus activity for grade 7 students who needed something to fill their extra time.  Groups had to create a machine made up of a minimum of 5 steps, beginning with a marble drop and ending with a specific result (i.e. a bell ringing or some bowling pins being knocked down).

 

Filtration Lab: I did this lab activity in both my practicum and my full-year class and it was extremely successful both times.  Each group constructed a filter out of a 2 L pop bottle and 2 different materials (options included smooth stones, textured rocks, smaller pebbles, paper towel, and cotton).  Hypotheses were made and then students filtered some muddy water and observed the final product.  Simple - but great for making and testing hypotheses as well as a jump-off point for city water filtration processes and the need to eliminate microscopic organisms from water as well.