Excited students sit around a table in a classroom.

Junior Science Academy Class Descriptions

4th Grade Classes

Artifacts and Culture of Ancient Problem Solvers

  • Observe, draw, and analyze the function of archaeological artifacts
  • Analyze classroom artifacts in relation to museum collections and learn what conclusions archaeologists reached regarding students’ artifacts.
  • Compare and contrast Ancestral Puebloan footwear or pottery with Freemont footwear and pottery and create arguments explaining these differences.
  • Participate in a trade game which models ancient, pre-European trade networks found though out the Southwestern United States.
  • This class encourages use of Science and Engineering Practices while exploring Social Studies Standard I, Objectives 1&2, and Standard II, Objective 1
  • Spanish translations of class materials are available.

Biology: Structure and Function in Living Organisms

  • Compare and contrast yarrow plant structures across elevations.
  • Observe bird models and draw conclusions about habitat and diet based on visible structures.
  • Analyze invertebrate specimens with microscopes to create scientific drawings and draw conclusions regarding the function of visible structures.
  • This class uses Museum quality specimens to further understanding of SEEd standards 4.1.1 and 4.1.2
  • Spanish translations of class materials are available.

*New* Earth & Sky: Settlement, survival, and patterns in the sky

  • Create a model of resource distribution across the state using maps.
    • Resources include waterways, annual rainfall, mountain vs desert climate, jackrabbit range, and current census data.
  • Construct an explanation of settlement patterns in Utah over time based on evidence from the modeled resources.
  • Analyze the Bortle scale map of Utah and interpret the degree of light pollution in heavily populated areas.
  • Use light meters and flashlights to investigate the relative brightness of near and far objects.
  • Construct an explanation of how light pollution affects our view of the night sky.
  • This class uses tools and data to increase understanding of SEEd standard 4.4.1
  • This class encourages use of Science and Engineering Practices while exploring Social Studies Standard I, Objectives 2&3.

Energy Transfer and Water

  • This class will be taught September-October and March-May weather permitting.
  • Use engineering principles to create a pump out of pvc pipe and test it with various iterations.
  • Investigate the types of energy at work in a pump.
  • Explain the cause and effect between the speed of pumping and amount of water transferred via computational thinking and flow rate.
  • Analyze data sets regarding water usage in the state of Utah.
  • This class uses tools and data to increase understanding of SEEd standards 4.2.1 and Standard 4.2.4

Fossils: Stability and Change in the Fossil Record

  • Observe and record the structures of fossils to better understand what a fossil is
  • Compare the patterns in Green River leaf fossils to modern leaves to determine the environment in Utah 52 million years ago
  • Compare and contrast trilobite fossils to better understand stability and change in an organism over time
  • Observe the ceratopsian wall to develop conclusions about why an organism might change
  • This class allows students close interaction with museum quality fossils to improve their comprehension of SEEd standards 4.1.3 and 4.1.4
  • Spanish translations of class materials are available

Making Waves

  • Explore the difference between amplitude and wavelength using our bodies as the model.
  • Manipulate Slinkys and interpret data about the patterns of energy they display.
  • Develop a conclusion about which materials effectively block the energy from radio waves.
  • This class uses data and hand on activities to deepen students comprehension of SEED standards 4.3.1 and 4.3.3

5th Grade Classes

Decomposers in Ecosystems

  • Observe “red wiggler” worms to understand how their adaptations make them suited for their role as decomposers and guardians of the soil.
  • Analyze the soil using soil meters to asses moisture, nutrients, pH, and light levels.
  • Compare plants fertilized and not fertilized by worm castings to build conclusions about the nutrients they replace in the soil.
  • Track NHMU field trip food waste diverted from landfills and replaced as soil and evaluate the effectiveness of this solution to waste.
  • This class uses Museum exhibits, data, and tools to help students comprehension of SEEd Standards 5.3.3 and 5.3.4 

Earth's Systems: Using Models to Find Solutions

  • Analyze and interpret patterns in maps and weather data to understand local trends in temperature inversion.
  • Learn what is in our atmosphere and how those various molecules react to temperature changes.
  • Investigate a model to understand how convection and inversion work in the atmosphere.
  • Understand how our landscape and naturally occurring weather patterns in the atmosphere can impact particulate matter in the air.
  • Analyze the system model of a Salt Lake inversion day and design solutions to the problem.
  • This class uses Museum exhibits, data, and tools to help students comprehension of SEEd Standards 5.1.4 and 5.1.5
  • Spanish translations of class materials are available.