Life Science – Structure, Function and Information Processing

Students explore the structure and function of living things, their similarities and differences, and how living things process information.

Standards

MS-LS1-1. Plan and conduct an investigation to provide evidence that living things are made of cells; either one cell or many different numbers and types of cells.
MS-LS1-2. Develop and use a model to describe the function of a cell as a whole and ways parts of cells contribute to the function.
MS-LS1-3. Construct an explanation supported by evidence for how the body is composed of interacting systems consisting of cells, tissues, and organs working together to maintain homeostasis.
MS-LS1-8. Gather and synthesize information that sensory receptors respond to stimuli, resulting in immediate behavior and/or storage as memories.

How are living things similar and different?
- All living things are made up of cells, which is the smallest unit that can be said to be alive. An organism may consist of one single cell (unicellular) or many different numbers and types of cells (multicellular). (MS-LS1-1)
- Within cells, special structures are responsible for particular functions, and the cell membrane forms the boundary that controls what enters and leaves the cell. (MS-LS1-2)
- In multicellular organisms, the body is a system of multiple interacting subsystems. These subsystems are groups of cells that work together to form tissues and organs that are specialized for particular body functions. (MS-LS1-3)
- Information Processing Each sense receptor responds to different inputs (electromagnetic, mechanical, chemical), transmitting them as signals that travel along nerve cells to the brain. (MS-LS1-8)
- Plants respond to stimuli such as gravity (geotropism) and light (phototropism). (MS-LS1-8)