Science
- Middle School Science General Information
- Middle School Science Course Sequence 2024-2025
- 6th Grade Science
- 7th Grade Science
- 8th Grade Science
Middle School Science General Information
Science in the Issaquah School District incorporates the instruction and application of concepts and principles in properties, structures and changes in the three major science disciplines of life science, earth and space science, and physical science.
In our classrooms, students experience labs where they actively apply scientific ideas, skills, and investigative processes. Our approach includes inquiry science as a teaching and learning model that parallels the work that scientists do, the way scientists uncover knowledge, and how they solve problems. As teachers guide students to approach and solve problems like a scientist, the students gain skills that are invaluable to other academic disciplines and their everyday life.
In October 2013, Washington adopted the Washington State 2013 K-12 Science Learning Standards. Curriculum adoptions and scope and sequences support the 2013 standards.
Middle School Science Course Sequence 2024-2025
Standard Path |
Alternate Path
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| Life Science (6) Grade 6  Grade 7 Grade 8 |
Earth and Space (7) Grade 6 Grade 7 Grade 8 |
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| Biology in High School |
Chemistry in High School (recommends taking Geometry or above concurrent with Chemistry) |
Commonly chosen 9th grade science courses |
High School Options for Science:
6th Grade Science
Life Science – 6th Grade (KS100)
Learning Recommendations: completion of 5th grade; enrolled in 6th grade
Life Science introduces students to the science lab while studying life science topics. Students learn lab skills such as using a microscope, safely conducting investigations, and working with chemicals and glassware.
Focus Content and Practices:
- Structure and function of cells and organisms
- Inheritance and variation of traits
- Unity and diversity among organisms
- Populations and resources within ecosystems
- Developing and using models
- Planning and carrying out investigations
Earth and Space Science – 7th Grade (KS102)
Learning Recommendations: Life Science
Learning Recommendations for students requesting this course in 6th grade: Level 4 grades in math and reading, Level 4 on i-Ready and SBA assessments. Students in 6th grade that request this course should also register for Math 1-2 or higher. Students need to have successfully completed Algebra by 8th grade to take Chemistry in 9th grade. These students will skip Life Science and should therefore have a strong background in Life Sciences to be prepared for high school biology in 8th grade.
Earth and Space Science builds on the lab skills learned in life science while exploring the Earth we live on and Space we live in.
Focus Content and Practices:
- Earth’s constantly changing surface, including volcanoes and earthquakes
- Weather and climate
- The Sun-Earth-Moon system and broader universe
- Defining problems and designing solutions
- Developing and using models
7th Grade Science
Earth and Space Science – 7th Grade (KS102)
Learning Recommendations: Life Science
Learning Recommendations for students requesting this course in 6th grade: Level 4 grades in math and reading, Level 4 on i-Ready and SBA assessments. Students in 6th grade that request this course should also register for Math 1 /2 or higher. Students need to have successfully completed Algebra 1 by 8th grade to take Chemistry in 9th grade. These students will skip Life Science and should therefore have a strong background in Life Sciences to be prepared for high school biology in 8th grade.
Earth and Space Science builds on the lab skills learned in life science while exploring the Earth we live on and Space we live in.
Focus Content and Practices:
- Earth’s constantly changing surface, including volcanoes and earthquakes
- Weather and climate
- The Sun-Earth-Moon system and broader universe
- Defining problems and designing solutions
- Developing and using models
Physical Science – 8th Grade (KS103)
Learning Recommendation: Completion of Earth and Space Science
Learning Recommendations for students requesting this course in 7th grade: Successful (B- or better) Completion of Earth and Space Science. Students in 7th grade that request this course should also register for Math 2/3 or higher.
During Physical Science, students plan and carry out investigations that study physics, electricity, and chemistry in a lab environment. There is increased emphasis on collecting and representing numerical data.
Focus Content and Practices:
- Energy, forces and motion, specifically in Newtonian physics
- Collecting, transmitting and storing energy, focusing on electricity and waves
- Composition of, separating, and changes to matter.
- Planning and carrying out investigations
- Collecting, analyzing and interpreting data
- Using math and computational thinking
8th Grade Science
Physical Science – 8th Grade (KS103)
Learning Recommendation: Completion of Earth and Space Science
Learning Recommendations for students requesting this course in 7th grade: Successful (B- or better) Completion of Earth and Space Science. Students in 7th grade that request this course should also register for Math 2/3 or higher.
During Physical Science, students plan and carry out investigations that study physics, electricity, and chemistry in a lab environment. There is increased emphasis on collecting and representing numerical data.
Focus Content and Practices:
- Energy, forces and motion, specifically in Newtonian physics
- Collecting, transmitting and storing energy, focusing on electricity and waves
- Composition of, separating, and changes to matter.
- Planning and carrying out investigations
- Collecting, analyzing and interpreting data
- Using math and computational thinking
Biology – High School (SC200)
Learning Recommendations: Successful (B- or better) Completion of Physical Science, proficient in lab techniques. Students taking Biology in 8th Grade should be prepared for high school level reading and graphing and taking Algebra 1 or higher in Math, and know that they may have gaps in background knowledge from skipping Life Science.
- High school year-long course, which fulfills a lab science requirement for graduation and college entrance.
- Provides a knowledge base that helps students understand the nature of life and prepares them to make informed decisions about health, medicine, genetics, and the environment.
- Emphasis on using the scientific practices, focusing on developing and using models, constructing explanations, and engaging in evidenced-based reasoning.
- Successful completion of this course supports students as they prepare for the High School Washington Comprehensive Assessment of Science (WCAS).
- This course fulfills college prep requirements as outlined by the Washington Student Achievement Council (WSAC) as a lab-based science course.
Content: Students will be actively engaged in learning and experiencing the following:
- Ecology, specifically matter and energy in ecosystems, population dynamics, and human impact on the biosphere.
- Cellular biology, energetics, cell growth and division.
- Genetics, including molecular inheritance, genetic regulation of processes, and biotechnology.
- Evolution of populations, biodiversity and modern classification.
- Ecosystem interactions, including group behavior.