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Earth and Space Science (SES4U)


Grade 12, University Preparation

This course develops students' understanding of Earth and its place in the universe. Students will investigate the properties of and forces in the universe and solar system and analyse techniques scientists use to generate knowledge about them. Students will closely examine the materials of Earth, its internal and surficial processes, and its geological history, and will learn how Earth's systems interact and how they have changed over time. Throughout the course, students will learn how these forces, processes, and material affect their daily lives. The course draws on biology, chemistry, physics, and mathematics in its consideration of geological and astronomical processes that can be observed directly or inferred from other evidence.

Prerequisite: Science, Grade 10, Academic
Credit Value: 1.0
Required Text: None

SES4U is based on Earth and Space Science, The Ontario Curriculum, Grade 12, Ministry of Education, 2009. It is comprised of six units, each of which has from eight to eleven activities. The first five units are term work; the final unit is the culminating task and exam.

Unit 1: Planetary Science (Science of the Solar System)
Activity 1: Tour of the Solar System
Activity 2: Comparing Properties of Solar Bodies
Activity 3: Formation of the Solar System
Activity 4: Kepler and Orbits
Activity 5: How Earth is Affected and Protected
Activity 6: Techniques used to Study Earth and Space
Activity 7: Satellite Imagery
Activity 8: Space Race
Activity 9: Is Anyone Out There?
Activity 10: Vocabulary Review and Career Exploration
Activity 11: Summative Evaluation

Unit 2: Astronomy (Science of the Universe)
Activity 1: Locating Features in the Night Sky
Activity 2: Major Milestones in Astronomical Knowledge and Theory
Activity 3: Changes in Astronomical Technology
Activity 4: Hertzsprung-Russell Diagram and Properties of Stars
Activity 5: Techniques for Measuring Properties of Stars
Activity 6: The Life and Death of a Star
Activity 7: Types of Galaxies
Activity 8: The Formation of the Universe
Activity 9: Summative Evaluation

Unit 3: Recording Earth's Geological History
Activity 1: Evidence of Earth Changes
Activity 2: Dating Techniques
Activity 3: The Formation and Preservation of Fossils
Activity 4: Evolution of Life and Geological Time Scales
Activity 5: Evidence for the Age of the Earth
Activity 6: Paradigm Shifts in Geological Thinking
Activity 7: Interactions of Earth's Spheres
Activity 8: An Ontario Geoscape
Activity 9: Vocabulary Review and Career Exploration
Activity 10: Summative Evaluation

Unit 4: Geological Processes
Activity 1: The Interior of the Earth
Activity 2: Earthquakes
Activity 3: Weathering and Erosion
Activity 4: Sedimentary Sequences, Transport, and Structures
Activity 5: Analyzing Developments in Technology
Activity 6: The Human Component
Activity 7: Vocabulary Review and Career Exploration

Unit 5: Earth Materials
Activity 1: Identifying Minerals
Activity 2: Igneous Rocks
Activity 3: Sedimentary Rocks
Activity 4: Metamorphic Rocks
Activity 5: Properties of Earth Materials
Activity 6: Technologies, Techniques, and Impact of Mining
Activity 7: Vocabulary Review and Career Exploration
Activity 8: Summative Evaluation

Unit 6: Final Summative Evaluation
Activity 1: Course Culminating Activity

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