School / Grade 9
Grade 9 Biology: Science 9 (biology strand)
Cell division, reproduction, and the cycles of matter and energy that connect living things.
Science 9 in British Columbia combines biology, chemistry, physics and earth science. Only the life-science (biology) strand is covered here. The chemistry content (such as the periodic table and electron arrangement) and the physics content (such as circuits, voltage, current and resistance) are not included.
The biology strand follows two Big Ideas: cells are derived from cells, and the biosphere, geosphere, hydrosphere and atmosphere are interconnected, as matter cycles and energy flows through them. Twelve lessons map onto the official Content items and the related elaborations: the cell cycle and mitosis; the five forms of asexual reproduction (fission, budding, cloning, spores, grafting); meiosis; human reproduction and why offspring are not genetically identical to either parent; a comparison of sexual and asexual reproduction; the effects of solar radiation; the cycles of water, carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus; human impacts, bioaccumulation and biomagnification; a systems approach to sustainability (dynamic equilibrium, direct and indirect interactions); and First Peoples knowledge of interconnectedness and sustainability.
The lessons are based on the BC curriculum and are an independent study aid. The official curriculum document remains the authority on what is required.
Big ideas
- Cells are derived from cells.
- The biosphere, geosphere, hydrosphere, and atmosphere are interconnected, as matter cycles and energy flows through them.
Lessons
- Cells from Cells: Why Cells Divide and the Cell CycleThe Big Idea that cells come from cells: why cells divide, how DNA is packaged into chromosomes, and how the cell cycle and its checkpoints work.
- Mitosis: How One Cell Makes Two Identical CellsStep-by-step mitosis and cytokinesis, why daughter cells are identical, what mitosis does in a body, and what happens when control is lost (cancer).
- Asexual Reproduction: Fission, Budding, Spores, Cloning and GraftingHow one parent makes genetically identical offspring: the five forms of asexual reproduction in the BC curriculum, with advantages and disadvantages.
- Meiosis: Making Sex Cells with Half the ChromosomesHow one parent cell divides twice to yield four haploid sex cells, and how crossing over and independent assortment create variety.
- Human Reproductive Systems: Making and Delivering Sex CellsThe structures and hormones that produce sperm and eggs, how the gametes differ, and the menstrual cycle.
- Fertilization and Development: Why Offspring Differ from Both ParentsHow a sperm and egg fuse, how the zygote develops through the embryonic and fetal stages, and why a child is not genetically identical to either parent.
- Comparing Sexual and Asexual Reproduction: Variation and SurvivalAdvantages and disadvantages of sexual and asexual reproduction, the sources of genetic variation, and why the best strategy depends on the environment.
- Solar Radiation: The Energy Behind Life, Weather and WaterHow sunlight powers photosynthesis and food chains, drives wind and ocean currents, distributes energy and nutrients, and powers the water cycle.
- Cycling of Matter: Water, Carbon, Nitrogen and PhosphorusHow matter is reused in cycles: reservoirs, sources and sinks, and the water, carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus cycles.
- Human Impacts: Sources, Sinks, Climate Change and BiomagnificationHow burning fossil fuels, deforestation and agriculture change sources and sinks, and how bioaccumulation and biomagnification concentrate pollutants in food chains.
- Systems Thinking: Dynamic Equilibrium, Feedback and SustainabilityA systems approach to sustainability: Earth's spheres, direct and indirect interactions, dynamic equilibrium, feedback, tipping points, and examples from carbon and water.
- First Peoples Knowledge: Interconnectedness and Sustainability of SystemsFirst Peoples perspectives on interconnectedness and sustainability, the First Peoples Principles of Learning, traditional ecological knowledge, and place-based inquiry.
Official BC curriculum for this course ↗
These lessons follow the content areas listed in the British Columbia curriculum. They are study material written for this site and are not an official document. The official curriculum is the authority on what each course requires. Lessons are general education, not medical advice.