Science – Year 8 – Exemplars – Digital Literacy Malta

LO	Learning Outcome	Category/Subject Focus	Exemplar
8.1	I can apply my understanding of a balanced diet to suggest improvement to what I eat.	HEALTHY LIVING – Focus: CELLS AND BODY SYSTEMS	Students can be encouraged to use a calorie counter app that allows them to monitor what they are eating and improve their diet. My Net Diary (https://www.mynetdiary.com/) and Fooducate (https://www.fooducate.com/) are two examples.
8.1	I can describe how microbes can be useful and identify examples.	HEALTHY LIVING – Focus: CELLS AND BODY SYSTEMS	Students can be asked to record a short video describing how microbes can be useful. Educators can create a Teams assignment through Flip (https://info.flip.com/). Students can learn from each other by viewing and commenting on each other’s video.
8.2	I can describe the periodic table as the list of elements and identify metals and non-metals.	ELEMENTS, COMPOUNDS AND MIXTURES – Focus: CHEMICAL SCIENCE	Teachers can organise a quiz asking students to identify metals and non-metals using gamification tools such as Quizizz (https://quizizz.com) or Kahoot! (https://kahoot.com).
8.3	I can show that some substances dissolve in water (soluble) and others do not (insoluble).	Unit: SEPARATING MIXTURES – Focus: CHEMICAL SCIENCE	Students can present their research about soluble and insoluble substances by making use of online presentation tools such as Office 365 Sway (https://sway.office.com). Sway also allows students collaborate on the same presentation and share their findings with the rest of the class.
8.4	I can draw rays to show how objects can be seen.	Unit: LIGHT AND SOUND – Focus: SENSES	Students can experiment with ray diagrams using an interactive simulator like the one found on The Physics Classroom (https://www.physicsclassroom.com/Physics-Interactives/Refraction-and-Lenses/Optics-Bench/Optics-Bench-Refraction-Interactive).
8.4	I can describe the function of the different parts of the eye.	Unit: LIGHT AND SOUND – Focus: SENSES	ClassVR (http://www.classvr.com) has some good 3D models of the eye, which can be explored by students via the VR Headsets. The model “How do Eyes Work?” allows students to explore the eye and learn about focusing. The model “Human Eye” can be used to teach eye anatomy.
8.6	I can identify energy sources as renewable (solar, wind and biomass) or non-renewable (fossil fuels, nuclear).	Unit: CLIMATE CHANGE – Focus: LIFE ON EARTH	Teachers can make use of Learning Apps (https://learningapps.org) and/or Educaplay (https://www.educaplay.com) to create online interactive exercises about renewable and non-renewable resources. These exercises can be used in class through the IFP (Interactive Flat Panel) or sent to students via a Teams Assignment for self-assessment.
8.7	I can carry out observations during a fieldwork activity.	Unit: FIELDWORK – Focus: LIFE ON EARTH	Students can use various digital tools to record these observations. They can use a smartphone or tablet camera to take photos or videos of observations. They can use a digital voice recorder (or a smartphone) to verbally describe observations. They can use a geolocation app like Google Maps (https://maps.google.com) to map and tag the location of observations.
8.8	I can describe the Solar System as made up of the Sun and all the planets orbiting it.	Unit: EARTH AND SPACE – Focus: EARTH AND SPACE	Google maps (https://www.google.com/maps) can be used to allow students to navigate to and zoom in on a number of different solar bodies. The website Solar System Scope (https://www.solarsystemscope.com/) allows students to view the solar system as a whole, as well as focus on different planets in more detail.
8.8	I can explain some benefits of space exploration such as the use of GPS, weather forecasting and communication.	Unit: EARTH AND SPACE – Focus: EARTH AND SPACE	Teachers can make use of the ClassVR (http://www.classvr.com) virtual reality headsets to provide virtual reality experiences to explore the International Space Station and/or other celestial bodies. Teachers can also make use of simulation tools such as Google Earth (https://earth.google.com/) to show the applications of GPS and Windfinder (https://www.windfinder.com/) to help demonstrate the impact that satellite-based weather forecasting has on our daily lives.