Grade 7 – Life Systems

Lesson Summary: Students will create an interactive story that demonstrates the importance that First Nations, Métis,

or Inuit Peoples place on environmental sustainability.

Curriculum Expectations: These expectations are intended to highlight the many ways in which this lesson could support

the curriculum. It is neither expected nor necessary for teachers to address all of these expectations at once. Teachers

are encouraged to select the most relevant expectations based on their unique context and intentions for the lesson.

Science & Technology

Mathematics

Language - Writing

Overall Expectations

A2. use coding in investigations and

to model concepts, and assess the

impact of coding and of emerging

technologies on everyday life and in

STEM-related fields

A3. demonstrate an understanding of

the practical applications of science

and technology, and of contributions

to science and technology from

people with diverse lived experiences

B1. assess the impact of human

activities and technologies on the

environment, and analyse ways to

mitigate negative impacts and

contribute to environmental

sustainability

Specific Expectations

B1.3 analyse how diverse First

Nations, Métis, and Inuit practices

and perspectives contribute to

environmental sustainability

Overall Expectations

C3. solve problems and create

computational representations of

mathematical situations using coding

concepts and skills

Specific Expectations

C3.1 solve problems and

create computational

representations of mathematical

situations by writing and executing

code, including code that

involves events influenced by a

defined count and/or subprogram

and other control structures.

C3.2 read and alter existing code,

including code that involves events

influenced by a defined count and/or

subprogram and other control

structures, and describe how changes

to the code affect the outcomes and

the efficiency of the code.

Overall Expectations

1. Generate, gather, and organize

ideas and information to write for an

intended purpose and audience

2. draft and revise their writing, using

a variety of informational, literary,

and graphic forms and stylistic

elements appropriate for the purpose

and audience;

Specific Expectations

1.1 identify the topic, purpose,

audience, and form for writing

1.2 generate ideas about a potential

topic, using a variety of strategies and

resources

1.3 gather information to support

ideas for writing in a variety of ways

and/or from a variety of sources

1.4 sort ideas and information for

their writing in a variety of ways

2.1 write short texts using a variety of

forms

2.3 use words and phrases that will

help convey their meaning as

specifically as possible

2.4 vary sentence structures and

maintain continuity by using joining

words (e.g., and, or) to combine

simple sentences and using words

that indicate time and sequence to

link sentences

3.4 use punctuation to help

communicate their intended

meaning, with a focus on the use of:

quotation marks to indicate direct

speech; commas to mark

grammatical boundaries within

sentences; capital letters and final

punctuation to mark the beginning

and end of sentences

3.8 produce pieces of published work

to meet identified criteria based on

the expectations related to content,

organization, style, use of

conventions, and use of presentation

strategies

Breaking Down the Coding Expectations in Science & Technology:

In the Grade 7 Science & Technology curriculum, there are two coding related expectations:

A2.1 write and execute code in investigations and when modelling concepts, with a focus on planning and

designing programs

A2.2 identify and describe impacts of coding and of emerging technologies, such as artificial intelligence

systems, on everyday life, including skilled trades

To paraphrase these expectations and express them in plainer language, students are being asked to:

• Prior to writing any code, students should plan the structure and logic of how their code will work

• show how coding impacts our lives

Both expectations will be addressed through the project.

Learning Goals: We are learning to write code to create an interactive story that demonstrates the importance that First

Nations, Métis, or Inuit Peoples place on environmental sustainability.

Success Criteria:

1. I can use a variety of event blocks to trigger different parts of my simulation

2. I can use conditionals to respond to data in my code

3. I can use a variety of blocks to seek input from my user

4. I can represent the importance that First Nations, Métis, or Inuit Peoples place on environmental sustainability.

5. I can provide important information and examples of environmental sustainability

STEM Profile:

Quannah Rose Chasinghorse-Potts is a Hän Gwich’in model land protector,

the fourth generation in her family to do so. Her community is based in

Alaska, where she has been fighting to protect their land from oil drilling.

She is especially committed to protecting the Arctic National Wildlife

Refuge.

At just 17 years old she sat on the International Gwich’in Youth Council

where she traveled across the United States to lobby against oil leasing and

to support bill HR 11-46 which would permanently protect the land in her

community.

Quannah knows that sustainability is key not only for Indigenous peoples, but for us all. Like Quannah, we will use our

knowledge of environmental sustainability to help others protect the land.

Minds On:

1. Students will have different experience levels when it comes to coding.

a) If students have never experienced coding before, please watch the “What is Coding?” video.

b) If students have experienced coding before, have a quick discussion in which students share their definition

of coding. Some responses to look for include:

i. Coding is the language that computers speak

ii. Coding is how we talk to computers or get computers to do what we want

iii. Coding is the instructions that we give to a computer