Unit 03 · Cellular Energetics
The big ideas here are how energy moves through living things: enzymes lowering activation energy, ATP as the cell's energy currency, cellular respiration releasing stored energy, photosynthesis capturing it, and how that energy — and carbon — flows on into ecosystems. Mastery means tracing energy from sunlight to sugar to the work a cell does.
| Criterion | Not yet | Approaching | Mastered |
|---|---|---|---|
| Photosynthesis process | Cannot state inputs or outputs. | Knows reactants/products; vague on light vs Calvin stages. | Traces light reactions and Calvin cycle and where each occurs. |
| Cellular respiration process | Confuses respiration with breathing. | Lists stages but misplaces inputs or location. | Tracks glucose through glycolysis, Krebs, and the ETC. |
| Energy coupling / ATP | Unclear what ATP does. | Names ATP as energy but not how it is spent or made. | Explains ATP hydrolysis powering otherwise unfavorable reactions. |
| Connecting energetics to ecology / carbon | Sees the reactions in isolation. | Notes photosynthesis and respiration are linked. | Connects the two as a carbon and energy cycle across organisms. |
| Lab investigation | Cannot set up or read the investigation. | Collects data but interprets it loosely. | Runs a respiration or photosynthesis lab and explains the data. |
| Integration (cross-domain) | Treats the science as isolated facts; makes no cross-domain connection. | Names a link to history, reading, or writing but cannot defend why it matters. | Connects the unit to its anchor across History · Reading · Writing (plus chosen electives) and defends why the connection matters. |
“Photosynthesis stores light energy in glucose and respiration releases it. The electrons end up on oxygen to make water, and the energy they drop off pumps protons that spin ATP synthase — that’s where the ATP is actually made.”
“Plants make food from sunlight and respiration is like breathing. ATP is energy, but I couldn’t say where it comes from.”
You demonstrate this unit through respiration and photosynthesis investigations — gas-exchange or pigment labs — plus oral checks where you trace energy in your own words. A criterion is mastered when you can both gather the data and explain the pathway behind it.
A 5-page clipboard packet — unit overview, key terms, the mastery rubric, anchor examples, and a score sheet you can print and grade against.