This packet is everything a parent or guide needs to assess Unit 03 at home — learning targets, the answers that count as correct, the mastery rubric, calibration examples, and a clipboard score sheet. No multiple-choice test: the student shows mastery by building models of the body systems and explaining how the parts work together.
By the end of the From Cells to Organisms unit, a student should be able to:
Six criteria, each judged Not yet / Approaching / Mastered (Page 3).
Build a model, then explain how the parts connect.
The student traces how systems work together aloud (Page 4).
Labeled models, part jobs, and system connections kept distinct.
You are making a decision, not adding up points. For each criterion, decide whether the work is Not yet, Approaching, or Mastered — the column language tells you which. A criterion counts as mastered only when the student can both build the model and explain the biology it shows. A student carries three tokens per term; one token buys a re-do of one criterion on another day, so a single bad afternoon never sinks the unit.
Accept any answer in the synonyms column — they are pre-approved as equivalent. The third column flags the confusions that look close but are not yet, so you can coach precisely.
| Canonical answer | Accepted synonyms | Common confusion / discriminator |
|---|---|---|
| Levels of organization | ||
| Cell | building block | The smallest living unit; the base of the ladder |
| Tissue | group of similar cells | Cells of one kind working together, like muscle tissue |
| Organ | group of tissues | Several tissues doing one job, like the heart or a lung |
| Organ system | group of organs | Organs teaming up for a big job, like digestion |
| Body systems & how they fit | ||
| Circulatory system | heart & blood | Carries blood, oxygen, and food around the body |
| Respiratory system | lungs & breathing | Brings in oxygen and lets out carbon dioxide |
| Digestive system | stomach & gut | Breaks food down so the body can use it |
| Structure fits function | form follows job | A part's shape matches its job — spongy lungs trade gases |
| Criterion | Not yet | Approaching | Mastered |
|---|---|---|---|
| Levels of organization | Thinks the body is just one big lump of cells. | Lists cells, tissues, and organs but mixes up the order. | Puts the levels in order — cells → tissues → organs → organ systems → organism — with an example of each. |
| Major body systems | Can name only one or two body systems. | Names several systems but not what each one does. | Names the major systems — digestive, circulatory, respiratory, skeletal, muscular, nervous — and explains the main job of each. |
| How systems work together | Treats each body system as if it works alone. | Knows systems connect but can’t trace one example. | Traces how two or more systems team up — like how the lungs and blood deliver oxygen to your cells. |
| Structure fits function | Doesn’t link a body part’s shape to its job. | Notices a shape but can’t explain why it helps. | Explains how a part’s structure fits its function — like why lungs are spongy or bones are hollow. |
| Lab technique (body-system modeling) | Builds a model that leaves out key parts or connections. | Builds a model but can’t explain how the parts link up. | Builds a clear model of a body system and uses it to explain how the parts work together. |
| 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. |
The split between Approaching and Mastered is connection over naming: not just listing the systems, but tracing how they team up. Ask the student “so how do these two work together?”
Read these before you grade. They show what Mastered and Not yet actually sound like, plus the edge cases where you should coach rather than decide on the spot.
Student: ______________________________________ Date: _______________ Guide: _________________________
| # | Criterion | Decision | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Levels of organization | NY / Appr / Mast | |
| 2 | Major body systems | NY / Appr / Mast | |
| 3 | How systems work together | NY / Appr / Mast | |
| 4 | Structure fits function | NY / Appr / Mast | |
| 5 | Lab technique (body-system modeling) | NY / Appr / Mast | |
| 6 | Integration (cross-domain) | NY / Appr / Mast |
☐ No ☐ Yes — for criterion: __________ Tokens remaining: ☐ 3 ☐ 2 ☐ 1 ☐ 0
NY = Not yet · Appr = Approaching · Mast = Mastered · Unsure between two levels? Circle the lower one and note what a re-do would need.