HS-LS1-2 Develop and use a model to illustrate the hierarchical organization of interacting systems that provide specific functions within multicellular organisms.
Clarification Statement: Emphasis is on functions at the organism system level such as nutrient uptake, water delivery, and organism movement in response to neural stimuli. An example of an interacting system could be an artery depending on the proper function of elastic tissue and smooth muscle to regulate and deliver the proper amount of blood within the circulatory system.
Assessment Boundary: Assessment does not include interactions and functions at the molecular or chemical reaction level.
This resource is explicitly designed to build towards this performance expectation.
Comments about Including the Performance Expectation
This interactive simulation and accompanying student exploration guide explicitly addresses the PE, as it engages students in using a model of the human digestive to understand the function of each organ, the function of the accessory organs of digestion and the amount of nutrients absorbed by the digestive system. In the simulation students are encouraged to try different orders for the major organs and accessory organs and in doing so, the model emphasizes the changing effectiveness of the digestive system for different nutrients. One change instructors need to consider is to use incorporate the more commonly used names of the main organs of the digestive system. The simulation uses “large” and more often the teachers of science would incorporate the word “major” organs instead. The organs that produce the enzymes are usually referred to as the accessory organs not the small organs as named in the simulation. The inclusion of capillaries and lymph vessels in the simulation is an excellent addition and makes the simulation more suitable to secondary that middle school classes. By clicking on each major organ and each accessory organ, the function and breakdown products are given. The breakdown products of starch, proteins and fats are also included in the student exploration guide.