GEMS Correlations with the Florida Sunshine State Standards

Grade Level Expectations and Benchmarks for Science
Grades 6–8

Strand B: Energy


Return to Sunshine State Standards Page


Standard 1: The student recognizes that energy may be changed in form with varying efficiency.

Benchmark SC.B.1.3.1: The student identifies forms of energy and explains that they can be measured and compared.

Sixth Grade

1. knows different types of energy and the units used to quantify the energy (for example, solar, nuclear, electrical, chemical).

Appropriate GEMS Teacher Guides: Acid Rain, Environmental Detectives, Global Warming, Hot Water and Warm Homes From Sunlight, The Real Reasons for Seasons

2. understands that energy can be converted from one form to another (for example, solar energy to heat energy).

Appropriate GEMS Teacher Guides: Global Warming, Hot Water and Warm Homes From Sunlight, Messages From Space, Moons of Jupiter

Seventh Grade

1. knows examples of uses of energy in the home and ways to measure its use.

Appropriate GEMS Teacher Guides: Global Warming, Hot Water and Warm Homes From Sunlight

Eighth Grade

1. understands that energy can be transferred by radiation, conduction, and convection.

Appropriate GEMS Teacher Guides: Convection, Global Warming, Hot Water and Warm Homes From Sunlight, Messages From Space, Moons of Jupiter, The Real Reasons for Seasons

2. knows examples of natural and man-made systems in which energy is transferred from one form to another.

Appropriate GEMS Teacher Guides: Acid Rain, Environmental Detectives, Global Warming, Hot Water and Warm Homes From Sunlight, Messages From Space, Moons of Jupiter

Benchmark SC.B.1.3.2: The student knows that energy cannot be created or destroyed, but only changed from one form to another.

Sixth Grade

1. understands that energy can be changed in form.

Appropriate GEMS Teacher Guides: Global Warming, Hot Water and Warm Homes From Sunlight, Messages From Space, The Real Reasons for Seasons

2. uses examples to demonstrate common energy transformations.

Appropriate GEMS Teacher Guides: Global Warming, Hot Water and Warm Homes From Sunlight, The Real Reasons for Seasons

Benchmark SC.B.1.3.3: The student knows the various forms in which energy comes to Earth from the Sun (e.g., visible light, infrared, and microwave).


Sixth Grade

1. knows types of radiant energy that come to Earth from the Sun (for example, visible, infrared, ultraviolet).

Appropriate GEMS Teacher Guides: Color Analyzers, Convection, Environmental Detectives, Global Warming, Hot Water and Warm Homes From Sunlight, Messages From Space, The Real Reasons for Seasons

2. knows the effect of sunlight on photosynthetic pigments.

Appropriate GEMS Teacher Guides: Acid Rain, Aquatic Habitats, Environmental Detectives, Global Warming

Seventh Grade

1. knows the characteristics, effects, and common uses of ultraviolet, visible and infrared light.

Appropriate GEMS Teacher Guides: Color Analyzers, Global Warming, Hot Water and Warm Homes From Sunlight

Eighth Grade

1. knows ways to measure the various forms of energy that come from the Sun.

Appropriate GEMS Teacher Guides: Hot Water and Warm Homes From Sunlight, Messages From Space

Benchmark SC.B.1.3.4: The student knows that energy conversions are never 100% efficient (e.g., some energy is transformed to heat and is unavailable for further useful work).

Eighth Grade

2. knows that a transfer of thermal energy occurs in chemical reactions.

Appropriate GEMS Teacher Guides: Chemical Reactions

Benchmark SC.B.1.3.5: The student knows the processes by which thermal energy tends to flow from a system of higher temperature to a system of lower temperature.

Eighth Grade

1. knows the processes by which thermal energy tends to flow from a system of higher temperature to a system of lower temperature.

Appropriate GEMS Teacher Guides: Convection

3. understands that energy changes cause weather to change (for example, formation of high and low pressure systems in the atmosphere results from changes in temperature).

Appropriate GEMS Teacher Guides: Convection, Global Warming

Benchmark SC.B.1.3.6: The student knows the properties of waves (e.g., frequency, wavelength, and amplitude); that each wave consists of a number of crests and troughs; and the effects of different media on waves.

2. knows the parts of a wave (crest, trough, wavelength, amplitude).

Appropriate GEMS Teacher Guides: Color Analyzers

3. understands that wavelength determines the colors of visible light.

Appropriate GEMS Teacher Guides: Bubble-ology, Color Analyzers

5. knows that waves vary greatly in character (for example, sound, ultraviolet, infrared, ocean waves).

Appropriate GEMS Teacher Guides: Color Analyzers, Global Warming, Ocean Currents

Standard 2: The student understands the interaction of matter and energy.
Benchmark SC.B.2.3.1: The student knows that most events in the universe (e.g., weather changes, moving cars, and the transfer of a nervous impulse in the human body) involve some form of energy transfer and that these changes almost always increase the total disorder of the system and its surroundings, reducing the amount of useful energy.


Sixth Grade

1. understands that energy moves through systems.

Appropriate GEMS Teacher Guides: Acid Rain, Environmental Detectives, Global Warming,

Benchmark SC.B.2.3.2: The student knows that most of the energy used today is derived from burning stored energy collected by organisms millions of years ago (e.g., nonrenewable fossil fuels).

Seventh Grade

1. knows that fossil fuels are found in the Earth, they are nonrenewable, and the advantages and disadvantages of their use.

Appropriate GEMS Teacher Guides: Acid Rain, Environmental Detectives, Global Warming, Hot Water and Warm Homes From Sunlight

Eighth Grade

1. understands how fossil fuels are formed in the Earth, why they are nonrenewable, and the advantages and disadvantages of their use.

Appropriate GEMS Teacher Guides: Environmental Detectives, Global Warming

Lawrence Hall of Science    © 2015 UC Regents. All rights reserved.    Contact GEMS    Updated February 06, 2021