Enrolling Now for 2026-27 School Year.
Enrolling Now for 2026-27 School Year.
Learning Coach Guide Contents Part C Unit Information11 Energy and Waves Unit12 Animals and Plants Unit13 The Shape of Earth Unit14 Welcome Letter Dear Learning Coach, Thank you for partnering with CCA and investing in your learner’s education. This Learning Coach Guide is intended to help you support your learner in their Honors Science 4 course. Within this guide, you will find the goals, components, and features of the online course. Please take time to read and review this information so you understand how to help your learner interact with all the course’s elements. The Learning Coach Guide also includes information about each of the units in this course. On each page of unit information, you will discover the following. The Unit Overview will tell you what the focus, content, and skills of the unit will be. The Unit Assessment section is a place for you and your learner to preview the graded work in the course. At the start of each unit, work with your learner to look at the unit in edio and find out which types of graded work are in this unit. Write them in the box and use it as a checklist. You can check off each one as your learner completes it. The Unit Materials section tells you the materials your learner will need to complete the activities in this unit. You will also find the materials list repeated within each lesson so that your learner has exactly what they need at the right time. The Unit Discussion Questions are optional questions that you may want to ask your learner during the unit to increase home and school connections about what your learner is studying. In the Unit Notables section, you may find optional activities, literature connections, career connections, technology tips, ideas to help your learner if they get stuck, or safety tips. CCA wishes you and your learner a terrific school year! Supporting Your Learner Your role as a Learning Coach is very important. Here are a few ways you can help your learner do their very best in the course. Help your learner know what time guided or live class instruction is scheduled for, and prompt them to attend sessions or watch recordings. Look for Learning Coach Notes in the course. These are special messages to provide you with information about an activity or topic. Remember, it is okay for your learner to get stuck. Learning new material takes time. Encourage them to take breaks, keep trying, and even ask the teacher for help. Help your learner navigate technology. That may mean helping them type information or upload work into edio. Always encourage your learner to do their very best. Review the course syllabus for your learner’s course. Maintain communication with your learner’s teacher. Part BCourse Information Course Goals In Honors Science 4, your learner will explore different types of energy, and where they can be observed in the world, such as heat, light, sound, and electricity. Your learner will investigate different types of energy using experiments. They will learn that animals and plants have internal and external structures that function to support survival, growth, behavior, and reproduction. Through the use of models, your learner will develop an understanding that animals receive different types of information through their senses, process the information in their brains, and respond to information in various ways. Your learner will explore changes in a landscape over time through evidence found in patterns in rock formations and fossils. They will observe the effects of severe weather and will analyze and interpret data from maps. Your learner will explore natural resources and apply science exploration skills to complete a science experiment. By the end of the year, your learner will be able to: describe the relationship between the speed and energy of an object; explain how energy is transferred through sound, light, heat, and electric currents; identify patterns of energy waves in terms of amplitude and wavelength; describe how the reflection of light into the eye allows for objects to be seen; explain how the internal and external structures of plants and animals support processes such as survival, growth, behavior, and reproduction; identify how animals receive different types of information through their senses; and evaluate changes in the Earth’s features over time. Course Format Lesson Components: Each day, your learner will spend 45 minutes completing an Honors Science lesson. Some days may take less time, while other days may take a little more time. The lesson does not need to be completed in one sitting. Encourage your learner to take short breaks as they need. This section will help you to understand how your learner’s course is structured in edio. Lesson Bundling: Within the lesson bundles, there are different components your learner will interact with. These components will not be used every day. In Unit 1, the Knowledge Check will be bundled with the lesson on Day 2. In each unit that follows, the Knowledge Check will be bundled with the first lesson of that unit. See example below. Quiz Review and Quiz will also be bundled together. See example below. 1. Getting Started Lesson: There is one Getting Started lesson in this course. It can be found on Day 1 of Unit 1. This lesson includes important information about the course and contact information for your teacher. 2. Unit Overview: Each unit will include a unit overview. This describes what your learner will learn in the unit and how many assessments the unit will have. 3. Prep for Success: At the beginning of each unit, your learner will find a Prep for Success. This component offers learners tips to be successful in the course, such as study tips, important software information, safety reminders, and more. 4. Knowledge Check: There will be one Knowledge Check in each unit. The Knowledge Check is designed to check prior learning and understanding about key skills and concepts that will be taught in the unit. The Knowledge Check is not a graded assessment. Each lesson has its own components to help guide your learner through the lesson. 1. Lesson Overview: At the beginning of every lesson, your learner will see the lesson overview. This section contains lesson objectives, lesson vocabulary, materials your learner will need for the lesson, and the suggested lesson length. 2. Engage: The first section of the lesson is Engage. In this section, learners will be introduced to the lesson by making a connection to past and present knowledge and will get ready for the lesson’s instruction. 3. Discover: New content and instruction is presented in the Discover section. Your learner will interact with the lesson content through defined vocabulary terms, videos, audio, and Pause and Think activities. Your learner will be able to practice and answer questions as they work through the lesson. 4. Show: Learners will demonstrate what they have learned in the lesson through a series of practice questions. 5. Wrap Up: This section recaps the day’s objectives. The course includes assignments and projects. These graded assignments allow your learner to show what they have learned and apply their new skills. All CCA assignments and projects include these components. 1. Assessment Overview: At the beginning of each assessment, your learner will see the assessment overview. This section contains the goals of the assessment, materials your learner will need, length of the assessment, and directions for completion. 2. Plan: In the Plan section, learners will be introduced to the assignment or project. Learners may be provided with a review of content from the previous lessons, strategies for completing the activity, graphic organizers, and grading rubrics. 3. Do: Learners put their plan into action and work to complete the assignment or project successfully. This section also provides the grading expectations and/or rubric the teacher will use to grade the work. 4. Reflect: In Reflect, learners will think back to the work they completed. They will reflect upon the experience and analyze how well they completed the task. These moments of reflection are important and allow learners to think about their learning and their work habits. In addition to assignments and projects, this course also includes quizzes, tests, and exams. Quiz Review: Before a quiz, learners will have the opportunity to review the content they will be assessed on in a quiz. Quiz: A quiz may be given at the end of a topic or the end of a unit. A quiz will usually be worth 10–15 points. Test Review: Before a test, learners will have the opportunity to review the content they will be assessed on in the test. Test: A test will assess learning across topics or at the end of a unit. A test is usually worth 25–50 points. Course Features This course includes and uses unique features such as: Honors Science Activity Book: Learners will receive an Honors Science Activity Book in which they can answer questions and complete activities that support the online lessons. Science Projects: Learners will complete 3 Honors Science projects in this course to demonstrate their understanding of the concepts. Science Exploration: Learners will complete 1 Science Exploration in this course to demonstrate their understanding of the Science Exploration Skills. Part CUnit Information Energy and Waves Unit Unit Overview In this unit, your learner will explore how speed of an object relates to its energy. They will discover that energy can be found in sound, heat, electricity, and light. Your learner will develop models to describe wave patterns and how light is reflected when it enters the eye. Unit Assessments Quiz ________________________ Test ________________________ Assignment ________________ Project _____________________ Exam _______________________ Have your learner identify which assessment type they see in their unit. Check all that apply. Unit Discussion Questions What are some examples of how you use energy and how energy may be used in our home? Think of an example of technology you use today, how has it different today than it was five years ago? Unit Notables In this unit, your learner will explore the laws of motion and discover the relationship between forces and motion. To support your learner, review the examples provided in the lesson and, if possible, engage in an investigation of these forces at home. Kit Materials Honors Science Activity Book, 9-volt battery, chenille stems (3), clear plastic cups, graphite pencils, LED lightbulb, metal spoons (3), Newton’s Cradle, paper towel tube, piece of cardstock paper, plastic wrap, rubber band, salt packets (2), sunscreen tube, tape, UV flashlight, UV pony beads Household Materials paper and pencil, small pieces of butter (3), water Animals and Plants Unit Unit Overview In this unit, your learners will learn about the internal and external structures of plants and animals and how they use their structures for survival, growth, behavior, and reproduction. They will learn how animals receive different types of information from their environment and react to it. Your learner will create a model environment to test different bird beaks and their ability to gather food. Unit Assessments Quiz _________________________ Test _________________________ Assignment ________________ Project _____________________ Exam _______________________ Have your learner identify which assessment type they see in their unit. Check all that apply. Unit Discussion Questions How have animals been forced to adapt to changes in the environment caused by humans? How does the death of a plant help promote the life of other plants? Unit Notables In this unit, your learner will study internal and external structures of animals and plants. Your learner will complete a two-part project where they make a hypothesis about which bird beak works best for the type of food the bird eats and then test their predictions. In another lesson, your learner will learn about Morse code, create their own message, and also crack someone else’s code. Kit Materials Honors Science Activity Book, pipette, soup spoon, tweezers, Morse code card set Household Materials 3 cups of water The Shape of Earth Unit Unit Overview In this unit, your learner will learn about the processes that shape Earth. They will investigate how severe weather and natural hazards change the shape of the land and how rocks and fossils can give clues about Earth’s history. They will explore the resources that Earth provides; identifying the energy and fuels that are derived from natural resources and how their uses affect the environment. They will also focus on science exploration skills and complete an independent science project. Unit Assessments Quiz ___________________________ Test _________________________ Assignment _________________ Project ______________________ Exam ________________________ Have your learner identify which assessment type they see in their unit. Check all that apply. Unit Discussion Questions How can erosion impact the ability of societies to grow food? Do you think the positive aspects of using nuclear power outweigh the possible negative consequences? Why or why not? Unit Notables In this unit, your learner will examine the processes that shape Earth. Your learner will complete a two-part project where they will design and build a structure and then test its ability to withstand an earthquake. Your learner will also get to choose a scientific question that interests them, then design and conduct an independent science experiment to find the answer based on evidence and observation. Kit Materials Honors Science Activity Book, mini marshmallows, toothpicks, scissors (optional), crayons or colored pencils (optional), glue or tape (optional) Household Materials pan of gelatin (optional), piece of paper (optional), dry spaghetti (optional), trifold board (optional), large piece of poster board (optional), large piece of cardboard (optional), PowerPoint or Google Slides (optional), printer (optional)
Enrolling Now for 2026-27 School Year.
