Eighth Grade Semester Final
May, 2014—Study Guide
The semester final exam will consist of approximately 50 multiple choice questions and one essay question. The list of
terms below is greater than what will be tested on the final exam, however the terms will prompt you to study material
in relevant and related topic areas. Greater learning and success on your final exam will result from deeper
preparation.
The essay question will focus on the effects that human activity have on the trophic status (eutrophication) of a
freshwater body (lake) and on the changes in the freshwater ecosystem of the body of water. The question will not be
provided in advance, but you can expect that you will need to use terms associated with the physical, chemical, and
biological parameters associated with eutrophication of freshwater lakes to describe ecological changes that
could occur in a freshwater resource. You can read about these changes in the printed handout packets for water
quality, online at websites provided at the bottom of this study guide, or in your textbooks.
An asterisk (*) represents material that will only be on the test if we are able to squeeze it in
during the next week.
Astronomy
Seasons
Solstice
Equinox
Tides
Neap tides
Spring tide
Axis
Rotation
Revolution
Moon phases
Eclipses
Umbra
Penumbra
Solar eclipse
Lunar eclipse
Law of universal gravitation
Newton’s first law of motion
Moon surface features
Maria
Craters
Highlands
Thrust
Chemical Interactions
Particles of an atom
Atoms in a molecule
*Balancing equations
Types of chemical reactions
Exothermic-endothermic
Synthesis
Decomposition
replacement
*Factors that affect the rate of chemical reactions
Ionic bonding (ionic compounds and their properties)
Earth’s Water-Water Quality Packet
% of fresh water and salt water on Earth
Great Lakes drainage basin perimeter
Trophic states of bodies of water
Eutrophication
Invasive species
Plankton (phyto-… zoo-…)
Velocity (escape, orbital)
Satellite
Multi-stage rocket
Shuttles, probes, rover
Microgravity
Space spinoff
Remote sensing
Geocentric
Heliocentric
Copernicus
Galileo
Sun concepts/features
Nuclear fusion (don’t confuse with fission)
Terrestrial planets
Gas planets
Comet
Kuiper belt
Oort cloud
Asteroid belt
Meteoroid
Meteor
Meteorite
Goldilocks conditions
ions and polyatomic ions
*Covalent bonding (molecular compounds and their
properties)
Solutions, solutes, concentration (ppm)
*Acids, bases
*Hydroxide ions
*Hydrogen ions
pH testing (litmus test)
Alkalinity
Earth’s Changing Surface
Erosion
Deposition
Tributary
Drainage basin-watershed
Divide
Earth Science (high school text)
Open and closed systems
Four spheres
Weathering-erosion concepts (ch.14)
Weathering factors
Erosion
River systems (ch. 15)
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Understand the relationship of Earth in space (location of Earth in solar system, Earth in galaxy, and galaxy
in relation to universe)
Understand the structure of the solar system
Be able to use the formula for circumference of a circle and the formula for the volume of a sphere to
calculate circumference and volume of planets.
SSEP
o Be able to respond to questions related to scientific inquiry (experimental procedure)
o Microgravity vs. no gravity
Be able to identify scientific theory from hypotheses and from facts
Be able to respond to questions related to types of chemical reactions (ionic and covalent bonding; synthesis,
decomposition, replacement; exothermic and endothermic reactions)
Be able to balance a simple chemical equation based on the law of conservation of matter
Be able to determine the number of atoms in a molecular formula
Understand factors that affect the quality of water resources
Understand the aging process (eutrophication) of a freshwater lake (oligotrophic, mesotrophic, eutrophic)
Understand how nutrients, chemical compounds, water use, and invasive species affect the quality of the
water resource
Be able to compare water quality data for two different lakes to determine their trophic status
Useful Websites
http://www.gvsu.edu/wri/education/instructor-s-manual-environmental-monitoring-20.htm (multiple pages available,
just click “next page” at bottom of each page
http://ga.water.usgs.gov/edu/navguide.html
http://ga.water.usgs.gov/edu/urbanquality.html
(must read)
http://ga.water.usgs.gov/edu/urbannitrogen.html (must read)
http://ga.water.usgs.gov/edu
http://waterontheweb.org/index.html (a great resource if you explore)