MOS Homework for 7th Grade Science
What is MOS? MOS stands for “My Own Science.” It is science homework that you choose
and carry out on your own.
Every 20 minutes of well-documented challenging work earns you 10 points. A minimum
of 30 points must be earned during the quarter, this means one hour of work. You may choose
to earn an additional 30 points (maximum) that can be used as an “extra credit assignment”
The bonus MOS is always due one week after the required MOS.
CATEGORIES OF MOS WORK
DEMO
LAB
EXPERIMENT
***prior permission
Needed.
Each may be done only once throughout the year.
perform a demonstration. Most demonstrations will be quite short to
perform. Keep track of time researching the explanation and
gathering supplies so you can be accurate on your MOS log
do a lab activity; an experiment for which the result is known. Most
labs will take 20 to 30 min or more to do and will also require
research and organization time.
You will need to turn in a written proposal for this PRIOR to
starting and design an experiment, carry it out and analyze the
results. This activity will be done to answer a question for which
there is no known answer. These are basically science fair project
style projects.
ARTICLE
read a science or nature magazine/internet article. You must print
out the article or copy it and attach it to your report or give me the
magazine with the pages marked.
BOOK
VISIT
WORKSHOP
INTERVIEW
read a non-fiction book on a science topic
visit a science museum, aquarium, science center or program
participate in a science workshop or activity
interview a scientist about their work, can be a family member or
neighbor
stargaze while using a sky chart and describe what was found
watch a good science TV program or video.
STARGAZE
SHOW
LOGIC PUZZLE
work on a thought puzzle/logic puzzle----not a crossword or word
search puzzle! Sudoku puzzles would be fine. If you can not
complete it turn in all your work for the time that you tried it.
BUILD
complete an engineering challenge and build something by following
written step by step directions.
There are other possibilities. I try to support student
ideas/plans/efforts in the areas of science. See me and explain your
idea and turn in a written proposal. You must have approval to do an
Other in advance.
OTHER
You may not repeat any categories, this will force you to broaden your horizons! Once you
have read a book---no more books! Once you have watched one TV show or video, you can’t
watch anymore. You get the idea.
To find inspiration, check out some resources from the library or do online
research. Your textbooks often have Extra Try at Home labs in the back. In the Air book
these are on pages 138 and 139. If you find nothing that grabs your interest, see me for
help.
RECORD KEEPING
Maximum credit without prior permission is 90 minutes. If you work for 2 hours only 90
minutes will be counted unless you have prior permission. So BEFORE beginning a long
project you must turn in a written proposal with a complete description of your activity and
estimated times. I will sign the form if you are given permission and you will attach this sheet to
your project
Activities NOT acceptable for credit are: walks in the woods; cooking, making jewelry, art
projects and observing family pets. There CAN be exceptions to these but be sure to seek
approval in advance by turning in a written proposal or you are likely to be disappointed.
Complete honesty in record keeping is essential. Times for grocery shopping, searching for a
video at the library, surfing the web or other prep work should never exceed 15 minutes on
your time sheet. If the actual time is longer, record the start and stop time but only use 15
minutes when calculating your total time.
You MUST write all the MOS projects out by hand rather than using a word processor.
Cutting and pasting from other documents is not allowed so handwriting prevents this. IF you
have a special circumstance that requires using a word processor see me. No time should be
added to your log for typing.
Pay attention to the time you begin and end and record it clearly on the Log form. The time
spent on an activity does not include the time you spend recording the activity in the MOS log.
Please ask if you have any questions about how to record your work.
SAFETY
Observe all school lab safety rules while you are working at home. Your parents should give
permission before you do any project. In particular,
• Never randomly mix chemicals or household substances.
• Have an adult present when using fire or heat, glassware or chemicals.
• Protect your eyes when using chemicals, glassware or projectiles.
Remember, UNSAFE activities will receive no credit.
MOS LOG Forms
EVERY activity has a different form. You print the one you need from the website.
To Access the forms you will start on the school webpage.
1. You can access the correct MOS log form for your project from school webpage at
sjcatholicschool.org.
a. Go to faculty and find the page for faculty coursework and documents,
b. Click on McLucas, and the links will be there for you.
2. Keep the pages in your project section of your science binder as you complete them.
3. BE SURE TO HAVE YOUR PARENT SIGN THE FORM.
4. When you finish a project, turn in your form to receive credit.
5. If I return the log with corrections/additions needed, fix it and turn it in again to get credit.
6. The number of points out of the total attempted points is your grade.
This activity should allow you to broaden your horizons and discover new and fun areas of
science. Run with it!!