Science
The High School Science Department at Tierra Adentro aims to create an inclusive and safe learning environment where students from all cultural and educational backgrounds can find personal connections and academic success in their scientific studies. Students begin as freshmen studying biology and will study chemistry, physics and Earth and Space science by the time they graduate. All students will participate in hands on, safe laboratory experiments during every semester. The science lab at TANM has the same technology and equipment offered at a traditional public school, but with class sizes that allow more interaction with chemicals, technology and hands-on learning. Throughout their science classes, students will find projects tailored to their love of the arts and their personal heritage; from sketching renderings of life in biology to studying Hispanic influences in the sciences and studying how ethnicity affects healthcare, or learning about the mechanics of dance in the Physics of Flamenco capstone project. Tierra Adentro has been following the Next Gen Science Standards since they were developed 8 years ago, thereby remaining nationally competitive. Many students find themselves taking a dual credit science course in the 12th grade and all students report feeling comfortable and prepared when they do take a college level science course.
Earth Science - 6th Grade
Life Science - 7th Grade
Physical Science - 8th Grade
Biology - traditionally taken in 9th grade
- Diversity and organization of the living world
- Cell Structure and Function
- Growth and Development
- Modern Genetics
- Evolution
- Ecology and Environmental Science
Chemistry - taken in 10th or 11th grade
- Atomic Structure, elements and matter
- Chemical Bonding and Nomenclature
- Chemical Reactions
- Quantitative Reactions
- Chemistry in the Modern World
Earth and Space Science - taken in 10th or 11th grade (1st semester)
- Plate Tectonics and their effects
- Energy from the Earth
- Our Place in the Universe
Physics - taken in 10th or 11th grade (2nd semester)
- Classical Mechanics (in the lens of Flamenco dancing)
- Light and Sound waves
- Nuclear Physics