The seventh grade course, title "Investigations in Environmental Science," builds upon the experiences in the life and environmental sciences introduced to students in upper elementary school and provides the foundation for further studies in high school biology. Scientific investigation, cell structure and function of living systems , heredity and diversity, and populations and ecosystems are content strands developed through a sequence of varied instructional strategies with an emphasis on observation, experimentation, discussion, generalization, and application. Students use a compound light microscope to observe a variety of plant and animal tissues as they investigate similarities and differences in structure and function. They study the pattern of organization in multi-cellular organisms from the simple cell to the complex organism. They begin to look at cell processes of obtaining and releasing materials and energy as well as review the basic life processes of living things. Students are introduced to the genetic principles of how living things pass traits from one generation to another. A model ecosystem, an aquarium, provides students opportunities to make detailed observation and inferences about the interdependence of living and nonliving components of the environment. Students apply these basic ecological concepts in their exploration of ways humans interact with the environment in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed.

Students learn the life science concepts through hands-on investigations where they make predictions, design experiments, look at models, collect and organize data in charts and graphs, analyze and interpret data, and communicate results. Computer technologies including CD-ROMs, interactive videodiscs, digital cameras and application software are integrated with instruction and used to enhance student understanding.