Georgia Milestones cheat sheet

Theme is the underlying message about life or human nature; it must be stated as a full sentence, while a summary only retells events.

Central idea in informational text is supported by explicit details; distinguish it from the topic, which is a word or phrase, not a claim.

Point of view: first person uses I/we; third-person limited stays with one character's thoughts; third-person omniscient reveals multiple characters' inner states.

An argument's strength depends on claim, evidence, and reasoning; an anecdote or appeal to emotion is not sufficient evidence for a claim.

Text structure signal words: cause-effect (because, therefore), comparison (similarly, unlike), chronology (first, later), problem-solution (issue, remedy).

Figurative language: simile uses like/as, metaphor states one thing is another, personification gives human traits to nonhuman things, hyperbole is deliberate exaggeration.

Standard English conventions: subject-verb agreement, pronoun-antecedent agreement, comma before a coordinating conjunction joining independent clauses, and no comma splice.

Inference is a conclusion drawn from textual evidence plus prior knowledge; it is not a guess, and it must be defensible with cited details.

Citing evidence requires quoting or paraphrasing the strongest relevant detail and explaining how it supports the claim, not merely dropping a quote.

Slope of a line through (x1,y1) and (x2,y2) is m = (y2 − y1)/(x2 − x1); parallel lines share slope, perpendicular slopes are negative reciprocals.

Linear form y = mx + b: m is rate of change, b is the y-intercept; solve systems by substitution, elimination, or graphing the intersection.

Pythagorean theorem a² + b² = c² applies only to right triangles, with c the hypotenuse opposite the right angle.

Area formulas: triangle ½bh, parallelogram bh, trapezoid ½(b1 + b2)h, circle πr²; circumference is 2πr.

Volume: prism/cylinder V = Bh (B = base area); pyramid/cone V = ⅓Bh; sphere V = 4/3πr³.

Exponent rules: aᵐ·aⁿ = aᵐ⁺ⁿ, aᵐ/aⁿ = aᵐ⁻ⁿ, (aᵐ)ⁿ = aᵐⁿ, a⁰ = 1 for a ≠ 0, and a⁻ⁿ = 1/aⁿ.

Probability of an event = favorable outcomes ÷ total equally likely outcomes; independent events multiply, P(A and B) = P(A)·P(B).

Mean is the sum divided by the count; median is the middle value of ordered data; a single extreme value pulls the mean but affects the median less.

Transformations: translation slides, rotation turns about a point, reflection flips across a line, dilation scales by a factor and preserves shape but not size.

Cells are the basic unit of life; prokaryotic cells lack a membrane-bound nucleus, eukaryotic cells have one plus membrane-bound organelles.

Photosynthesis converts light energy, CO₂, and H₂O into glucose and O₂ in chloroplasts; cellular respiration releases energy from glucose in mitochondria.

Newton's laws: inertia (no net force, no change in motion), F = ma, and equal-and-opposite action-reaction forces on different objects.

Speed = distance/time; velocity adds direction; acceleration is the change in velocity per unit time, including direction changes.

Conservation of mass: in a closed system, atoms are rearranged in a chemical reaction but neither created nor destroyed, so equations must balance.

Plate boundaries: divergent plates move apart, convergent plates collide (subduction or mountain building), transform plates slide past each other.

Energy flows one way through ecosystems (sun → producers → consumers) while matter cycles through decomposers and the environment.

Genotype is the allele pair, phenotype is the observable trait; dominant alleles mask recessive ones, and Punnett squares predict offspring ratios.

Density = mass/volume; an object denser than the fluid sinks, less dense floats, and heating usually decreases density by expanding volume.

Three branches: legislative makes laws, executive enforces laws, judicial interprets laws; checks and balances let each limit the others.

Federalism divides power between national and state governments; the Tenth Amendment reserves unspecified powers to the states or the people.

The Bill of Rights is the first ten amendments; the First Amendment protects speech, religion, press, assembly, and petition.

Georgia's founding as a colony in 1733 under James Oglethorpe served as a buffer against Spanish Florida and a fresh start for debtors.

The Georgia colony banned slavery at founding; the ban was lifted in 1750 as the colony shifted to a plantation economy.

Civil War causes include slavery, sectional economic differences, states' rights arguments, and westward expansion disputes; Georgia seceded in 1861.

Reconstruction amendments: 13th abolished slavery, 14th granted citizenship and equal protection, 15th protected voting rights regardless of race.

Supply and demand: rising price generally lowers quantity demanded and raises quantity supplied; equilibrium is where the curves intersect.

Opportunity cost is the value of the next-best alternative forgone when a choice is made, central to economic decision-making.