This year I have been working hard on creating resources for Middle school science that are aligned with the Next Generation Science Standards. I have been working with NGSS since the beginning and I love the emphasis on getting students to think deeply, make connections and build concepts.
How are the Next Generation Science Standards different?
In the old day, we just taught students a number of facts about science. Currently, the emphasis in middle school science for NGSS is to have students make sense out of the science! We use the crosscutting concepts, and science and engineering practices to help students build the concepts in the Disciplinary Core Ideas of the NGSS.
We engage students with phenomena. Students ask questions about the phenomena and the teacher asks questions aligned with the crosscutting concepts.
The science and engineering practices in middle school science help students to build the conceptual understanding that is in the Disciplinary Core Idea. The crosscutting concepts in the Next Generation Science Standards help the students to have an idea of what they are going to be building.
Science Storylines
Another difference with today’s middle school science standards is that concepts are not taught in isolation. We use science storylines to help students see connections. An NGSS storyline is a string of episodes that build on one another. The science storylines are connected. You can think of a storyline like a unit plan and you can think of each episode in the science storyline as a lesson or lab that builds on the previous activity.
NGSS Science Strands
Each strand in the Next Generation Science Standards is a collection of standards with common themes and ideas. Each strand covers a topic in middle school science. They usually go nicely together in a storyline or science bundle. For Middle School Science there are 16 strands each with a different topic. Middle School Science Strands by Topic These strands cover Earth and Space Science, Life Science, Physical Science, and Engineering.
Planning for science instruction can be overwhelming, but you don’t have to worry! I have done all the planning for you. I have created science bundles for each of the 16 strands of middle school science. Each bundle covers one DCI or topic of NGSS for middle school science. Each bundle is also discounted by 20%! My bundles include units that are complete and contain lesson plans, labs, slide shows, reading passages, and follow-up pages.
My middle school science resources use phenomena, and the three dimensions of science: science and engineering practices, crosscutting concepts, and disciplinary core ideas. Students will be engaged in making sense of science. You will love having science resources created by someone who understands the Next Generation Science Standards.
Get this FREE unit on Claim Evidence Reasoning for Middle School Science
My bundles can be purchased here on Teaching Science or in my TPT Store. They are the same resources either way. Both provide you with a secure checkout and a 20% discount on bundles.
Bundles organized by NGSS Middle School Disciplinary Core Ideas (DCI)
MS-PS1 Matter and Its Interactions
MS-PS2 Motion and Stability: Forces and Interactions
MS-PS4 Waves and Their Applications in Technologies for Information Transfer
MS-LS1 From Molecules to Organisms: Structures and Processes
MS-LS2 Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics
MS-LS3 Heredity: Inheritance and Variation of Traits
MS-LS4 Biological Evolution: Unity and Diversity
MS-ESS1 Earth’s Place in the Universe
MS-ESS3 Earth and Human Activity
MS-ETS1 Engineering Design
Also bundled by Middle School Science Topic
Matter and Energy in Organisms and Ecosystems
Interdependent Relationships in Ecosystems
Waves and Electromagnetic Radiation
Structure, Function, and Information Processing
Engineering Bundle for Middle School
The Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) are K–12 science content standards. Standards set the expectations for what students should know and be able to do. The NGSS were developed by states to improve science education for all students.
A goal for developing the NGSS was to create a set of research-based, up-to-date K–12 science standards. These standards give local educators the flexibility to design classroom learning experiences that stimulate students’ interests in science and prepare them for college, careers, and citizenship.
Teaching science can be the best part of your day. Let me do the planning for you!
