Middle School Science
Watch videoMiddle School Science
Watch videoBring Science Alive! is a program built from the ground up to align to the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) and the Common Core Standards. Bring Science Alive! embodies the new vision for how science should be taught in schools–focusing on big picture concepts and teaching students how to “do science”—rather than memorize facts.
Bring Science Alive! Cells and Genetics
LIFE SCIENCE | 100% NGSS
Traits Unit:
Anchoring Phenomenon: Organisms have unique physical and behavioral traits that help them survive.
Storyline: The island of Madagascar has plants and animals that exist nowhere else on the planet. Plan an eco-tour, highlighting how the unique physical and behavioral traits of these organisms have helped them survive.
Performance Assessment: Plan a Trait Trek to Madagascar and create a brochure describing what travelers will see on the trip. The brochure will explain how each organism’s unique traits help it survive and reproduce.
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Unit 1. Traits
- Traits for Survival
- Traits for Reproduction
Engineering Challenge
Performance Assessment
Unit 2. Bodies
- Interacting Body Systems
Engineering Challenge
- Levels of Organization
- Controlling Body Systems
Performance Assessment
Unit 3. Cells
- Cell Theory
- Parts of Cells
Unit 4. Genes
- Proteins, Genes, and Chromosomes
- Inheriting Genes
- Genes and the Environment
Unit 5. Changes in Genes
- Genetic Mutations
- Engineering and Genetics
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Bring Science Alive! Adaptations
LIFE SCIENCE | 100% NGSS
The History of Life on Earth Unit
Anchoring Phenomenon: Similar fossils have been found in the same aged rock in fossil digs that are over 100 miles apart.
Storyline: As a paleontologist, students will collect data from one of six fossil sites around the world. They will analyze the data and find patterns between different fossil sites to form a more comprehensive view of the history of life on Earth.
Performance Assessment: Students act as paleontologists. They obtain and organize information from a fossil dig site. They present their findings and then compare the patterns they found at their dig site to patterns found at other dig sites.
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Unit 1. History of Life on Earth
- Earth’s History
- Fossils and the History of Life
Unit 2. The Evolution of Life
- Darwin’s Theory of Evolution Through Natural Selection
- Observing Natural Selection in Action
- Genes and Natural Selection
- Evolutionary Relationships
Unit 3. Human Impacts on Evolution
- Artificial Selection
- Genetic Engineering and Society
- Human Population and Global Change
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Bring Science Alive! Ecosystems
LIFE SCIENCE | 100% NGSS
Resources in Ecosystems Unit
Anchoring Phenomenon: When various species of cichlid fish are combined in aquariums, some stop eating to the point of dying.
Storyline: The living things on our planet interact with each other and with the nonliving parts of the environment in dynamic ecosystems. Apply what you learn about resources, interactions, and changes in ecosystems to solve a problem in the fish exhibit at a zoo.
Performance Assessment: Use your understanding of the resources and interactions in dynamic ecosystems to determine what needs changing in the cichlid fish exhibit where some species are unhealthy. Then, present your solution at a conference.
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Unit 1. Resources In Ecosystems
- Resources in Living Systems
- Interactions Among Organisms
- Changing Ecosystems
Unit 2. Energy and Matter in Ecosystems
- Capturing the Sun’s Energy
- Using Stored Energy
- Food Webs and Trophic Pyramids
- Global Cycles of Matter
Unit 3. Humans and Changing Ecosystems
- Biodiversity
- The Importance of Healthy Ecosystems
- Engineering Solutions and Protecting Ecosystems
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Bring Science Alive! Space
EARTH SCIENCE | 100% NGSS
The Earth-Sun-Moon System Unit
Anchoring Phenomenon: Celestial objects appear to move in distinct patterns from Earth.
Storyline: Patterns of the apparent motion of the sun, the moon, and stars in the sky can be described, predicted, and explained with models. Develop your own model of the Earth-sun-moon system, using it to create a film that explains the cyclic patterns of lunar phases, eclipses of the sun and moon, and the seasons.
Performance Assessment: Create your own video models of cyclic patterns in the Earth-sun-moon system.
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Unit 1: The Earth-Sun-Moon System
- Earth’s Rotation and Revolution
- Earth’s Tilted Axis
- Phases of the Moon
- Eclipses
Unit 2: The Solar System
- Gravity and the Solar System
- The Inner Solar System
- The Outer Solar System
Unit 3: The Solar System and Beyond
- Formation of the Solar System
- Beyond the Solar System
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Bring Science Alive! Planet Earth
EARTH SCIENCE | 100% NGSS
Earth’s Systems Unit
Anchoring Phenomenon: Flowing, bright molten rock in the form of lava moves across Earth’s surface forming new land and erasing vegetation.
Storyline: Kilauea is an active volcano in Volcanoes National Park, Hawaii. Everyday energy flows through the volcano and moves matter in the form of hot, molten lava. Create an exhibit for the park using graphics, pictures, and text to explain these volcanic processes
Performance Assessment: The National Park Service in Hawaii is holding a contest in order to create a new visitor center kiosk located at Kilauea. The kiosk needs to explain how the volcano changes Earth’s surface. Working in groups, create a design of the kiosk’s graphics, pictures, and text. Then present and explain your plans to park officials, who will select the best design.
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Unit 1. Earth’s Systems
- Energy in Earth’s Systems
- Earth’s Dynamic Surface
Unit 2. Processes that Shape Earth
- Earth’s Tectonic Plates
- The Rock Cycle
- The Water Cycle
- Earth’s Natural Resources
Unit 3. Earth Processes Through Geologic Time
- Investigating Rock Strata
- Reconstructing Earth’s History
Unit 4. Earth’s Natural Hazards
- Volcanic Eruptions and Earthquakes
- Mass Wasting, Tsunamis, and Floods
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Bring Science Alive! Weather and Climate
EARTH SCIENCE | 100% NGSS
The Atmosphere and Energy Unit
Anchoring Phenomenon: Food in a cooler stays cold, and food in a solar cooker gets hot
Storyline: Adventurers who brave extreme weather conditions to trek across California’s scorching Death Valley and Antarctica’s frozen surface must be prepared. The Extreme Adventures Company has hired you to design equipment for these adventurers to help them stay healthy and safe.
Performance Assessment: Develop a proposal for an improved cooler or solar cooker based on revised criteria and constraints, applying key scientific principles to optimize the design.
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Unit 1. The Atmosphere and Energy
- Earth’s Atmosphere
- Earth and Solar Energy
- Taking Earth’s Temperature
Unit 2. Weather
- Air Pressure and Wind
- Water and the Weather
- Air Masses and Changing Weather
- Severe Weather
Unit 3. Climate
- Climate Patterns
- Global Circulation of the Atmosphere
- How the Ocean Affects Climate
- Local Climate
- Earth’s Climate Over Time
- Climate Today and Tomorrow
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Bring Science Alive! Matter
PHYSICAL SCIENCE | 100% NGSS
The Composition of Matter Unit
Anchoring Phenomenon: To create stage makeup, chemists must account for the properties of the substances they will use.
Storyline: Analyze the properties of three different materials to identify the best material for a makeup pen to be used to transform actors into aliens. Then, write a pitch promoting the material you chose by describing its solubility, density, and suitability to use as alien makeup. Additionally, research the chemical formula and structure of a substance that makes up your material.
Performance Assessment: Read a letter from a client to identify the best material to work as the base for a makeup pen. After analyzing the properties of three different materials, identify the best material for your purposes. Then, use a model of a substance to determine its chemical formula and whether or not it is a molecule or extended structure. Finally, write and present a sales pitch explaining your results.
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Unit 1: The Composition of Matter
- Atoms and Elements
- Molecules and Extended Structures
- Substances and Their Properties
Unit 2: States of Matter
- The Motion of Particles
- Heat, Temperature, and State Changes
Unit 3. Chemical Reactions
- Identifying Chemical Reactions
- Atoms in Chemical Reactions
- Energy in Chemical Reactions
- Chemical Engineering and Society
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Bring Science Alive! Waves
PHYSICAL SCIENCE | 100% NGSS
Mechanical Waves Unit
Anchoring Phenomenon: Waves are eroding the coastline near the Las Olas Hermosas Restaurant more than the surrounding beaches.
Storyline: Las Olas Hermosas restaurant sits atop a steep cliff which is being eroded by massive winter waves. Learn about the properties of waves, wave energy, and how waves travel through different media to help write a proposal to solve Las Olas’ erosion problem.
Performance Assessment: Write a proposal for an engineering solution to prevent the erosion of the cliffs near Las Olas Hermosas restaurant. Use your understanding of wave properties to explain why your proposed design will be effective.
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Unit 1. Mechanical Waves
- Types of Waves
- Properties of Waves
- Wave Energy
- Waves in Different Media
Unit 2. Light Waves
- The Wave Model of Light
- Properties of Light Waves
Unit 3. Waves for Information Transfer
- Sending Information Using Wave Pulses
- Analog and Digital Information
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Our Bring Science Alive! Materials Kits are prepared and organized to seamlessly integrate into each specified lesson.
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Bring Science Alive! Forces and Energy
PHYSICAL SCIENCE | 100% NGSS
Forces Unit
Anchoring Phenomenon: A go-cart covers a certain distance in a given amount of time as it moves around a track.
Storyline: Modern go-carts are equipped with safety features to prevent injuries. In developing those safety features, engineers must think about collision forces and their effects. Students learn about forces, mass, speed, velocity, and acceleration to understand the best ways to keep riders safe.
Performance Assessment: Evaluate the safety of modern go-carts. Determine how the mass and speed of a cart affect the forces involved in collisions, and consider how the structure and materials of the go-carts keep riders safe.
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Unit 1. Forces
- Describing Motion
- Forces in Interactions
- Effects of Forces
Unit 2. Noncontact Forces
- Gravity
- Electricity
- Magnetism and Electromagnetism
Unit 3. Kinetic and Potential Energy
- Forms of Energy
- Measuring Kinetic Energy
- Types of Potential Energy
Unit 4. Thermal Energy
- Thermal Energy and Heat
- Thermal Properties of Matter
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Our Bring Science Alive! Materials Kits are prepared and organized to seamlessly integrate into each specified lesson.
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