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Science (Middle School) » Science

Science

Grades 5-8 Middle School Curriculum for Science was developed by teachers across the region in concert with the Cross District Science Mapping Group.  CDSM teachers began meeting in January 2015 to create year-long maps around the MA Science Standards when they were in their draft form. Teachers have been meeting regularly for the past three years, both during the school year and summers, to create units to benefit their students.   All units are over Open Resource Education (OER) material suggestion for implementation. All materials are free to use in districts and classrooms within the Creative Commons license attached to this work.


Teachers in Grade 5 are fully implementing all four domains of the Next Generation Science Standards (Physical Science, Life Science, Earth and Space Science, and Engineering Design) through these new units of study.  


In Grades 6-8, teachers currently employ a domain specific scope and sequence in their course of study.  Grade 6 students study Earth and Space Science for the full year, Grade 7 students study Life Science and Grade 8 students study Physical Science.  Engineering Design principles are embedded in each course. Teacher teams in grade 6-8 are currently undergoing a curriculum review to develop a spiral-based scope and sequence to be implemented in 2019-2021.


Science and Engineering Practices

The eight practices of science and engineering that the Framework identifies as essential for all students to learn, and describes in detail, are listed below:

  1. Asking questions (for science) and defining problems (for engineering)
  2. Developing and using models
  3. Planning and carrying out investigations
  4. Analyzing and interpreting data
  5. Using mathematics and computational thinking
  6. Constructing explanations (for science) and designing solutions (for engineering)
  7. Engaging in argument from evidence
  8. Obtaining, evaluating, and communicating information

Development of units and assessments is ongoing as teacher teams continue to refine the regional units to include local elements such as watersheds, tidepools, and solar energy.