The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 2 meet expectations that students understand how the materials connect the dimensions from chapter to chapter. The materials include three units comprising four chapters per unit. The Science Program Guide provides a recommended scope and sequence. The Unit Overview and Unit Map sections of the teacher materials provide information and support for teachers explaining how the chapters within a unit connect to each other. The Lesson Overview section of the teacher materials provides information and support for teachers that explains how the lessons within a chapter connect to each other. The first lesson of the unit (following the Pre-Unit Assessment) provides prompts that give context and goals for the entire unit. The first lesson of each subsequent chapter in the unit usually connects prior learning between the chapters in the unit. While there are connections among chapters within each unit, there are not connections among each unit and other units in the recommended sequence.

Examples of student learning experiences that demonstrate connections across chapters:

• In Grade 2, Unit 1: Plant and Animal Relationships, the chapters focus on understanding why chalta trees aren’t growing in a specific location. Across the unit, students have multiple opportunities to conduct investigations with peers (SEP-INV-P1) as they develop an understanding of plant needs (DCI-LS2.A-P1, DCI-LS2.A-P2). Chapters 1–3 focus on the role of water and sunlight on chalta trees growth. Chapters 3–4 focus on why the chalta tree seeds aren’t getting to places where they can grow. Chapter 1 introduces students to the problem that the chalta trees aren’t growing like they used to, and that the seeds may not be getting enough light and water to grow. In Chapter 2, students explore why the location of the chalta seeds may prevent them from getting enough sunlight and water to grow. In Chapter 3, students investigate why the chalta seeds aren’t getting to places where there is sufficient water and sunlight needed for their growth. Students learn how animals can move and disperse seeds. In Chapter 4, students explore how the structure of different seeds determines how they move and if they are dispersed by animals.

• In Grade 2, Unit 2: Properties of Materials, the chapters focus on designing a new glue. Students have multiple opportunities to engage with the engineering design process (DCI-ETS1.A-P2, DCI-ETS1.B-P1) and related to the engineering design process and support arguments with evidence (SEP-ARG-P6) as they understand properties of materials and develop and test a new sticky glue for their school. Chapter 1 introduces the design challenge of making a sticky and strong glue. Students investigate the properties of two different glues to determine if they are the same or different, then test each glue using a sticky test. Students develop a claim about the mystery glues based on the evidence they collect. Students observe different mixtures of dry ingredients and wet ingredients, then make their glue mixture. In Chapter 2, students test their glue using the sticky test on the heated mixture and compare the results with those of the non-heated mixture. Students write an argument that supports their claim of which ingredients will make the best glue. In Chapter 3, students consider how to make the glue stronger, and then conduct a strength test. Students reflect on the glue design process. In Chapter 4, students design a glue recipe based on their prior tests. Students reevaluate and redesign their glue recipe before using the glue in a craft project to ensure their recipe works.

• In Grade 2, Unit 3: Changing Landforms, the chapters focus on how water and wind shape the earth. Across the unit, students have multiple opportunities to engage with multiple elements of developing and using models and DCIs related to earth processes. Students take on the role of geologists to help the Oceanside Recreation Center Director understand what is happening to the recreation center’s cliff, and decide whether the center needs to be closed immediately. In Chapter 1, students learn about different types of landforms and investigate sand samples to learn that sand is composed of tiny pieces of rock. The class then uses a model where they shake pieces of hard candy to see how small pieces break off, and relate that to how the shape of the cliff can change. In Chapter 2, students investigate the process by which landforms change. They observe images of landforms before and after big changes and discuss ideas about what might have caused the change to each landform. They use models with chalk to investigate how water can change a landform by causing pieces of rock to break off. In Chapter 3, students learn that maps are a tool geologists use to study changes to landforms. Students use a digital modeling tool to create their own maps of landforms. Students make a model and then erode the model to show how many small changes can add up to a bigger change. Students use this information to explain how the recreation center’s cliff eroded without the director noticing. In Chapter 4, students learn that landforms with cracks and landforms made of loose materials can erode faster than landforms made of solid rock. They use multiple erosion models to provide evidence that supports the idea that wind and water can quickly erode landforms made of loose materials. After reflecting on the many models and information sources from the unit, students use the digital modeling tool to demonstrate their understanding of why landforms made of different materials erode at different rates and write a final explanation of why the nearby cliff eroded overnight.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 2 meet expectations that they have an intentional sequence where student tasks increase in sophistication. Materials are designed with an intentional or suggested sequence and student tasks related to explaining phenomena and/or solving problems increase in sophistication within each unit and across the grade band.

Within the grade, the recommended sequence of units is Plant and Animal Relationships, Properties of Materials, and Changing Landforms, in that order. Within each of these units, there is a single anchor phenomenon or topic that is presented to students, and student learning builds across the unit as students gather information to figure it out. Although the units are provided in a recommended order, there is no specific increase of rigor as these units are presented. Approaches to the assessment of the different dimensions are also consistent and similar throughout each unit. However, the learning tasks within the unit increase in sophistication as students work towards explaining phenomena or solving problems.

Example of student tasks with increasing in sophistication within a unit:

• In Grade 2, Unit 1: Plant and Animal Relationships, Students investigate why trees aren’t growing in a particular habitat by reviewing what plants need to grow and then expanding on that knowledge through models, simulations, and data collection to explain the problem. In Chapter 1, students investigate a sample site in the Bengal Tiger Reserve to see what is in the plants in that habitat. Students also investigate to determine what seeds need to grow (water and light). In Chapter 2, students investigate why plants can’t always get the sunlight and water they need to grow. Students play a game that models how there’s not always enough space for every seed to get what it needs to grow. Students look at data from the Bengal Tiger Reserve to see the amount of sunny days and rain now vs. where there were lots of trees to determine if that’s the issue of the trees not growing. In Chapter 3, students investigate how seed dispersal works to see how seeds can get to new places in their habitat. Students learn that some animals eat the plants and fruits that the seeds are in and the seeds are moved around that way. Students then do an investigation that models bird droppings so they can see how seeds move around and the impact on habitats.

• In Grade 2, Unit 2 Properties of Materials, students are introduced to the design problem of using the properties of materials to make a sticky glue. The students get more autonomy than in the earlier grades for their design based on their own investigations. Students are asked to learn, plan, make, and test their own designs with peer interactions. In Chapter 1, students are introduced to the principal who is asking for a glue that the school can use. Students learn about the properties of glue through an investigation of two mystery substances. After learning about the properties and ingredients of glue through investigations and reading, students are asked to plan, make, and test their initial glue design. In Chapter 2, students investigate what happens to a substance after it has been heated. They learn that some substances change while other substances go back to their original state. The students also conduct a sticky investigation on two substances after they have been heated. Students continue to learn about the properties of materials to proceed in their design during Chapter 3. In Chapter 3, the students add an additional design goal to their glue: the glue must now also be strong. Students conduct a strength test on potential glue ingredients and evaluate their evidence using a reference book. Using this data along with the data collected from their glue design in Chapter 1, students design their second glue. In Chapter 4, students evaluate the stickiness and strength of their glue. Working with a partner, they plan, make, and test another glue design using the information gathered from their individual glues.

• In Grade 2, Unit 3: Changing Landforms, through the exploration and investigation of functional and conceptual modeling, students generate and explore questions about wind and water changing landforms due to erosion. In Chapter 1, students work as a class to investigate how rocks can change shape using a hard candy model. At the end of the chapter, students are introduced to the features of a scientific explanation and, as a class, compose a scientific explanation that answers the Chapter 1 question, "How did the edge of the cliff get to be so close to the flagpole?" In Chapter 2, students use a chalk model with water as the force of erosion to investigate how water can change a landform. Finally, they apply their understanding that water hitting a landform causes changes to a landform by diagramming the process happening to the recreation center’s cliff. After considering an additional feature of a scientific explanation, students write their own explanations to answer the Chapter 2 question, “How did the recreation center’s cliff change?” In Chapter 3, students explore the concept of scale using a mountain model made of pom-poms. The class erodes the model to show how many small, hard-to-notice changes can add up to a bigger change that is easy to notice. At the end of the chapter, students write scientific explanations and complete diagrams to explain how the recreation center’s cliff eroded without the director noticing. In Chapter 4, students use models to gather evidence that supports the idea that wind and water can erode a landform quickly if the landform is made of loose materials. Students reflect on the role of models in science as they read a book about real scientists who use a model to investigate how streams erode streambeds. Students then use the unit’s modeling tool to show how a big storm could erode mountains made of rock and an island made of loose materials in different ways. At the end of the chapter, students diagram what happened to the nearby cliff and write final explanations to answer the Chapter 4 question, "Could the recreation center’s cliff erode quickly?"

In each K–5 grade level, there is one unit that emphasizes the practice of investigation, one that emphasizes the practice of modeling, and one that emphasizes the engineering practice of design. As students progress through the series, the materials connect learning of the three dimensions across the entire grade band. The way students engage with and use the three dimensions also increases in sophistication across the investigation, modeling, and engineering design units.

• Investigation Units: Each grade contains a unit focused on students developing the science practices related to investigations. The K–2 grade band shows increasing complexity as students begin with simple classroom investigations and add in technology, maps, and thinking about system interactions. In Kindergarten, the Needs of Plants and Animals unit has students investigate what plants and animals need to live as they figure out why monarch caterpillars no longer live in Mariposa Grove. They conduct a series of investigations to determine the effects of light and water on plant growth. In Grade 1, the Spinning Earth unit focuses on students investigating patterns in the sky and why the sky looks different at the same time in different places. Student investigations increase in sophistication as they collect observational data, and also make observations using live webcams to learn about what the sky looks like at different times and in different places across the globe. In Grade 2, the Plant and Animal Relationships unit focuses on understanding why chalta trees aren’t growing in a specific location. Student investigations increase in sophistication as they interpret visual data from the study site and connect information from multiple investigations to explain how different components in the ecosystem impact the growth of the trees.

• Engineering Design Units: Each grade contains a unit focused on students developing the science practices and DCIs related to engineering design. The K–2 grade band shows increasing complexity as students begin with simple guided designs and increase in sophistication with the type of design and level of testing required. In Kindergarten, the Pushes and Pulls unit focuses on understanding the forces needed to design a pinball machine. Students conduct guided investigations then apply their learning to a design of a pinball machine. Each investigation guides students to designing the next component (launcher, bumper, flipper) of their pinball machine. In Grade 1, the Light and Sound unit focuses on understanding aspects of light and sound to be able to design a puppet show scene. Student investigations guide students to designing the next component of their puppet show (lighting the stage, making shadow scenery, and adding sound) but students have more choice and flexibility in their designs than they did in the Kindergarten unit. Students also begin to understand the importance of testing and selecting different materials for their designs. In Grade 2, the Properties of Materials unit focuses on designing a new glue. Students understand properties of materials as they develop and test a new sticky glue for their school. As students work on their designs, they test properties of different materials and determine whether those materials combine to form a glue that meets criteria for stickiness and strength. Students have opportunities to make revisions to their recipe following testing.

• Modeling Units: Each grade contains a unit focused on students developing the SEPs related to developing and using models. The K–2 grade band shows increasing complexity as students begin with a simple model that they use to collect data, then develop their own physical models, and then use multiple models to explain a phenomenon. In Kindergarten, the Sunlight and Weather unit focuses on using a lamp model to simulate how sunlight can heat earth’s surfaces throughout the day. Students then use information from their models to figure out what causes the temperature differences between the two playgrounds throughout the day. In Grade 1, the Animal and Plant Defenses unit focuses on how animals defend themselves in their environment. Students learn about physical structures of sea turtles and other animals that are used as protection. Students then create a model of a specific animal defense mechanism to demonstrate understanding of how an animal protects itself. In Grade 2, the Changing Landforms unit focuses on how water and wind shape earth. Students use multiple models to explain various components of why a cliff near a recreation center eroded. Students use models to simulate how rocks hitting each other can break off small pieces and form sand. Students use models with chalk to investigate how water can change a landform by causing pieces of rock to break off. Students use a digital modeling tool to create their own maps of landforms. Students make a model and then erode the model to show how many small changes can add up to a bigger change. Students use this information to explain how the recreation center’s cliff eroded without the director noticing. Students use multiple erosion models to provide evidence that supports the idea that wind and water can quickly erode landforms made of loose materials.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 2 meet expectations that they present disciplinary core ideas, science and engineering practices, and crosscutting concepts in a way that is scientifically accurate. Across the grade, the teacher materials, student materials, and assessments accurately represent the three dimensions and are free from scientific inaccuracies in each of the three units.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 2 meet expectations that they do not inappropriately include scientific content and ideas outside of the grade-level disciplinary core ideas (DCIs). Across the grade, the materials consistently incorporate student learning opportunities to learn and use DCIs appropriate to the grade.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 2 meet expectations that they incorporate all grade-level disciplinary core ideas (DCIs) for physical sciences. Across the grade, the materials include all of the associated elements of the physical science DCIs. These are found in one of the three units for this grade: Properties of Materials.

Examples of grade-level physical science DCI elements present in the materials:

• PS1.A-P1: In Grade 2, Unit: Properties of Materials, Chapter 2, Lesson 2.1: Can You Change it Back?, students read a book to learn if you can change matter back after heating it. This is to help them understand how heating up one type of matter can sometimes change it to another type of matter.

• PS1.A-P2: In Grade 2, Unit: Properties of Materials, Chapter 4, Lesson 4.1: Evaluating Second Glues and Revising Recipes, students consider what properties glue should have to meet the desired purpose. Students test the strength and stickiness of their glue and evaluate their findings.

• PS1.A-P3: In Grade 2, Unit: Properties of Materials, Chapter 3, Lesson 3.5: Making Your Own Glue, students note properties of the three separate ingredients they use in their glue recipe. Students mix the ingredients to create their glue, a new substance with different properties. This helps students understand that new materials can be built from combinations of other materials and that glue is made of a mixture of other substances.

• PS1.B-P1: In Grade 2, Unit: Properties of Materials, Chapter 2, Lesson 2.2: Exploring Heating and Cooling, students construct an argument about whether heating a cornstarch mixture produces the same substance or a different substance. Students list the properties of the substance before and after it was heated; then, they make a claim about whether or not the substance turns into something new and provide evidence to support their claim.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 2 meet expectations that they incorporate all grade-level disciplinary core ideas (DCIs) for life sciences. Across the grade, the materials include all of the components and associated elements of the life science DCIs. These are found in one of the three units for this grade: Plant and Animal Relationships.

Examples of the grade-level life science DCI element present in the materials:

• LS2.A-P1: In Grade 2, Unit: Plant and Animal Relationships, Chapter 1, Lesson 1.5: What are Seeds?, students read information in Handbook of Habitats to learn that seeds (plants) need water and sunlight to be able to grow.

• LS2.A-P2: In Grade 2: Unit: Plant and Animal Relationships, Chapter 3, Lesson 3.2: Investigating How Seeds Move, students use a role-play game to model how two birds are involved with dispersing fruits from two different plants. In this model, students roll a number cube to determine which bush the bird visits and whether it eats the fruits. This helps students understand how plants use animals to help move their seeds.

• LS4.D-P1: In Grade 2, Unit 1, Chapter 1, Lesson 1.3: Investigating Habitats, students learn that different types of plants and animals live in an area called a habitat by observing and recording information of a sample habitat. They then learn how scientists study habitats and changes in habitats.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 2 meet expectations that they incorporate all grade-level disciplinary core ideas (DCIs) for earth and space sciences. Across the grade, the materials include all of the associated elements of the earth and space science DCIs. These are found in one of the three units for this grade: Changing Landforms

Examples of the grade-level earth and space science DCI elements present in the materials:

• ESS1.C-P1: In Grade 2, Unit: Changing Landforms, Chapter 4, Lesson 4.2: Modeling How Landforms Erode Quickly, students learn how erosion can happen quickly or over longer periods of time. They spray water on chalk and sand then discuss their observations to determine that different materials erode at different rates.

• ESS2.A-P1: In Grade 2, Unit: Changing Landforms, Chapter 4, Lesson 4.1: Exploring How Landforms Erode Quickly, students read the Handbook of Land and Water to learn how landforms can erode quickly. They learn that water can slowly erode rock, weakening the surrounding land and causing slow changes to caves. Other times, once the surrounding rock is unstable, fast changes can cause cave-ins.

• ESS2.A-P1: In Grade 2, Unit: Changing Landforms, Chapter 4, Lesson 4.2: Modeling How Landforms Erode Quickly, students observe a sand dune and discuss how wind could erode this landform. Students use a mound of sand and blow on it with a straw, to model how the wind can quickly change the shape of the land. This helps them understand that wind can erode landforms and like water, can move materials to quickly change the shape of the land.

• ESS2.B-P1: In Grade 2, Unit: Changing Landforms, Chapter 3, Lesson 3.1: Introduction to Maps, the class reads the introduction to the reference book, Handbook of Land and Water, to understand how to read a map using a map key and different perspectives. Students then work with the Changing Landforms Modeling Tool to create simple maps to represent landforms they have been shown from side-view photos.

• ESS2.C-P1: In Grade 2, Unit: Changing Landforms, Chapter 2, Lesson 2.3: What’s Stronger?, students read What’s Stronger? How Water Causes Erosion to gather evidence about how water changes a landform, even though landforms are made of hard rock. Students use information from the book to consider the ways in which liquid and solid water can erode landforms and then participate in a class discussion about the different examples of landforms and how water can change them.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grades K–2 meet expectations that they incorporate all grade-band and grade-level disciplinary core ideas (DCIs) for engineering, technology and applications of science (ETS) and all associated elements. In Kindergarten, three performance expectations (PEs) are associated with a physical, life, or earth and space science DCI that also connect to an ETS DCI. The ETS elements within these kindergarten PEs are present in the materials.

Examples of the Kindergarten grade-level ETS DCI elements present in the materials:

• ETS1.A-P1: In Kindergarten, Unit: Pushes and Pulls, Chapter 1, Lesson 1.1: Pre-Unit Assessment, students are introduced to their role as engineers. During a teacher-led discussion, students are shown the What Engineers Do chart to learn that engineers find out about problems and then go through a series of processes to design a solution. Throughout this unit, students then work to solve the problem of designing a pinball machine.

• ETS1.A-P2: In Kindergarten, Unit: Needs of Plants and Animals, Chapter 2, Lesson 2.7: Water for Milkweed, students learn that asking questions and gathering information are important parts of solving problems. Students determine that the milkweed plants don’t grow in the black pot because they don’t get enough water, but they do grow in the white pot because they have water. Students use this to understand that water for the milkweed plants will be important in their garden design.

• ETS1.B-P1: In Kindergarten, Unit: Needs of Plants and Animals, Chapter 4, Lesson 4.3: Reflecting on Needs of Living Things, students make their garden plan by gluing images of the plants to the location of their garden. This helps students communicate their design solutions to other people without needing to actually construct the garden.

In Grade 1, no PEs associated with a physical, life, or earth and space science DCI connect to an ETS DCI. However, the materials do include opportunities for students to engage with ETS elements in this grade.

Examples of ETS DCI elements present in the Grade 1 materials:

• ETS1.A-P1: In Grade 1, Unit: Light and Sound, Chapter 3, Lesson 3.6: Explaining the Puppet-Show Scene, students learn that people can create new approaches or solve problems through engineering. Students are asked to solve a problem from a fictitious play company that would allow them to carry fewer materials when putting on a puppet show.

• ETS1.C-P1: In Grade 1, Unit: Light and Sound, Chapter 3, Lesson 3.5: Testing and Revising our Solutions, students learn that it is useful to compare and test designs to find the best solution to their problem. They work with partners to test their design solutions that show a bright, medium-bright, and dark area for the designed scene of the puppet show. They test to see if their stencils make the appropriate “brightness” in the scene and revise as needed.

In Grade 2, there are two PEs associated with a physical, life, or earth and space science DCI that also connect to an ETS DCI. The ETS elements within these Grade 2 PEs are present in the materials.

Examples of the Grade 2 grade-level ETS DCI elements present in the materials:

• ETS1.B-P1: In Grade 2, Unit: Animal and Plant Defenses, Chapter 2, Lesson 2.8: Defending the Food Supply, students learn that models can be an effective way to communicate design solutions to other people. Students then make a physical model of their design to defend a food bag in an aquarium.

• ETS1.C-P1: In Grade 2, Unit: Properties of Materials, Chapter 1, Lesson 1.9: Making Our First Glue, students learn that it is useful to compare and test designs to find the best solution to their problem. Students test whether their glue can pass the sticky-glue test to determine whether they need to revise their glue recipe.

The K–2 grade band includes three ETS PEs that are designed to be taught at any point across the grade band. These PEs include five elements. The materials provide opportunities to engage with ETS DCIs and their elements in all three grades within this band.

Examples of the K–2 grade-band ETS DCI elements present in the materials:

• ETS1.A-P1: In Kindergarten, Unit: Pushes and Pulls, Chapter 1, Lesson 1.1: Pre-Unit Assessment, students are introduced to their role as engineers. During a teacher-led discussion, students are shown the What Engineers Do chart to learn that engineers find out about problems and then go through a series of processes to design a solution. Throughout this unit, students then work to solve the problem of designing a pinball machine.

• ETS1.A-P2: In Kindergarten, Unit: Needs of Plants and Animals, Chapter 2, Lesson 2.7: Water for Milkweed, students learn that asking questions and gathering information are important parts of solving problems. Students determine that the milkweed plants don’t grow in the black pot because they don’t get enough water, but they do grow in the white pot because they have water. Students use this to understand that water for the milkweed plants will be important in their garden design.

• ETS1.A-P3: In Grade 2, Unit: Properties of Materials, Chapter 3: What ingredients can be used to make a glue that is sticky and strong?, students gain a better understanding of the problem to inform their glue designs. Throughout the chapter, students gather information about properties of glue to help inform their design process.

• ETS1.B-P1: In Grade 2, Unit: Animal and Plant Defenses, Chapter 2, Lesson 2.8: Defending the Food Supply, students learn that models can be an effective way to communicate design solutions to other people. Students then make a physical model of their design to defend a food bag in an aquarium.

• ETS1.C-P1: In Grade 1, Unit: Light and Sound, Chapter 3, Lesson 3.5: Testing and Revising our Solutions, students learn that it is useful to compare and test designs to find the best solution to their problem. They work with partners to test their design solutions that show a bright, medium-bright, and dark area for the designed scene of the puppet show. They test to see if their stencils result in the appropriate “brightness” in the scene and revise as needed.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 2 meets expectations that they incorporate all grade-level science and engineering practices (SEPs) and associated elements. The materials include all of the SEP elements associated with the performance expectations (PEs) for the grade level. These are found across all three units for this grade.

Examples of SEP elements associated with the grade-level performance expectations that are present in the materials:

• MOD-P3: In Grade 2, Unit: Changing Landforms, Chapter 3, Lesson 3.4: Landform Change Over Time, students develop models of the erosion on a mountain happening very slowly by water.

• MOD-P4: In Grade 2, Unit: Changing Landforms Activity 4, Lesson 4.5, Activity 4: Preventing Erosion, students discuss the benefits and drawbacks of different solutions for preventing erosion. Students then brainstorm other possible solutions. Students select a solution, then draw a model of the chosen solution, using evidence from prior learning to describe how the solution would slow or stop erosion.

• INV-P2: In Grade 2, Unit: Properties of Materials, Chapter 1, Lesson 1.9: Making Our First Glue, students plan and conduct an investigation collaboratively to determine if their recipe for their glue will pass the sticky-glue test.

• INV-P4: In Grade 2, Unit: Plant and Animal Relationships, Chapter 3: Why aren’t Chalta seeds getting to places where they need to grow?, students use a model that demonstrates hiding seeds and another model that demonstrates seed dispersal. They use data collected from the models to compare how seeds are dispersed in their habitat and how plants and animals depend on one another.

• DATA-P5: In Grade 2, Unit: Properties of Materials, Chapter 4, Lesson 4.1: Evaluating Second Glues and Revising Recipes, students test the strength and stickiness of their glue and analyze their findings to determine if their glue meets the design-goal properties.

• ARG-P6: In Grade 2, Unit: Properties of Materials, Lesson 2.2: Exploring Heating and Cooling, students construct an argument about whether heating a cornstarch mixture produces the same substance or a different substance. Students list the properties of the substance before and after it is heated; then, they make a claim about whether or not the substance turns into something new and provide evidence to support their claim.

• CEDS-P1: In Grade 2, Unit: Plant and Animal Relationships, Chapter 3, Lesson 3.6: Explaining the Problem in the Reserve, students apply their understanding of seed dispersal as they craft a scientific explanation to the lead scientist of the reserve. Students construct their explanations using information they observe during their investigations and by reading reference books on habitats and types of seeds

• CEDS-P3: In Grade 2, Unit: Properties of Materials, Chapter 4, Lesson 4.2: Making Final Glues, students share successful design ideas with their classmates and compare and evaluate each-other's glue designs based on the evidence of data collected. Students use that information to revise and create their final glue designs.

• INFO-P3: In Grade 2, Unit: Plant and Animal Relationships, Chapter 1, Why aren’t new chalta trees growing in the Bengal Tiger Reserve?, students read and learn about habitats and types of seeds from different plants to determine that the trees need adequate sunlight, water, and depend on animals for pollination.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grade 2 meets expectations that they incorporate all grade-level science and engineering practices (SEPs) and associated elements. The materials include all of the SEP elements associated with the performance expectations (PEs) for the grade level. These are found across all three units for this grade.

Examples of SEP elements associated with the grade-level performance expectations that are present in the materials:

• MOD-P3: In Grade 2, Unit: Changing Landforms, Chapter 3, Lesson 3.4: Landform Change Over Time, students develop models of the erosion on a mountain happening very slowly by water.

• MOD-P4: In Grade 2, Unit: Changing Landforms Activity 4, Lesson 4.5, Activity 4: Preventing Erosion, students discuss the benefits and drawbacks of different solutions for preventing erosion. Students then brainstorm other possible solutions. Students select a solution, then draw a model of the chosen solution, using evidence from prior learning to describe how the solution would slow or stop erosion.

• INV-P2: In Grade 2, Unit: Properties of Materials, Chapter 1, Lesson 1.9: Making Our First Glue, students plan and conduct an investigation collaboratively to determine if their recipe for their glue will pass the sticky-glue test.

• INV-P4: In Grade 2, Unit: Plant and Animal Relationships, Chapter 3: Why aren’t Chalta seeds getting to places where they need to grow?, students use a model that demonstrates hiding seeds and another model that demonstrates seed dispersal. They use data collected from the models to compare how seeds are dispersed in their habitat and how plants and animals depend on one another.

• DATA-P5: In Grade 2, Unit: Properties of Materials, Chapter 4, Lesson 4.1: Evaluating Second Glues and Revising Recipes, students test the strength and stickiness of their glue and analyze their findings to determine if their glue meets the design-goal properties.

• ARG-P6: In Grade 2, Unit: Properties of Materials, Lesson 2.2: Exploring Heating and Cooling, students construct an argument about whether heating a cornstarch mixture produces the same substance or a different substance. Students list the properties of the substance before and after it is heated; then, they make a claim about whether or not the substance turns into something new and provide evidence to support their claim.

• CEDS-P1: In Grade 2, Unit: Plant and Animal Relationships, Chapter 3, Lesson 3.6: Explaining the Problem in the Reserve, students apply their understanding of seed dispersal as they craft a scientific explanation to the lead scientist of the reserve. Students construct their explanations using information they observe during their investigations and by reading reference books on habitats and types of seeds

• CEDS-P3: In Grade 2, Unit: Properties of Materials, Chapter 4, Lesson 4.2: Making Final Glues, students share successful design ideas with their classmates and compare and evaluate each-other's glue designs based on the evidence of data collected. Students use that information to revise and create their final glue designs.

• INFO-P3: In Grade 2, Unit: Plant and Animal Relationships, Chapter 1, Why aren’t new chalta trees growing in the Bengal Tiger Reserve?, students read and learn about habitats and types of seeds from different plants to determine that the trees need adequate sunlight, water, and depend on animals for pollination.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grades K-2 meet expectations that they incorporate all grade-level crosscutting concepts (CCCs) and associated elements across the grade band. The materials include all of the CCC elements associated with the performance expectations for the grade band. Elements of the CCCs are found across all three grades within this grade band. Materials include few elements of the CCCs from above the grade band without connecting to the grade-band appropriate CCC.

Across the grade band, students have multiple opportunities to engage with the grade-level CCCs that are implicitly connected to SEPs or DCIs as they build toward grade-level performance expectations. For example, students have frequent opportunities to use observations to describe patterns in the natural world to answer scientific questions (SEP-DATA-P3) but have limited opportunities to explicitly discuss the importance of using patterns as evidence to describe phenomena (CCC-PAT-P1). When the materials provide opportunities to make the crosscutting concepts explicit for students, this is generally through sentence frames to help students use targeted CCCs, or through teacher prompts that provide explicit connections and guide student discussions about how scientists and engineers use different CCCs to answer scientific questions or solve engineering problems.

Examples of CCC elements associated with the grade-band performance expectations that are present in the materials:

• PAT-P1: In Grade 1, Unit: Spinning Earth, Chapter 1: Why did the sky look different to Sai than to his grandma?, students learn that, “A pattern is something we observe to be similar over and over again. Scientists look for patterns to help them understand and explain what they observe.” Students then read the Patterns of Earth and Space big book. Patterns in the natural and human-designed world can be observed, used to describe phenomena, and used as evidence. Students make observations of the daytime sky and begin to identify patterns from their observations.

• PAT-P1: In Grade 2, Unit: Changing Landforms, Chapter 1, Lesson 1.4: Gary’s Sand Journal, students discuss the pattern that Gary recorded by making observations of sand. Students learn that patterns in sand grains (size, color, and shape) can be used as evidence of the types of materials it is made of, the size waves that moved it, and the age of the sand.

• CE-P1: In Kindergarten, Unit: Sunlight and Weather, Chapter 3, Lesson 3.2: Discussing Warming Over Time, students use data from their Warming Model to support or refute ideas about why one playground was warmer than the other. Students use their data showing about the time of day, the amount of sunlight, and the temperature to conclude that the difference in the amount of sunlight caused one playground to be warmer than the others.

• CE-P1: In Grade 1, Unit: Light and Sound, Chapter 3, Lesson 3.4: Planning and Making Our Stencils, students learn that tests can be designed to gather evidence about causes. Students make diagrams of their proposed solutions for stencils that will project a puppet-show scene that enables all, some, or no light to pass through. Students explain why the difference in material causes some stencils to make the area darker than others.

• CE-P1: In Grade 2, Unit: Plant and Animal Relationships, Chapter 1, Lesson 1.6: Investigating Seed Needs, students learn that tests can be used to gather evidence to support a claim about what causes something to happen. Students use a test to determine that limited plant growth is caused by not giving the seeds enough water or by not giving the plants enough sunlight. Simple tests can be designed to gather evidence to support or refute student ideas about causes.

• CE-P2: In Kindergarten, Unit: Pushes and Pulls, Chapter 2, Lesson 2.2: Strong and Gentle Forces, students move a ball on the floor, using both strong and gentle forces and observing the distances that the ball moved relative to the amount of force applied. Students discuss how the amount of force used to push the ball results in the observable patterns that stronger pushes cause the ball to move a longer distance and gentle pushes cause the ball to move a shorter distance.

• CE-P2: In Grade 2, Unit: Changing Landforms, Chapter 3, Lesson 3.2: Investigating Differences in Scale, students use a physical model of a mountain and create maps before and after the mountain erodes. Students use their model to help them understand that certain events create repeatable patterns, such as water causing erosion.

• SYS-P2: In Kindergarten, Unit: Needs of Plants and Animals, Chapter 3, Lesson 3.3: Growing Toward the Light, students learn that systems have parts that work together and a plant is a system because it has different parts (roots, stems, leaves) that help it live and grow.

• EM-P1: In Grade 2, Unit: Properties of Materials, Chapter 2, Lesson 2.1: Can You Change It Back?, students review text and images in the book Can You Change it Back? showing popsicle sticks arranged in different configurations. The teacher leads a class discussion to elicit the idea that small objects can be combined into larger objects and rearranged to create different objects. This idea is revisited in Chapter 4, Lesson 4.2 when students take apart four popsicle sticks they glued together to rearrange them into a picture frame.

• SF-P1: In Grade 1, Unit: Animal and Plant Defenses, Chapter 2, Lesson 2.3: Introducing Modeling, students read Spikes, Spines, and Shells: A Handbook of Defenses, then create physical models of structures that animals and plants use to defend themselves from being eaten. Students explain how the shape of the structures are related to their function of protecting the organism.

• SF-P1: In Grade 2, Unit: Plant and Animal Relationships, Chapter 4, Lesson 4.3: Conducting the Seed Investigations, students model different ways that seeds move with and without propellers to determine which type of seed moves with the wind. They use this test to identify how the shape of seed structures are related to their function.

• SC-P2: In Grade 2, Unit: Changing Landforms, Chapter 3, Lesson 3.2: Investigating Differences in Scale, students use a physical model of a mountain and create maps before and after the mountain erodes. Students use their model to show how a lot of very small changes can result in a big change or may change slowly or rapidly.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grades K–2 meet expectations that they incorporate NGSS connections to the nature of science (NOS) and engineering. The NOS and engineering elements are represented and attended multiple times throughout the grade-band units. They are used in correlation with the content and not used as isolated lessons. The NOS and Engineering elements are used in a variety of fashions throughout the units including videos, readings, and class discussions. Although most of the elements are present in the lessons, they are not explicitly called out in the instructional material.

Examples of grade-band connections to NOS elements associated with SEPs present in the materials:

• VOM-P2: In Kindergarten, Unit: Sunlight and Weather, Chapter 2, Lesson 2.2: Learning More About Models, students read about how scientists use different models as ways to study the world in the Handbook of Models big book. Students discuss how scientists use models before starting an investigation of their own that uses a model.

• BEE-P1: In Kindergarten, Unit: Needs of Plants and Animals, Chapter 1, Lesson 1.2: Comparing Living and Nonliving Things, students determine whether the object shown on a card is living or nonliving and sort into categories. As they do so, a teacher prompt informs students that scientists look for patterns and look for how things are the same and different too, and this is one way that scientists figure things out about the world.

• ENP-P1: In Grade 2, Unit: Changing Landforms, Chapter 2, Lesson 2.1: Diagramming Landform Changes, students learn how scientists communicate ideas by using diagrams and models as a way to communicate ideas and information. Students learn what makes a diagram different from regular pictures. Students then create a diagram to show what they think happened to the cliff below the recreation center.

Examples of grade-band connections to NOS elements associated with CCCs present in the materials:

• AOC-P1: In Grade 1, Unit: Spinning Earth, Chapter 4, Lesson 4.2: Adding Sunset Data to the Sky Mural, students make a Sky Mural to document their observations of the sun’s position in the sky. A class discussion focuses on understanding that the patterns are observations that can be made over and over again, and that the Sky Mural helps students see the pattern that the sun repeats because the sun is in about the same position at the same time of each day.

• AQAW-P1: In Grade 1, Unit: Properties of Materials, Chapter 1, Lesson 1.7, Activity 3: Reading: Jelly Bean Engineer, students read about jelly-bean engineers who make different recipes for jelly beans and then test the jelly beans for texture and flavor. During a class discussion, the teacher is prompted to point out that scientists study the natural world, including plants and animals, and that engineers study the material world, including solving problems that involve substances like jelly beans.

Examples of grade-band connections to ENG elements associated with CCCs present in the materials:

• INFLU-P1: In Grade 2, Unit: Properties of Materials, Chapter 1, Lesson 1.2: What If Rain Boots Were Made of Paper?, students read the book, What If Rain Boots Were Made of Paper? to introduce the idea that different materials have different properties and it is important for engineers to use their knowledge of the properties of the materials (natural or engineered) they choose when they design things.

The materials reviewed for Amplify Science Grade 2 meet expectations for providing teacher guidance with useful annotations and suggestions for how to enact the student materials and ancillary materials, with specific attention to engaging students in figuring out phenomena and solving problems. Materials provide comprehensive guidance that will assist the teachers in presenting the student and ancillary materials. Examples from all units include:

• The Teacher Guide, Unit Overview introduces a real-world problem, which serves as the anchor phenomenon, and its relevance to our lives. It also gives an overview of how students will build knowledge in order to solve a new problem.

• The Teacher Guide, The Progress Build explains how knowledge about the phenomenon deepens as the students progress through the unit, specifically noting bolded statements.

• The Teacher Guide, Getting Ready to Teach specifically details what the teacher needs to do to prepare Before You Present the Lesson, While You Present the Lesson, and After You Present the Lessons.

• All Chapters, Lessons, Digital Resources, Classroom Slide|Powerpoint and the Google Slides suggest teacher talk and teacher actions.

• All Chapters, Lessons, Lesson Brief, Activity, Instructional Guide, Step-by-Step provides the instructional strategy and precise teacher talk and teacher action. 

• All Chapters, Lessons, Lesson Brief, Activity, Instructional Guide, Teacher Support provides background information about the three dimensions of the Next Generation Science Standards featured in the activity as well as the Rationale behind the teacher action and instructional suggestions. 

• The Teacher Guide, Unit Overview, Printable Resources, Coherence Flowcharts provide teachers with a graphic organizer for each chapter in the unit “that helps students see the connections between the phenomena and questions that drive students’ experiences, the evidence they gather, the ideas they figure out, and the new questions that those ideas generate.”

• All lessons, Overview, Lesson at a Glance briefly describe student activities and suggested time allocation for each activity. 

The instructional guides for each lesson from Grade 2 include suggestions about instructional strategies and guidance for presenting the content, which often includes identifying, with limited room for more targeted approaches to addressing student naive conceptions. Examples from all units include:

• The Teacher Guide, Progress Build Section(s) provide prior knowledge (preconceptions) that students may bring to the lesson, foundational knowledge needed for student understanding and growth throughout the lesson, and progress build levels describing conceptual growth that students are expected to experience throughout the unit.

• The Teacher Guide, Eliciting and Leveraging Student’s Prior Knowledge, Personal Experiences, and Cultural Backgrounds, supports teachers by introducing the phenomenon and consistently eliciting students' initial ideas related to the phenomenon. Also, this resource provides support for teachers to document ideas throughout the units on a class chart for ongoing reference and to help students add, revise, and reflect on their ideas. 

With regard to addressing how to support students in figuring out phenomena and/or solving problems, the materials support the teacher in seeing connections between the phenomena and questioning, but miss the opportunity to clearly articulate/illustrate how the students’ understanding of the phenomenon deepens throughout. Evidence of connections between phenomena and questioning includes:

• The Teacher Guide, Unit Overview, Printable Resources, Coherence Flowcharts provide teachers with a graphic organizer for each chapter in the unit “that helps students see the connections between the phenomena and questions that drive students’ experiences, the evidence they gather, the ideas they figure out, and the new questions that those ideas generate.” 

• Within each Activity, there is also an Instructional Guide with step-by-step guidance that is present for teachers to support their understanding of which Science and Engineering Practices (SEPs) are the focus and how to support students in using them as students figure out the phenomena or solve the problems. 

All units conclude by asking students to apply the knowledge acquired throughout the unit to a new problem. Teachers are provided support via the PowerPoint slides and include suggested teacher talk to frame how engineers solve problems, in context with the ideas students learned and also teacher action to help students consider and discuss solutions.

The materials reviewed for Amplify Science Grades 2 meet expectations for containing adult-level explanations and examples of the more complex grade-level concepts and concepts beyond the current course so that teachers can improve their own knowledge of the subject. The materials include support for teachers to develop their own understanding of grade-level concepts and content knowledge beyond the scope of the current course.

Support for teacher understanding is present across all units. The Teacher Guide section, Science Background provides adult-level science background related to the unit. This section contains expository explanations of scientific background for the three dimensions of NGSS pertaining to the unit, with grade-level appropriate student background as well as common preconceptions by both students and adults. The Teacher Guide explicitly states that the information is meant to guide the teacher in teaching the correct content, but is not meant as student-facing material.

Also in the Teacher Guide, Planning For the Unit, Digital Resource Tab, Unit Map, there is an outline of the expected student practices for each Chapter. It presents a Chapter guiding question with an explanation for the teacher regarding how the students will develop understanding through lesson activities. 

The Teacher Guide, Science Background provides detailed adult-level science background regarding each unit’s science content along with a description of the extent to which this content is to be shared with students. The Science Background section includes cited references to inform teachers of the pedagogical research-based approaches to support grade-level content delivery as it is presented in the materials. In the Connections to Future Learning section of the Science Background, there is support for teacher content knowledge beyond scope of the current course. For example, in Grade 2, Unit: Plant and Animal Relationships, Science Background, the Connections to Future Learning section states, "students learn that plants use their leaves and roots to get the light and water they need to grow. In grade 5, students learn that plants take in air and water, and that animals eat food to obtain the molecules they need to grow and acquire energy. These ideas lay the foundation for an understanding of the processes of photosynthesis and cellular respiration, which are introduced in middle school. Photosynthesis and cellular respiration are key in ecosystems because they provide most of the energy for organisms’ life processes. During photosynthesis, plants convert light energy to produce their own glucose (C6H12O6) and oxygen (O2) from carbon dioxide (CO2) and water (H2O). All plants and animals use cellular respiration to break down glucose and release energy into a form that organisms can use for life functions. In grade 2, students also learn that plants depend on animals for pollination and/or to move their seeds around. In grade 5, students gain a deeper understanding of relationships among three different kinds of organisms in an ecosystem: producers, consumers, and decomposers. Because plants make their own food through the process of photosynthesis, they are called producers. Consumers are organisms that gain their matter and energy from eating food, and decomposers meet their needs by breaking down dead organisms. Food consumed by almost any kind of animal can be traced back to producers, which play a vital role in an ecosystem by providing the energy all other organisms need to survive. In grade 5, students are introduced to the concept of a food web, and in middle school, students use food webs as models to demonstrate how matter and energy are transferred between producers, consumers, and decomposers as the three groups interact within an ecosystem. In understanding the interdependent relationships among all organisms in an ecosystem, students can predict how a change in one population of an organism might affect other populations of organisms."

The materials reviewed for Amplify Grade 2 meet expectations for including standards correlation information, including connections to college- and career-ready ELA and mathematics standards and that explain the role of the standards in the context of the overall series. The materials contain NGSS correlation information in multiple locations. All grades contain examples in the Teacher Guide:

• Planning for the Unit and Standards at a Glance include a listing of the NGSS Performance Expectations (PEs), Science and Engineering Practices (SEPs), DIsciplinary Core Ideas (DCIs), and Crosscutting Concepts (CCCs) addressed in the Unit. 

• Teacher References, 3-D Statements outline three-dimensional statements for the unit level, the chapter level, and the lesson level of each unit for all grades.  

• Lesson Guide, Overview, and Standards sections provide a listing of the NGSS PEs, SEPs, and CCCs that are addressed in the lesson. The Lesson Progression at the beginning of each unit shows how each NGSS standard connects to and builds upon the previous grade level.  

The materials also include an explanation for the role of the NGSS standards in the context of the overall series. The Teacher Guide, Teacher Reference, Standards and Goals lists the PEs, SEPs, DCIs and CCCs that are covered in the unit. This section also provides an explanation of the core ideas across the K-8 grade span of the materials in a subsection titled “Trajectory of Core Ideas.”

The materials also provide lists of corollary Common Core ELA and mathematics standards. The Teacher’s Guide, Planning for the Unit, Standards at a Glance  and Standards and Goals (under Teacher References) all list the corollary Common Core ELA (CCSS-ELA) and Common Core Math (CCSS-Math) standards addressed in each unit. Lesson Guide, Lesson Brief, and Standards include a list of the CCSS-ELA and CCSS-Math addressed in each lesson. The materials offer suggested connections with ELA and/or Math and consistently provide specific explanations regarding how the standards are aligned with the context of the lesson and/or series. For example, in Grade 2, Properties of Materials  in Standards and Goals section of the teacher's guide the publisher has added  information explaining how students will engage in the ELA  standards. The Reading: Informational Text section states for ELA, “CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.2.1: Ask and answer such questions as who, what, where, when, why, and how to demonstrate understanding of key details in a text, is listed. Students have the opportunity to ask and answer questions to demonstrate their understanding of key details in a text after reading books in this unit. For example, in Lesson 1.2, students read the book, What If Rain Boots Were Made of Paper?, and then discuss questions as a class to demonstrate their understanding of what properties are. In Lesson 1.7, students read the book, Jelly Bean Engineer, and then discuss questions as a class to demonstrate their understanding of the design cycle described in the book. “ Also, it states the following for Math, “CCSS.MATH.PRACTICE.MP2: Reason abstractly and quantitatively. Students have the opportunity to reason quantitatively as they plan, create, and test glue recipes with different amounts of ingredients. For example, in Lessons 1.9, 3.5, and 4.2, students use the properties of various ingredients to determine the quantities of each ingredient they will use to make the stickiest glue. Students use fair testing to quantitatively measure how sticky each glue was by recording and comparing the number of beans or washers a card containing each type of glue held, and then analyze how the amounts of different ingredients affect the stickiness of the glue.”

The materials for Grade 2 meet expectations for providing explanations of the instructional approaches of the program and identification of the research-based strategies. The materials explain the instructional approaches of the program. Evidence of this can be found throughout the K-2 grades, units and lessons. In each Unit Overview, Teacher References, and Standards and Goals section the materials explain an instructional approach that incorporates the strategies of Do, Talk, Read, Write, and Visualize in coordination with the NGSS CCCs and the DCIs associated with the specific unit of instruction. These strategies are further explained in each Lesson with more explicit detail.

Examples at the Grade 2 level include:

• In Grade 2, Unit: Changing Landforms, Teacher Guide, Lesson Guides, Lesson 1.4, Activity 1, Teacher Support, Literacy Note: Visualizing, it states, “Visualizing is a sense-making strategy that is useful in both science and reading. Readers of science text often create pictures in their minds to assist their comprehension. Being able to think visually is a critical strategy in science and is particularly useful in this unit, as students learn to generate mental images to make meaning from science text. Visual representations and models of erosion are prevalent throughout this unit, and visualizing gives students a way to access these representations. Students will have many opportunities to learn about and practice visualizing throughout the unit.”

• In Grade 2, Unit: Plant and Animal Relationships, Lesson 1.2, Activity 1, Teacher Support, Literacy Note: Approach to Reading, it states, “Skillful readers use a variety of strategies to actively engage with informational text…In this unit, the sensemaking strategy of setting a purpose [in reading] helps students focus as they read and make sense of what they are reading.”

The materials provide some explanation for the research-based strategies that are used in the design of the program. While the Program Guide, Science Program Guide, Designed for the NGSS, and Program Development sections explain the Do, Talk, Read, Write, Visualize pedagogical approach that drives Amplify Science, there is a missed opportunity to incorporate explicit citations or references to the research base in the teacher materials. Instead, the references for “Research Behind the Program'' exist on a website outside of the teacher materials.

The materials for Grade 2 meet expectations for providing a comprehensive list of supplies needed to support instructional activities.  In the Teacher’s Guide, Unit Overview, Planning for the Unit, Materials and Preparation section for each unit, a thorough list of the materials needed over the course of each chapter and lesson is present. Every list includes the quantity needed to support a class of 36 students, a description of each item, and which lessons the item(s) will be used for. It also contains a comprehensive list of materials that need to be provided by the teacher or school, the quantity needed, item description and the lessons requiring these materials.

In addition to the unit overview, each Lesson Brief contains a lesson-level Materials and Preparation section outlining the materials needed for the class, groups of students and/or individual students and preparations needed before the start of each lesson. 

The materials for Grade 2 meet expectations for embedding clear science safety guidelines for teachers and students across the instructional materials. In the Unit Overview, Printable Resources section, an Investigation Notebook is provided for student use. Each Investigation Notebook contains a section titled, “Safety Guidelines for Science Investigations.” It is important to note that teachers should always locate and adhere to local policies and regulations related to science safety in the classroom. In each Unit Overview, Materials and Preparation, Materials at a Glance section, there is a reminder: “Note: Check and follow your district’s safety regulations pertaining to the use of proper equipment and procedures for students participating in hands-on science activities.”  

Additional safety notes are located in the teacher print or digital materials within lessons which have specific safety notes for the teacher to communicate to students. 

One example of an additional safety note at the Grade 2 level includes:

• In Grade 2, Unit: Plant and Animal Relationships, Lesson Brief 4.2, the safety note states, “Caution students not to place their hands near the blades of the fan. Let students know that the fan may harm them if their fingers are too close.”

The assessment materials for Grade 2 are comprehensively designed and aligned within the Units. It is clear for teachers where the assessments are, the type of assessments that are provided, and to what standard(s) each assessment opportunity is intended to be aligned. For instance, in the Grade 2 Teacher’s Guides, any Unit, Teacher References, Assessment System, each assessment opportunity throughout the Unit is listed in a chart in relation to the Lesson, type of assessment, and NGSS standard intended to be assessed. In addition, in the Teacher Guide for every Grade 2 Unit, under Printable Resources, there is a document titled 3-D Assessment Objectives  This document contains the 3-D Statement and accompanying objectives, their pertinence with the unit, and the type of assessment aligned to that objective. “Each table includes the Disciplinary Core Ideas (DCIs), Science and Engineering Practices (SEPs), and Crosscutting Concepts (CCCs) included in that Performance Expectation and specifies the location of assessments associated with these three dimensions.”

The materials provide information detailing how assessments build toward the standards for the grade level or band.  In the Teacher Guide of each Unit, Teacher Reference, Assessment System, Monitoring Progress section, there is a discussion of Critical Juncture Assessments with an outline of each Critical Juncture concept and assessment in each Unit. The Critical Juncture assessments provide the teacher with specific three-dimensional statements to assess before moving forward in the Lessons. Lessons that provide Critical Junctures or On-the-Fly Assessments also provide an Assessment Guide or a Hands-On Flextension Lesson Guide in the Lesson Brief,  Overview,  Digital Resources section which states the DCI, SEP, and CCC.

In addition to listing intended standards alignment in the Teacher Guide of all Units, Teacher References, Assessment System, and the Formative and Summative Assessment Opportunities section lists the DCI, SEP, and the CCC addressed in each assessment. These also include strikethroughs of the portion of the standard that is not assessed in the Unit. While strikethroughs indicate which portion of the standard is not being assessed, there is a missed opportunity to state how the assessments contribute to building toward the end of grade-level performance expectations.

The materials for Grade 2 meet expectations for providing an assessment system with multiple opportunities throughout the grade, course, and/or series to determine students' learning, sufficient guidance for teachers to help them interpret student performance, and suggestions for following-up with students. 

Examples include:

• In each Unit, the Assessment Guide for the End-of-Unit Assessment provides three rubrics, one each for the DCI, SEP, and CCC, as well as questions to support teachers in determining students’ initial understanding of the standards identified for each assessment. For example, in Grade 2, Unit: Properties of Matter, Lesson 4.4 , Digital Resources, Assessment Guide: Assessing Students’ Understanding of the Practice of Constructing Design Arguments: The guidance does not tell teachers how to assign a grade, but tells them to use the resource to “provide formative feedback to students rather than assign summative grades.”  The rubric is criterion referenced and assists with monitoring student progress toward the performance expectations in three areas: the practice of constructing design arguments, understanding of science ideas, and the crosscutting concept of cause and effect. Further, the rubrics regularly incorporate suggestions for follow-up with students for each of the three dimensions.

• The Embedded Formative Assessments, The Critical Juncture and On-the-Fly Assessments, provide guidance on what to look for among students who do not demonstrate understanding. For instance, in Grade 2, Unit: Changing Landforms, Digital Resources, Teacher References, Embedded Formative Assessments, Lesson 2.2, Activity 3, On-the-Fly Assessment 3: Using Observations of Models to Explain How Water Changes Rock, Look for: “After considering both real-world examples of water changing landforms and a model that shows water changing chalk, students can be expected to acknowledge that water can change landforms. Students’ responses in this activity can provide insight into students’ understanding of ideas at Level 2 of the Progress Build (water can change landforms) and their developing ability with the practice of using models.”

The materials for Grade 2 meet expectations for providing assessment opportunities for students to demonstrate the full intent of grade-level standards and elements across the series. The assessment system consistently incorporates the three dimensions. The assessment system also provides a variety of assessment types, but constructed response is the predominant modality. The Pre-Assessment, On-the-Fly, Critical Juncture, and End-of-Unit assessments require written responses. They consistently assess a DCI, CCC, and SEP. There is a missed opportunity for students to demonstrate all of the SEPs, but there is a consistent focus on the practices of constructing explanations, argumentation, and modeling. Both versions (A and B) of the summative assessment ask students to provide written explanations. Version B provides students with sentence starters. The assessments in Grade 2 rely heavily on oral communication skills. Examples of assessments in this grade can be found in the reports for Indicators 1b and 1c.

In addition to summative assessments, Conversation Rubrics found throughout the resources offer prompts, look fors, and/or suggestions for how to evaluate students but most focus on a singular dimension. In Grade 2, there are rubrics that provide questions to develop understanding of the students’ ability to demonstrate each dimension. In Grades 2-5, the rubrics have additional detail, beyond that of Kindergarten and Grade 1, and provide partial scores for partial student answers.