The instructional materials reviewed for Grades 6-8 partially meet expectations that phenomena and/or problems are presented to students as directly as possible. Across the series, students are introduced to unit-level phenomena and problems during the Lift-Off Task. They work on explaining the phenomena and solving the problems throughout subsequent tasks. A small number of tasks (lessons) present task-level phenomena and problems for students to explain or solve. When task-level problems and phenomena are presented, they are found in the Engage or Explore portion of the 5E task.

Phenomena and problems, in all grade levels and in all science disciplines, are presented to students using a variety of methods including teacher demonstrations, images, videos, maps, graphs and data tables, hands-on experiences, and text descriptions. In some cases, presentation of the phenomena and problems provide students with limited information or an opportunity for shared experience which allows students to ask questions or understand the problem. This is done in order to have a common entry point to the phenomenon or problem.

Examples of phenomena and problems that are presented to students as directly as possible.

• In Grade 6, Unit 1: Setting Things in Motion, the unit-level phenomenon is a person moving their body to make a kickball move. The phenomenon is presented to students as a hands-on activity in which students take turns kicking the kickball and personally experience the phenomenon. This presentation supports students who may not have experience with the phenomenon and allows all students to approach the phenomenon with a common entry point.

• In Grade 6, Unit 3, Task 4: From Parent to Offspring, the task-level phenomenon is puppies look different from their parents and siblings while bacterial offspring look identical to their parents and to each other. To observe the phenomenon, students view colored photos of dogs and their offspring and colored microscope images of bacteria and their offspring. These images provide students with a common experience and have enough details to allow students to make observations and ask questions. It is not practical to present this phenomenon with a first-hand experience and bring dogs to the classroom or to present and view bacteria in the classroom. The images are a direct presentation of the phenomenon.

• In Grade 7, Unit 1, Task 3: Produce, Reuse, Recycle, the task-level phenomenon is the 1815 eruption of the volcano Mt. Tambora, and the scattering tons of ash and debris in the air that blocked some sunlight. The phenomenon is presented to students as a case study where students engage with a textual account of what happened in the aftermath of the 1815 eruption including the fact that the year following the eruption “thousands of plants and animals died, leaving thousands more humans to die without food.” The passage is accompanied by an artist rendition of people looking back at a volcano erupting with a huge cloud of ash and debris. It is not feasible for students to experience the after effects of a volcano eruption. Since this specific phenomenon occurred in 1815, there are no actual images or videos available. The case study, with the artist’s rendition, provides students with a historical account that allows them to engage with the phenomenon in a direct manner.

• In Grade 7, Unit 3, Mimicking Nature’s Design, the unit-level design challenge is to design and build a sustainable aquaponics system that mimics the properties of a river environment. Students are presented with the challenge through a text description of the Culminating Project, images of a variety of aquaponics systems on slides, and a video that explains “What is an Aquaponics System?” Students also observe images of a river environment that has changed overtime to identify various properties of a river environment. The various resources and detailed project description provide students with the background needed to understand the design challenge and is also presented in a direct manner.

• In Grade 8, Unit 2, Task 4: Invisible Forces, the task-level phenomenon is five small disc-shaped shiny metal objects defy gravity as they hover and spin around when placed between two metal discs. The students view a video in which they witness someone setting up magnets and then releasing small metal objects into the space between the magnets. The objects float and spin around each other. There are no words, only music to accompany the moving objects. The video provides students with a common experience and shows enough detail to allow students to make observations and begin to ask questions.This is a direct way for students to observe this phenomenon if the school was unable to provide the materials for an in class demonstration.

• In Grade 8, Unit 2: Traveling Through Space, Culminating Project, the unit-level challenge is to determine the safest route a new telescope should take through space and develop a plan to protect the space telescope on its journey. Students are shown several images taken from the Hubble Space Station, and then they make observations. Students generate questions to learn more about the Solar System. Students are then presented with the problem on the slides and in the student materials which includes background information listing the constraints of a successful solution. The text directs students to create a classroom model of a solar system and a presentation showing the route of the telescope their groups designed. This is a direct presentation of the problem and provides students a common entry point to understand the problem.

Examples of phenomena and problems that are not presented to students as directly as possible.

• In Grade 6, Unit 2, Task 4: Thermal Energy Transfer, the task-level phenomenon is a cold metal spoon is placed in a pot of boiling water and momentarily the handle of the spoon is very hot. Students view a clipart image of a pot of boiling water and are presented with a text description of the phenomenon. The text, found in the student notebook and on a slide, has students consider placing a cold metal spoon into a boiling pot of water. Students are instructed to think about leaving it in the water for a bit and returning to the spoon to find that it is really hot. This is a missed opportunity to provide a common experience in a direct manner.

• In Grade 6, Unit 4: A Warmer World, Culminating Project, the unit-level design challenge is to design a method to monitor and minimize the impact of climate change on a specific organism. The problem is introduced through written text and an infographic of the declining number of bee hives in 1947, 1980, and 2008. A more direct way to introduce students to this problem is to make observations about the behavior of bees and the relationship with the environment. Students are only shown that the bee population is declining and then told to pick a different organism from a list to research. This presentation of the problem results in a missed opportunity to provide students with enough background information to make an informed decision on a species to choose and for students to understand the problem they are solving.

• In Grade 7, Unit 2: Matter Matters, Culminating Project, the unit-level problem is certain regions do not have access to freshwater. Students are asked to design a method to make water more available in their chosen region. The problem is presented as images of the decreasing size of the Aral Sea. Students are also provided with a text description of the problem on a slide and in their student notebook. Students then choose another location (not the Aral Sea area) that does not have access to enough fresh water. There are no examples provided for students who are unfamiliar with locations that meet this criteria. Students are also not provided any examples of ways that water poor regions have accessed water. Students who are unfamiliar with regions of the world are not provided a common entry point to begin choosing their region or to begin designing their solution.

• In Grade 7, Unit 4: Save the Andes!, Culminating Project, the unit-level problem is humans take resources from natural ecosystems in the Andes, which has a negative impact on the area. The problem is presented with a video that characterizes the ways in which humans can impact the natural environment. This presents a missed opportunity for a common experience for students to understand the human impact on the specific ecosystems of the Andes Mountains and to provide students with the information they need to begin solving the problem.

• In Grade 8, Unit 3, Task 4: Human Intervention Through Space, the task-level phenomena is tomatoes of the same type grow to very different sizes. For this phenomena, students are shown a picture of two different sized tomatoes and are asked the guiding question, “How could humans have intervened to cause the tomatoes to be different?” This presents a missed opportunity for a direct student experience involving the effects of genetic variation in fruits.

• In Grade 8, Unit 1: Colossal Collisions!, Culminating Project, the unit-level problem is a very large asteroid, named Etiam, is headed towards Earth and is capable of destroying most life on Earth. The problem is introduced to the students through a written scenario that describes the asteroid that is on a collision course with Earth. The text provides students with background data on Etiam including the shape, mass, speed, and location of the fictional asteroid. The materials also include images of the asteroid belt location relative to the rest of our Solar System and a sample of an asteroid. While a direct observation of the problem is not possible, the images provided do not help students make sense of the data or clearly visualize the problem. While the problem is clearly defined and the criteria for a successful solution is clear, the materials miss the opportunity to provide a common experience and enough data for students to understand this problem if they are unfamiliar with the subject.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grades 6-8 partially meet expectations that phenomena and/or problems drive individual lessons or activities using key elements of all three dimensions. The materials provide multiple tasks across the series that use phenomena or problems to drive student learning using all three dimensions.

Each unit consists of three to five tasks (lessons) that follow the 5E model. Task-level phenomena and problems are most often presented in the Engage or Explore portion of the 5E task. The instructional materials consist of a total of 50 tasks. Of the 50 tasks, 12 present students with phenomena or problems at the beginning of the task. Ten of the 12 tasks that present students with phenomena or problems drive the learning and incorporate key elements of the three dimensions. While the remaining 38 tasks do not present students with a phenomenon or problem that was used to drive the task, many incorporate all three dimensions for students to make sense of topics or answer driving questions.

Examples of phenomena and/or problems driving student learning at the activity level and using key elements of all three dimensions:

• In Grade 6, Unit 1, Task 2: Sense and Respond, the task-level phenomenon is a person is able to catch a ruler as it is dropped. Throughout the task, students gather evidence to understand and explain how the body is able to catch a ruler when it is dropped between a person’s fingers. Students learn about the nervous system pathway and explain why the ruler can be caught when the body has enough time to respond to the ruler dropping. Students experience the phenomenon and use their experiences with the activity to explain how the body is able to react in order to catch the ruler when it is dropped from certain distances. Students obtain, evaluate, and communicate information (SEP-INFO-M3) about the nervous system from a video, information cards, and a simulation to gain a better understanding of the phenomenon. Students use this information to explain how the eye detected the ruler being released, sent the nerve signal to the brain which processed the ruler dropping, and sent signals to the hand to close the fingers and catch the ruler (DCI-LS1.D-M1). Students apply this knowledge to explain why a person was not able to catch the ruler when the ruler was dropped with only 7 cm left at the bottom (CCC-CE-M2). Students further explore the nervous system through a knee-jerk reaction and explain why this response happens so fast without a conscious decision (CCC-CE-M2).

• In Grade 7, Unit 3, Task 2: Matter Moves You, the task-level phenomenon is a burning candle’s flame is extinguished when a glass jar is placed over the top of it. At the beginning of the task, students use the phenomenon to learn about chemical reactions and why the flame is extinguished when oxygen is cut off from the flame. They later apply that learning the chemical reactions that are needed in nature to perform this task. Students use models in order to understand how a chemical reaction occurs and how matter is rearranged during the reaction. Once they have explored cellular respiration, students return to the flame example and provide an explanation of the phenomenon. At the beginning of the task, students observe the phenomenon and are then provided with the chemical equation for the flame reaction and are asked to explain why the candle flame went out when the jar is placed on top (DCI-PS1.B-M1). Students connect the chemical reaction concept to a river environment that was introduced at the beginning of the unit. In the text, students learn that food needs to be broken down into energy for the animals in the river environment to use (DCI-LS1.C-M2). Students create a model of the cellular respiration reaction with “atom pieces” and a balance. They build the reactants and products using the atom pieces and then place each on the respective sides of the balance and make observations. Students then draw a picture of their model and provide a written explanation of the reaction (SEP-MOD-M6). The balancing of the scale with the atom pieces and the question on energy and matter posted in the reflection portion of the task allows students to think about how matter is conserved during a chemical reaction (CCC-EM-M1).

• In Grade 8, Unit 3, Task 4: Human Intervention Through Space, the task-level phenomena is tomatoes of the same type grow to very different sizes. Students use the image of the two different sized tomatoes to consider how the differences could have occurred naturally or how humans could have caused the difference in sizes. They learn about genetic engineering and selective breeding that humans use to influence the genes of an organism in order to explain the phenomenon. Students read two adapted scientific articles (SEP-INFO-M1) and view a short video to understand the process that takes a gene to make a protein to result in a trait (DCI-LS3.A-M1). The article also focuses on mutations and how a change in a gene can cause additional variations (DCI-LS3.B-M2). Students use the information from the article to model the processes of selective breeding and genetic engineering (SEP-MOD-M5) focusing on how the structure of the gene determines the structure and function of the protein (CCC-SF-M1). Students use a Venn diagram to compare the two processes that change genetic information and notice that selective breeding selects organisms with the desired traits while genetic engineering selects the desired gene itself (DCI-LS4.B-M4). To explain the phenomenon, students create a flowchart describing how selective breeding or genetic engineering created the larger tomato.

Examples of a topic or science concept that structures and guides student learning at the activity level and using key elements of all three dimensions:

• In Grade 6, Unit 1, Task 1: Energy in Motion, students are not presented with a phenomenon or problem; instead, student learning in the task is guided by the science concept that changes in kinetic energy create a variety of observable outcomes. Throughout the task, students conduct several investigations and read/annotate an article to gain the scientific vocabulary and knowledge to explain how changes in motion can transfer energy to other objects and transform energy into other forms. These forms could be shown in temperature, sound, and motion. Students rub their hands together to experience kinetic energy transforming into heat. Students conduct investigations to gather evidence (SEP-INV-M4) that when a ball is placed higher on the ramp, more pennies are knocked over. Students observe that by changing the amount of potential energy, the kinetic energy increases (DCI-PS3.B-M1). Students read and annotate an article which emphasizes how energy can take many different forms (CCC-EM-M3) and have observable features. Students construct an argument using data from their investigations and vocabulary from the article (SEP-ARG-M3) to explain the role of energy in their investigations.

• In Grade 6, Unit 4, Task 2: It Takes Two, students are not presented with a phenomenon or problem; instead, student learning in the task is guided by the science concept that different animal behaviors and plant structures allow organisms to successfully survive and reproduce. Throughout the task, students gather and record evidence about the animal behaviors and plant structures that help organisms, like bees and flowering plants, to survive and reproduce. Students are told that scientists say that bees and flowering plants heavily rely on each other, so this could be a huge concern. In groups, students visit stations to gather and record evidence about what animal behaviors (DCI-LS1.B-M2) and plant structures help organisms, like bees and flowering plants, to survive and reproduce (CCC-SF-M1). In the Explain section, students write an argument that supports or refutes the statement that scientists say that bees and flowering plants heavily rely on each other. They use evidence from the Explore stations and their own scientific reasoning (SEP-ARG-M3). Students explain that the bright flowers on a plant help attract pollinators, like bees. The bees land on the flowers and collect pollen and transfer it to another plant helping the flower reproduce (DCI-LS1.B-M3).

• In Grade 7, Unit 1, Task 1: Pangea Puzzle, students are not presented with a phenomenon or problem; instead, student learning in the task is guided by the science topic of continental drift. Throughout the task, students analyze data to explain how the continents have moved from one large supercontinent into their current locations. Students analyze evidence (SEP-DATA-M4) of fossils, glacial and coal deposits, and mountain ranges on large continent pieces to identify patterns (CCC-PAT-M3) and predict how the continents have moved over time to their current location (DCI-ESS2.B-M1). Students use this evidence to construct a CER report either agreeing or disagreeing with Alfred Wegener’s theory of continental drift.

• In Grade 7, Unit 1, Task 5: A Chain of Resources, students are not presented with a phenomenon or problem; instead, student learning in the task is guided by a simulation in which students explore how resource availability affects populations of organisms in ecosystems. Throughout the task, students consider what resources organisms need to survive and use a computer simulation to gather data to determine the effects of resource changes on populations. Students begin the task by considering how changing the amount of water in a rainforest ecosystem would create a chain of cause and effect events (CCC-CE-M2). Students continue to explore how resource availability affects populations of organisms as they use a computer ecosystem simulation to collect and analyze data as they test various scenarios (DCI-LS2.A-M2). From the data, students determine that certain populations will increase/decrease when the amount of various resources change (SEP-DATA-M4). Students also see that a change in one population causes changes in other populations as all organisms are dependent on the other living and nonliving factors of an ecosystem (DCI-LS2.A.-M1).

• In Grade 8, Unit 2, Task 4: Invisible Forces, the task-level phenomenon is five small disc-shaped shiny metal objects defy gravity as they hover and spin around when placed between two metal discs. The student learning in the task is not driven by the phenomenon. The task is guided by the topic of magnetism. Throughout the task, students learn about magnetic forces and invisible fields to apply this knowledge to the unit problem. Students make initial predictions about the phenomenon, but they only revisit the phenomenon in the very last Reflection section of the task. This phenomenon is used as a hook and does not drive the learning. Students conduct investigations to gain a basic understanding of magnetic forces and invisible fields. Students observe that magnetic forces can be attractive or repulsive and that their sizes depend on the magnetic strengths involved and the distances between the interacting objects (DCI-PS2.B-M1). Students use this knowledge to plan and conduct additional investigations to determine what factors affect the strength of the magnetic fields, which is information they will need for the unit project. Students generate testable questions, determine which materials to use, collect appropriate data , and construct a hypothesis (SEP-AQDP-M6). Students apply their learning to consider what they need to do (cause) to create a magnetic field (effect) around their telescope (CCC-CE-M2).

• In Grade 8, Unit 3, Task 3: Natural Selection, students are not presented with a phenomenon or problem; instead, student learning in the task is guided by the topic of natural selection. Students engage in a simulation of natural selection, generating data they can use to mathematically calculate the percentages of different traits. By identifying trends in the data, they are able to explain how natural selection may lead to increases and decreases of specific traits in populations over time, pinpointing the process that is changing species as a result of environmental change. Students participate in a simulation where small pieces of paper represent one species of insects with three variations of a trait (color). These “paper insects” now live in the “paper forest”. Students record the number of each color insect that remains and then calculate the percentage each represents of the total population. Students then include these percentages and trends (SEP-MATH-M2) when they construct an explanation that describes how natural selection may lead to increases and decreases of specific traits in populations over time (DCI-LS4.B-M1). Students create a flowchart depicting the probable chain of causes and effects if climate change warms the region shown in an image (CCC-CE-M2).

The instructional materials reviewed for Grades 6-8 partially meet expectations that they intentionally leverage students’ prior knowledge and experiences related to phenomena or problems.

The instructional materials elicit and leverage students’ prior knowledge and experience to phenomena and problems within a few instances across the series. Materials consistently elicit but do not leverage students’ prior knowledge and experience to phenomena and problems across the series. Throughout the majority of units and tasks (lessons), student prior knowledge is elicited to connect the phenomenon or problem to prior learning or experiences. Prior knowledge is generally elicited in the Lift-Off Task or in the first section of the Culminating Project organizer by asking students questions about what they already know or remember related to the problem or phenomenon; this is intended to activate their learning prior to subsequent tasks and activities. Within individual tasks, students’ prior knowledge is typically elicited in the Engage portion of the 5E lesson. However, there are missed opportunities for the materials to leverage students’ prior knowledge and experience in a way that allows them to make connections between what they are learning and their own knowledge, and to build on the knowledge and experience students bring from both inside and outside of the classroom.

Examples of materials that elicit and leverage students’ prior knowledge and experience of phenomena and problems:

• In Grade 6, Unit 1: Setting Things in Motion, the unit-level phenomenon is a person moving their body to make a kickball move. Students’ prior knowledge and experience with the phenomenon is elicited when students create a class-wide concept map complete with their own questions surrounding the phenomenon. They draft possible answers to each other’s questions using their prior knowledge and experiences with the phenomenon. Students’ knowledge and experiences with the phenomenon are leveraged when students brainstorm a list of activities that involve humans putting an object into motion based on their own experiences. Students then use one of the activities from the list to complete their final project to show their understanding of the phenomenon.

• In Grade 7, Unit 4: Save the Andes!, Culminating Project, the unit-level problem is humans take resources from natural ecosystems in the Andes, which has a negative impact on the area. The materials elicit students’ prior knowledge and experience with the problem at the end of the Lift-Off Task. Students are introduced to the problem and asked to use what they saw in the video and their prior knowledge to consider how humans may be impacting the Andes region. Students document their prior knowledge in the first part of their Project Organizer, however the materials do not include procedures for the teacher to make this thinking visible or to have students share their thinking with each other. Students’ prior knowledge of the problem is also elicited in the Engage portion of Task 1 when students are asked to brainstorm some examples of natural changes that can happen to environments on Earth. The materials provide the teacher with a few possible student responses to consider. The teacher has students share out some of their ideas with the class making student thinking visible. In Task 2, students’ prior knowledge or experience with the problem is elicited when students are asked to brainstorm lists of ecosystem services or resources that are provided by nature. This helps students connect personally with the problem being presented and helps build the context for why ecosystems in the Andes should be protected. In this unit, the materials leverage students’ prior experiences in the learning sequence. In Task 2, Elaborate, students are asked to think about how often they use synthetic products made from petroleum. Petroleum is one of the natural resources that is extracted from the Andes, and students have the opportunity to connect their own experiences to determine if they, personally, are part of the problem. This helps students consider possible solutions to the unit-level problem when they are asked to think of alternative ways to make these products without petroleum or potential alternatives to these products altogether.

• In Grade 8, Unit 3, Task 4: Human Intervention Through Space, the task-level phenomena is tomatoes of the same type grow to very different sizes. The materials elicit students’ prior knowledge and experience of the phenomenon when students work in pairs to predict what could have naturally caused these two tomatoes to be different as well as how humans may have intervened to create this difference. The materials instruct the teacher to have students share-out a few of their ideas. Students’ prior knowledge and experience is leveraged when they return to their predictions in the elaborate section and pick which process or processes they think are responsible for the larger tomato. In the Reflection section, students compare the process they chose in the elaborate section to their original prediction.

Examples of materials that elicit but do not leverage students’ prior knowledge and experience of phenomena and problems:

• In Grade 6, Unit 2, Task 4: Thermal Energy Transfer, the task-level phenomenon is a cold metal spoon is placed in a pot of boiling water and momentarily, the handle of the spoon becomes very hot. Students’ prior knowledge or experience of the phenomenon is elicited when students work in pairs to create a hypothesis that explains why the handle of the spoon is hot even though the handle is not submerged in the boiling water. Students then share their ideas with the class. In the Reflection section, students return to their original predictions and are asked to add to them based on what they have learned, but students do not reflect on their own experiences while making sense of the phenomenon, missing the opportunity to leverage prior knowledge of the phenomenon.

• In Grade 6, Unit 4, Task 1: Heating Up, the task-level phenomenon is that the Earth’s average temperature has risen about 1.5 degrees since 1880. Students’ prior knowledge of this phenomenon is elicited as the students make hypotheses about what may be causing the rising temperatures and why the temperature increase might affect organisms. Students generate and share questions and hypotheses with partners and the whole class, making student thinking visible. Through the sequence of the task, students are given evidence one piece at a time and explain how each piece of evidence helps them understand the phenomenon. Students generate new questions to further their learning. In the Explain portion of the task, students have a chance to use their prior knowledge to consider how the temperature change might affect organisms, but this is not leveraging knowledge or experiences with the phenomenon presented in this task, missing the opportunity to leverage prior knowledge of the phenomenon.

• In Grade 7, Unit 1: A Balanced Biosphere, Culminating Project, the unit-level design challenge is to design an arena with a balanced biosphere for a “Hunger Games” type movie that is in the making. Students’ prior knowledge and experience with the design challenge are elicited when they are introduced to the Culminating Project. Students make a list or diagram including the parts of an ecosystem. Students brainstorm questions and answers they have about a well functioning biosphere which they are trying to create in their arena. Students make a list of components that might need to be included in the final project arena in the Lift-Off Task, missing the opportunity to leverage prior knowledge as they design their solutions.

• In Grade 8, Unit 1: Colossal Collisions!, Culminating Project, the unit-level problem is a very large Asteroid, named Etiam, is headed towards Earth and is capable of destroying most life on Earth. Students’ prior knowledge and experiences with the problem are elicited in the Lift-Off Task. Students use their prior knowledge about collisions to identify possible negative impacts caused by an asteroid collision with the Earth. Students ask questions and form possible answers using their prior knowledge about the phenomenon as they create a class concept map and participate in class discussions around the concept map questions and possible answers. The materials do provide prompts at the end of the task to guide students in reflecting on their initial ideas and to make revisions, missing the opportunity to leverage prior knowledge as they design their solutions.

• In Grade 8, Unit 2, Task 4: Invisible Forces, the task-level phenomenon is five small disc-shaped shiny metal objects defy gravity as they hover and spin around when placed between two metal discs. Students' prior knowledge and experiences are elicited when students work in pairs to create a hypothesis explaining why the objects in the video appear to be floating on their own. In the Reflection section, students return to their original predictions and are asked to add to them based on what they have learned, missing the opportunity to leverage prior knowledge of the phenomenon.

Examples of materials that neither elicit nor leverage students’ prior knowledge and experience of phenomena and problems:

• In Grade 6, Unit 1, Task 2: Sense and Respond, the task-level phenomenon is people are able to catch a ruler as it is dropped. Students’ prior knowledge or experiences of the phenomenon are not elicited. Instead, students participate in a shared activity where they catch a ruler, and explain the phenomenon by obtaining and synthesizing information from a variety of sources. The materials do not leverage students’ prior knowledge and experiences. Students explain the phenomenon by describing different nervous system pathways using a variety of sources provided by the teacher.

• In Grade 6, Unit 3: Nature via Nurture, the unit-level phenomenon is that a toxic algal bloom occurred and caused the closure of Lake Temescal (Oakland,CA) to protect humans and other organisms. Students are introduced to the phenomenon in the initial Lift-Off Task. Students’ prior knowledge and experiences of lake closures due to toxic algal blooms are not elicited. Students generate questions they would ask to get a better understanding of toxic algal blooms but are never asked to consider their own experiences with them. Students answer questions in their Project Organizer that help them keep track of the information from each task that is relevant to the Culminating Project. The questions are all based on content learned in each task. The materials neither elicit nor leverage students’ prior knowledge and experiences related to the phenomenon.

• In Grade 7, Unit 3: Mimicking Nature’s Design, the unit-level design challenge is to design and build a sustainable aquaponics system that mimics the properties of a river environment. The materials do not elicit students’ prior knowledge and experience of aquaponics environments. The materials introduce students to the Culminating Project with a description of the challenge and a list of the criteria for the aquaponics system. The materials do not leverage students’ prior knowledge and experiences. The materials provide no prompts or opportunities for students to reflect on their experiences as they work to solve the design challenge.

The instructional materials reviewed for Grades 6-8 partially meet expectations that they embed phenomena or problems across multiple lessons for students to use and build knowledge of all three dimensions. Across the series, nine of 12 modules embed phenomena or problems across multiple tasks (lessons) for students to use and build knowledge of all three dimensions. Two of these units are driven by phenomena and seven units present students with problems or design challenges. Three units miss the opportunity to present students with a phenomenon to make sense of or a problem to solve that is used to drive learning. Instead, the units were driven by an essential question or a science concept or topic. All units provided students with opportunities across multiple tasks to engage with all three dimensions.

All four units presented in the Grade 6 materials drive learning and use of the three dimensions. Three of the four units presented in the Grade 7 materials drive learning and use of the three dimensions. The unit that did not meet expectations did not embed a phenomenon or problem across multiple tasks but instead was driven by an essential question. This unit involved the discipline of life science. The Grade 8 instructional materials presented two out of four units that drive learning and use of the three dimensions. The two units that did not meet expectations were driven by an essential question or a science topic. These two units focused on the disciplines of life and earth and space science.

Across the series, when a unit-level phenomenon is present, it is presented to students in the Lift-Off Task at the beginning of the unit. Students use a concept map to organize their ideas and questions as they work through the unit and explain the phenomenon. When the unit is driven by a phenomena, the Culminating Project is a place for students to demonstrate a final explanation of the phenomenon or to demonstrate understanding of the unit phenomena by applying the science concepts to a similar scenario. Similarly, students are introduced to unit-level problems and design challenges during the Lift-Off Task and work on solving the problems throughout subsequent tasks. Students gather information to design and support their solutions using a Project Organizer that is revisited following completion of each task. Students present their solutions to the unit-level problems along with the Culminating Projects at the end of the unit.

Examples of units that use phenomena or problems to drive student learning across multiple tasks (lessons) and to engage with all three dimensions:

• In Grade 6, Unit 2: Extreme Living, the unit-level design challenge of creating a product that will help people live/survive in extreme climates drives student learning across multiple tasks in the unit. In the Lift-Off Task, students analyze photos of humans living in extreme environments and generate initial ideas about how people might live in these challenging conditions. In Task 1, students explore the Sun-Earth relationship and realize that the Sun does not heat all parts of the Earth equally due to the tilt of the Earth. Students learn that this is a major cause of extreme climates. At the end of Task 1, students use the Project Organizer to research a few regions with extreme climates, define the problem, and identify the criteria and constraints of a successful solution. In Task 2, students’ learn that the uneven heating of the Earth causes patterns of atmospheric and oceanic circulation which also contributes to regional climate patterns. Students use information they learn to describe the causes of the extreme climate in their selected region in their Project Organizer. In Task 3, students explore the water cycle in detail and use their Project Organizer to show how the water cycle creates some of the climatic conditions in their chosen region. The first three tasks provide opportunities for students to understand the causes of the extreme climate. Task 4 provides students with the science they need to design a product that will help a person stay warm or cool down. Students learn about thermal energy transfer and use their Project Organizer to describe if their design solution needs to increase or decrease the kinetic energy of particles to achieve the desired results. In the final task of Unit 2 (Task 5), students design and test a prototype device and apply what they have learned about thermal energy to design a device that either minimizes or maximizes thermal energy transfer. Throughout the unit and across multiple tasks, students engage with all three dimensions. To successfully solve the problem and explain their design, students are required to apply the scientific principles of temperature, thermal energy transfer, and the kinetic energy of particles (DCI-PS3.A-M3, DCI-PS3.A-M4, and DCI-PS3.B-M3). A brainstorming activity ensures that student’s designs connect to the science concepts learned in Task 4. Students design, construct, and test their design to maximize or minimize thermal energy transfer (SEP-CEDS-M6). Students collect data from their tests and make revisions to their designs as needed. Students present their designs and include a model that shows how thermal energy transfer is either maximized or minimized by tracking the energy flow through the designed system (CCC-EM-M4).

• In Grade 6, Unit 3: Nature Via Nurture, the unit-level phenomenon is that a toxic algal bloom has occurred and caused the cluster of Lake Temescal (Oakland,CA) to protect humans and other organisms drives student learning across the tasks. Students engage in a series of tasks to develop an understanding of whether the toxic algal blooms are caused by genetic and/or environmental factors. In the Elaborate phase of Task 1, students add to their understanding of the phenomenon as they analyze how weather can cause algal blooms in that particular region. In the Explain & Elaborate phases of Task 2, students plan and conduct investigations on how environmental factors affect plant growth to explain how heavy rain in the winter and high sun in the summer would contribute to the growth of plants in Lake Temescal. In the Elaborate phase of Task 3, students consider the role of genetics in the growth of the toxic algae. In the Evaluate phase of Task 4, students refer back to the models they worked on in the previous phases of the task to answer how cyanobacteria reproduce, which provides evidence for the claim they need to make about algal blooms being caused by genetics or environmental factors. Over the course of the unit, students engage in elements of all three dimensions as they conduct their own investigations to collect evidence as well as look at existing evidence in order to construct an explanation (SEP-CEDS-M3) on whether genetics or environmental conditions affect the growth of an organism (DCI-LS1.B-M4). Once students also learn that cyanobacteria reproduce asexually, they use cause and effect reasoning (CCC-CE-M2) in order to figure out what might be causing the toxic algal blooms in Lake Temescal.

• In Grade 7, Unit 3: Mimicking Nature’s Design, the unit-level design challenge of designing and building a sustainable aquaponics system that mimics the properties of a river environment drives student learning across multiple tasks. Students engage in a series of tasks in order to successfully design and build an aquaponics system. Each task adds a new component to their aquaponics system in order to complete a system that is able to cycle matter and keep energy flowing. In Task 1, students explore physical and chemical changes and identify at least one physical and one chemical change that may occur in the system they build. In Task 2, students investigate the reactants and products of cellular respiration. They must identify an organism in their system that experiences cellular respiration. In Task 3, students investigate photosynthesis, identify or add an organism to their system that experiences photosynthesis. Students also make connections to the organisms they chose in Task 3 to determine how the plant and animal work together to cycle matter and keep energy flowing. Task 4 introduces students to the rock cycle and students consider how this might affect the system. In Task 5, students construct a thermal device to regulate the temperature of their aquaponics system. Throughout the unit and across multiple tasks, students engage with all three dimensions. To complete the challenge, students must develop a model (SEP-MOD-M6) of the products and reactants (DCI-PS1.B-M1, CCC-EM-M1) of photosynthesis, (DCI-PS3.D-M1) as well as cellular respiration (DCI-PS3.D-M2) in order to understand how the organisms they choose to place in their aquaponics system are able to cycle matter and keep energy flowing (DCI-LS1.C-M2, CCC-EM-M2). Students must also design, build, and test two possible devices that release thermal energy (DCI-PS1.B-M3) in order to allow the blue catfish in their aquaponics system to spawn, choosing the one that works the best for their final system based on the data they collect (DCI-ETS1.B-M1).

• In Grade 8, Unit 1: Colossal Collisions, the unit-level problem of a very large asteroid, named Etiam, is headed towards Earth and is capable of destroying most life on Earth drives student learning across multiple tasks. Students engage in a series of lessons in order to design a solution to prevent the impending collision of the asteroid with Earth. In Task 1, students research the effects of previous Earth/asteroid collisions, which they will use as evidence to convince the public that it is important to protect Earth from another collision. In Task 2, students explore Newton’s laws and conduct experiments to understand relationships between mass, kinetic energy, and speed to determine how Etiam’s large mass might affect Earth. Students examine possible solutions to the problem of the asteroid collision with Earth. In Task 3, students look at the role of gravity on Etiam and how gravitational forces affect the trajectory of Etiam. Students use the information they collect from the tasks to design their solution. To solve the problem, students use the information and concepts they develop over the unit to decide on the best solution to protect Earth. Throughout the unit and across multiple tasks, students engage with all three dimensions. Students investigate the relationship between mass and kinetic energy (DCI-PS3.A-M1) and mass and gravity (DCI-PS2.B-M2). Using this information, students work through several steps of the engineering design process to design multiple models of solutions and test each model (DCI-ETS1.B-M1, SEP-INV-M1). Students use patterns in the fossil records to determine the effects of past asteroid collisions (DCI-LS4.A-M1, CCC-PAT-M4) and to convince the public that it is important to protect Earth. Students create a video news segment that describes their solution and write a news article detailing the science behind asteroid collisions with Earth.

Examples of units that use driving questions or science topics to structure and guide student learning across multiple tasks and to engage with all three dimensions:

• In Grade 7, Unit 1: A Balanced Biosphere, the essential question “How have natural processes and human activities created the ecosystems we see today?” guides student learning across multiple tasks. Over the course of five tasks, students examine ecosystems from a macro perspective based on plate motions, explore both the geoscience processes and the human actions that result in an uneven distribution of resources, explore how living and nonliving parts of an ecosystem must interact to create a well-functioning ecosystem, identify patterns in the way organisms interact with each other, and use data from real scenarios that allows them to predict how changing one part of an ecosystem can affect another. Through all of the tasks, students examine various ways that natural processes and human activity have caused changes to create the ecosystems we see today. Throughout the unit and across multiple tasks, students engage with all three dimensions. Students analyze various pieces of evidence (SEP-DATA-M4) to decide if they agree or disagree with Wegener’s idea of continental drift (DCI-ESS2.B-M1). Students explore both the geoscience processes and the human actions that result in an uneven distribution of resources (DCI-ESS3.A-M1). Students create a flow chart and use the cause-and-effect relationship between geoscience processes and geologic features to make predictions about how oil is made around the world (CCC-CE-M2). Students arrange ecosystem resource cards to create a model of an ecosystem (SEP-MOD-M5) that shows interactions and energy and matter flows between components (CCC-EM-M4). Students imagine and draw an ecosystem of their choice showing different ways that organisms interact with their environment (DCI-LS2.A-M4). They visit stations to collect data on real-life examples of interactions between organisms and their environment focusing on identifying patterns in the interactions across different ecosystems (CCC-PAT-M2). Students use a computer simulation to analyze and interpret data (SEP-DATA-M4) on the effects of changing an environmental condition on a population or populations in an ecosystem (DCI-LS2.A-M1, DCI-LS2.A-M2).

• In Grade 8, Unit 3: Adapt or Die?, the essential question “ Why do species change over time and should we intervene?” guides student learning across multiple tasks. Throughout the unit, students look at the evidence that all species have changed over Earth’s history by exploring the fossil record and how scientists have organized Earth’s 4.6 billion-year-old history into the geologic time scale. Students explore two types of evidence that scientists use to infer lines of evolutionary descent. They are anatomical structures and embryos of different organisms. Students engage in a simulation of natural selection, generating data they can use to mathematically calculate the percentages of different traits. By identifying trends in the data, they will be able to explain how natural selection may lead to increases and decreases of specific traits in populations over time, pinpointing the process that is changing species as a result of environmental change. Students explore ways in which humans have intervened in these natural processes through selective breeding and genetic engineering. Throughout the unit and across multiple tasks, students engage with all three dimensions. In groups, students analyze the rock sample and compare it with the geologic time scale. Students find examples of species that have remained stable over multiple time periods while others have gradually changed over time (CCC-SC-M3). Students use a CER to explain (SEP-CEDS-M3) how the geologic time scale is a model that helps us study Earth’s 4600 million-year-old history (DCI-ESS1.C-M1), which is otherwise too large to visualize (CCC-SPQ-M1). Students visit stations to collect embryological and anatomical evidence on different species. Students identify patterns in data and then use these patterns (CCC-PAT-M4) to infer common ancestry in similarities in embryological and/or anatomical structure (DCI-LS4.A-M3). Students construct an explanation to answer the question: What do similarities and differences in anatomical structures and embryological development tell us about the relationships between organisms? (SEP-CEDS-M4). Students participate in a simulation where survivability of insects with color variations is measured and recorded and used to calculate the percentage each represents of the total population . They include these percentages and trends (SEP-MATH-M2) when they construct an explanation that describes how natural selection may lead to increases and decreases of specific traits in populations over time (DCI-LS4.B-M1). Students draw a flowchart depicting the probable chain of causes and effects if climate change warms the region shown in an image (CCC-CE-M2). Students read two adapted scientific articles (SEP-INFO-M1) and view a short video to understand the process that takes a gene to make a protein to result in a trait (DCI-LS3.A-M1). The article also focuses on mutations and how a change in the gene can cause additional variations (DCI-LS3.B-M2). Students use the information from the article to model the processes of selective breeding and genetic engineering (SEP-MOD-M5) focusing on how the structure of the gene determines the structure and function of the protein (CCC-SF-M1). Students use a Venn diagram to compare the two processes that change genetic information and notice that selective breeding selects organisms with the desired traits while genetic engineering selects the desired gene itself (DCI-LS4.B-M4).

• In Grade 8, Unit 4: Using Engineering and Technology to Sustain Our World, the research project of lessening the effect of human overpopulation and excess resource consumption guides student learning across multiple tasks. In Task 1, students examine their own carbon footprint and then calculate the per-capita emission of carbon dioxide for different countries around the world. Then they draw conclusions about human consumption of resources and overpopulation. In Task 2, students learn of the effects of human-caused changes to the environment and populations of organisms within those environments. Students discover the characteristics of waves and the energy that waves can contain in Task 3. In Task 4, students investigate the interactions of waves with matter to understand how different types of waves (mechanical vs. electromagnetic) travel from one location to another. For the Culminating Project, students choose one of three solutions to research (solar energy, ocean wave energy, or satellite image monitoring) to create a scientific poster with arguments and counterarguments to their chosen solution. Throughout the unit and across multiple tasks, students engage with all three dimensions. Students present their research and posters to the class at a “Resource Conservation Conference” (SEP-INFO-M5). As a group, students present the problem Earth is facing with overpopulation with an explanation of cause-and-effect relationships involved (CCC-CE-M2). Students also describe their solution in terms of waves and energy (DCI-PS4.A-M1). Individually, students write a letter to a non-profit organization recommending a solution for funding. In the letter, students describe the three solutions from the class and evaluate those solutions to make a recommendation (SEP-ARG-M3).