How can we use chemical reactions to design a solution to a problem? In this 21-day unit, students are introduced to the anchoring phenomenon—a flameless heater in a Meal, Ready-to-Eat (MRE) that provides hot food to people by just adding water. In the first lesson set, students explore the inside of an MRE flameless heater, then do investigations to collect evidence to support the idea that this heater and another type of flameless heater (a single-use hand warmer) are undergoing chemical reactions as they get warm. Students have an opportunity to reflect on the engineering design process, defining stakeholders, and refining the criteria and constraints for the design solution.

OpenSciEd content is highly rated in EdReports and is aligned to NGSS standards.

Knowing how to engage in signature scientific acts, such as formulating questions and using evidence in arguments is an important part of science learning. This InfoBrief from the National Center for Technology Innovation offers more information about using technology to support struggling students.

Links to 17 lessons and activities that build student skills in standard SL.4.3: Identify the reasons and evidence a speaker provides to support particular points.

Students develop an organized mind map of facts they have learned about fossils from reading and visual content.

How scientists study the natural world.

A free CK-12 account is required to view all materials.

Covers steps of the scientific methods and control group.

A free CK-12 account is required to view all materials.

In this video, Paul Andersen explains how scientists analyze data and evaluate evidence. He starts with a description of data and how it must be properly displayed. He then describes types of data in each of the four big ideas. He finally discusses a number of practice questions related to data analysis. [6:49]

A new instructional model, called Argument-Driven Inquiry (ADI), is introduced to elementary teachers in this article. The author shows how school librarians and classroom teachers can collaborate to help students construct and communicate evidence, or arguments. Evidence buckets, a collaborative activity, and related online resources are presented. The article appears in the free online magazine Beyond Weather and the Water Cycle, which is structured around the seven essential principles of climate literacy.

Students learn how various kinds of data and information can be gathered to create a biodiversity timeline that serves as evidence of changes in a population of a species.

Become a detective to solve the case of the smelly backpack! Act out the clues and draw conclusions to solve the mystery.

When Detective Bentley cannot figure out why his backpack is smelly, he retraces the events in his day to find clues. Taking on the role of detectives, the viewers act out the events of Bentley’s day and use textual clues to solve the case.

Learning Objective:
Draw conclusions from the facts presented in text and support those assertions with textual evidence.

Students experience the information aftermath of a fictional event as it unfolds on social media. They also learn about five common logical fallacies, then evaluate the evidence in several arguments. A free educator account is necessary to assign this Checkology lesson.

This video [0:25] adapted from KTOO takes a look at Earth's warming and cooling cycles and the current atypical trend of warming that is impacting the glaciers in Alaska's Inside Passage.

This lesson plan requires the students to examine past maps from various cultures in order to learn how the people from that time period interacted and understood their world.

In this transcript of an interview filmed for the PBS series "Evolution," scientists Ted Daeschler and Neil Shubin describe the discovery and significance of some of their key fossil finds.

Seafloor features and how scientists map them.

A free CK-12 account is required to view all materials.

This comprehensive study guide covers the main terms and concepts needed for an earth science unit on continental drift. Review questions are included at the bottom of the study guide. Part II of II.

A free CK-12 account is required to view all materials.

Examines theories and laws in science.

A free CK-12 account is required to view all materials.

Describes the mostly massive features created by glacial erosion and deposition.

A free CK-12 account is required to view all materials.

Presents the relationships of facts, explanations, and opinions in science.

A free CK-12 account is required to view all materials.

This study guide looks at Darwin's theory of evolution and natural selection. It also looks at some of the evidence supporting the theory of evolution (comparative anatomy, comparative embryology, biogeography).

A free CK-12 account is required to view all materials.