Reading provides a unique window into the history and nature of science and the norms of scientific communication and supports students in developing critical-reading skills in engaging ways. Effective use of reading promotes a spirit of inquiry and an understanding of science concepts while also addressing expectations of the Common Core State…

Using an extended text in an upper-level science course is not a revolutionary idea. Introducing a novel or nonfiction book into the curriculum can reward both teacher and student, offering deep immersion into science content, but may seem daunting to many teachers, especially those with little training in literacy instruction. This article offers…

American classrooms are increasingly heterogeneous linguistically. If all students are to engage in three-dimensional learning, how are educators making classroom assessments accessible and meaningful for emergent bilingual learners? There are few classroom assessment exemplars that embody the NGSS three-dimensional vision of the…

In the 1990s, classes throughout the United States began participating in Classroom FeederWatch, sending data on birds they had seen at feeders in their schoolyards to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. The launch of eBird in 2002 opened up new possibilities for submitting data on all types of bird species, allowing users to record and upload…

Effective science instruction requires knowledge of subject matter and scientific practices (Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), 2013), as well as the context within which learning occurs (Anthony, Hunter and Hunter 2014). For science teachers, there is often a tension between the efficiency of lecture and student engagement that comes with…

Science teachers and mentors continue to be challenged to meet the high expectations of "A Framework for K-12 Science Education" and the "Next Generation Science Standards." Indeed the Framework urges teachers to help learners "[build] progressively more sophisticated explanations of natural phenomena..." while the…

Although the "Next Generation Science Standards" (NGSS Lead States 2013) were released over two years ago, misconceptions about what they are--and are not--persist. The "NGSS" provide for consistent science education opportunities for all students--regardless of demographics--with a level of rigor expected in every location and…

The Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS Lead States 2013) were released almost two years ago. Work tied to the NGSS, their adoption, and implementation continues to move forward around the country. Stephen L. Pruitt, senior vice president, science, at Achieve, an independent, nonpartisan, nonprofit education reform organization that was a lead…

While student demographics continue to change nationwide, science achievement gaps persist, as measured by the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NCES 2012). As traditional racial and ethnic minority students have become the numeric majority (NCES 2013), teaching science for all increasingly means addressing diverse student populations.…

The vision of Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) "requires a dramatic departure from approaches to teaching and learning science occurring today in most science classrooms K-12" (Reiser 2013, p. 2). In this article the authors emphasize the importance of examining student misconceptions and correcting them with sense-making…

Using the life sciences, this article first reviews essential features of the "NRC Framework for K-12 Science Education" that provided a foundation for the new standards. Second, the article describes the important features of life science standards for elementary, middle, and high school levels. Special attention is paid to the teaching…

This article describes ways to adapt U.S. science curriculum to the U.S. National Research Council (NRC) "Framework for K-12 Science Education" and "Next Generation of Science Standards" (NGSS), noting their focus on teaching the physical sciences. The overall goal of the Framework and NGSS is to help all learners develop the…

This article describes how the authors began a science, technology, engineering, art, and math (STEAM) collaboration and completed three projects of varying complexity in their art and chemistry classrooms. The projects align with the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS Lead States 2013).

Facing state assessments, new standards, and instructional shifts, teachers are often left with the DIY ("do it yourself") version of science teaching. Unfortunately, answering the question "What does quality science instruction look like in the classroom?" is not as easy as watching a few videos online. Fortunately, the EQuIP…

The "Framework" (NRC 2012) and "Next Generation Science Standards" (NGSS Lead States 2013) require science teachers to think differently. Specifically, NGSS's performance expectations now require that three domains (disciplinary core ideas (DCI), crosscutting concepts (CCC), and scientific and engineering practices (SEP)) be…