NGSS Science Samples

Yours to try—free: Hands-on science performance tasks aligned to Next Generation Science Standards. Designed to help students build their skills of inquiry, engineering, and communication, these engaging investigations let learners develop their understanding of science’s big ideas. 

Material is approved by NSTA Recommends and includes performance tasks for instruction and assessment, teacher planning pages, rubrics, and annotated student anchor papers. These samples reflect just a few of the 220 tasks in Scientific Inquiry for the 21st Century: Built for the NGSS.

Not NGSS? Check out Scientific Inquiry for the 21st Century, which supports the following state and national science standards: NSES, NRC, AAAS, and STEM.

Grade Span K-2

K - 2

Wind-Up Toys, Part 2: Can I Design an Investigation?

Task Description:

Students design and conduct an investigation about wind-up toys. Students control variables, collect and record data and draw conclusions.

Disciplinary Core Ideas:  PS1.A: Structure of matter, PS2.A: Forces and motion
Access Task
K - 2

Where Does a Drop of Rain Go?

Task Description:

Students draw and write about how rain is made and where raindrops go after falling out of the sky.

Disciplinary Core Ideas:  ESS2.C: The roles of water in Earth’s surface processes, ESS2.D: Weather and climate, PS1.A: Structure of matter
Access Task

Grade Span 3-5

3 - 5

Water Testing: What Makes Water Good?

Task Description:

Students conduct tests and compare results of different water samples to determine what makes water “good.” Students collect and anaylze data to draw conclusions.

Disciplinary Core Ideas:  PS1.A: Structure of matter
Access Task
3 - 5

How Much Diversity is There in This Habitat?

Task Description:

Students conduct a field study of a local habitat. Students identify and draw the plant and animal life in the habitat.

Disciplinary Core Ideas:  LS1.A: Structure and function, LS4.C: Adaptation, LS4.D: Biodiversity and humans
Access Task

Grade Span 6-8

6 - 8

A Rock's History

Task Description:

Students are asked to collect and analyze a rock sample found during a class “Rock Hunt” on the school grounds.

Disciplinary Core Ideas:  PS1.A: Structure of matter
Access Task
6 - 8

How Is My Breathing Rate Related to My Pulse?

Task Description:

Students collaboratively investigate the relationship between breathing rate and pulse. Students collect and record data and draw conclusions based upon their investigation. Students make connections between the circulatory and respiratory systems.

Disciplinary Core Ideas:  PS1.A: Structure of matter
Access Task