Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS Comprehensive) 6th Grade Science Activities

NGSS.MS-PS. PHYSICAL SCIENCE

MS-PS1. Matter and Its Interactions - Students who demonstrate understanding can:

MS-PS1-2. Analyze and interpret data on the properties of substances before and after the substances interact to determine if a chemical reaction has occurred.

MS-PS1.DCI. Disciplinary Core Ideas

PS1.A: Structure and Properties of Matter

PS1.A:1. Substances are made from different types of atoms, which combine with one another in various ways. Atoms form molecules that range in size from two to thousands of atoms. (MS-PS1-1)

PS1.A:3. Gases and liquids are made of molecules or inert atoms that are moving about relative to each other. (MS-PS1-4)

PS1.A:4. In a liquid, the molecules are constantly in contact with others; in a gas, they are widely spaced except when they happen to collide. In a solid, atoms are closely spaced and may vibrate in position but do not change relative locations. (MS-PS1-4)

PS1.A:5. Solids may be formed from molecules, or they may be extended structures with repeating subunits (e.g., crystals). (MS-PS1-1)

PS1.A:6. The changes of state that occur with variations in temperature or pressure can be described and predicted using these models of matter. (MS-PS1-4)

PS1.B: Chemical Reactions

PS1.B:1. Substances react chemically in characteristic ways. In a chemical process, the atoms that make up the original substances are regrouped into different molecules, and these new substances have different properties from those of the reactants. (MS-PS1-2), (MS-PS1-3), (MS-PS1-5)

PS3.A: Definitions of Energy

PS3.A:1. The term “heat” as used in everyday language refers both to thermal motion (the motion of atoms or molecules within a substance) and radiation (particularly infrared and light). In science, heat is used only for this second meaning; it refers to energy transferred when two objects or systems are at different temperatures. (secondary to MS-PS1-4)

PS3.A:2. Temperature is not a measure of energy; the relationship between the temperature and the total energy of a system depends on the types, states, and amounts of matter present. (secondary to MS-PS1-4)

MS-PS2. Motion and Stability: Forces and Interactions - Students who demonstrate understanding can:

MS-PS2-2. Plan an investigation to provide evidence that the change in an object’s motion depends on the sum of the forces on the object and the mass of the object.

MS-PS2-4. Construct and present arguments using evidence to support the claim that gravitational interactions are attractive and depend on the masses of interacting objects.

MS-PS2-5. Conduct an investigation and evaluate the experimental design to provide evidence that fields exist between objects exerting forces on each other even though the objects are not in contact.

MS-PS2.DCI. Disciplinary Core Ideas

PS2.A: Forces and Motion

PS2.A:1. For any pair of interacting objects, the force exerted by the first object on the second object is equal in strength to the force that the second object exerts on the first, but in the opposite direction (Newton’s third law). (MS-PS2-1)

PS2.A:2. The motion of an object is determined by the sum of the forces acting on it; if the total force on the object is not zero, its motion will change. The greater the mass of the object, the greater the force needed to achieve the same change in motion. For any given object, a larger force causes a larger change in motion. (MS-PS2-2)

MS-PS3. Energy - Students who demonstrate understanding can:

MS-PS3-1. Construct and interpret graphical displays of data to describe the relationships of kinetic energy to the mass of an object and to the speed of an object.

MS-PS3-3. Apply scientific principles to design, construct, and test a device that either minimizes or maximizes thermal energy transfer.

MS-PS3-4. Plan an investigation to determine the relationships among the energy transferred, the type of matter, the mass, and the change in the average kinetic energy of the particles as measured by the temperature of the sample.

MS-PS3-5. Construct, use, and present arguments to support the claim that when the motion energy of an object changes, energy is transferred to or from the object.

MS-PS3.DCI. Disciplinary Core Ideas

PS3.A: Definitions of Energy

PS3.A:1. Motion energy is properly called kinetic energy; it is proportional to the mass of the moving object and grows with the square of its speed. (MS-PS3-1)

PS3.A:3. Temperature is a measure of the average kinetic energy of particles of matter. The relationship between the temperature and the total energy of a system depends on the types, states, and amounts of matter present. (MS-PS3-3), (MS-PS3-4)

PS3.B: Conservation of Energy and Energy Transfer

PS3.B:3. Energy is spontaneously transferred out of hotter regions or objects and into colder ones. (MS-PS3-3)

MS-PS3.CC. Crosscutting Concepts

MS-PS3.CC.3. Energy and Matter

MS-PS3.CC.3.1. Energy may take different forms (e.g. energy in fields, thermal energy, energy of motion). (MS-PS3-5)

MS-PS4. Waves and Their Applications in Technologies for Information Transfer - Students who demonstrate understanding can:

MS-PS4-2. Develop and use a model to describe that waves are reflected, absorbed, or transmitted through various materials.

MS-PS4.DCI. Disciplinary Core Ideas

PS4.B: Electromagnetic Radiation

PS4.B:1. When light shines on an object, it is reflected, absorbed, or transmitted through the object, depending on the object’s material and the frequency (color) of the light. (MS-PS4-2)

NGSS.MS-LS. LIFE SCIENCE

MS-LS1. From Molecules to Organisms: Structures and Processes - Students who demonstrate understanding can:

MS-LS1-1. Conduct an investigation to provide evidence that living things are made of cells; either one cell or many different numbers and types of cells.

MS-LS1-2. Develop and use a model to describe the function of a cell as a whole and ways parts of cells contribute to the function.

MS-LS1-3. Use argument supported by evidence for how the body is a system of interacting subsystems composed of groups of cells.

MS-LS1-6. Construct a scientific explanation based on evidence for the role of photosynthesis in the cycling of matter and flow of energy into and out of organisms.

MS-LS1-7. Develop a model to describe how food is rearranged through chemical reactions forming new molecules that support growth and/or release energy as this matter moves through an organism.

MS-LS1.DCI. Disciplinary Core Ideas

LS1.A: Structure and Function

LS1.A:1. All living things are made up of cells, which is the smallest unit that can be said to be alive. An organism may consist of one single cell (unicellular) or many different numbers and types of cells (multicellular). (MS-LS1-1)

LS1.A:2. Within cells, special structures are responsible for particular functions, and the cell membrane forms the boundary that controls what enters and leaves the cell. (MS-LS1-2)

LS1.A:3. In multicellular organisms, the body is a system of multiple interacting subsystems. These subsystems are groups of cells that work together to form tissues and organs that are specialized for particular body functions. (MS-LS1-3)

LS1.B: Growth and Development of Organisms

LS1.B:1. Animals engage in characteristic behaviors that increase the odds of reproduction. (MS-LS1-4)

LS1.C: Organization for Matter and Energy Flow in Organisms

LS1.C:1. Plants, algae (including phytoplankton), and many microorganisms use the energy from light to make sugars (food) from carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and water through the process of photosynthesis, which also releases oxygen. These sugars can be used immediately or stored for growth or later use. (MS-LS1-6)

PS3.D: Energy in Chemical Processes and Everyday Life

PS3.D:1. The chemical reaction by which plants produce complex food molecules (sugars) requires an energy input (i.e., from sunlight) to occur. In this reaction, carbon dioxide and water combine to form carbon-based organic molecules and release oxygen. (secondary to MS-LS1-6)

MS-LS2. Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics - Students who demonstrate understanding can:

MS-LS2-2. Construct an explanation that predicts patterns of interactions among organisms across multiple ecosystems.

MS-LS2-3. Develop a model to describe the cycling of matter and flow of energy among living and nonliving parts of an ecosystem.

MS-LS2-4. Construct an argument supported by empirical evidence that changes to physical or biological components of an ecosystem affect populations.

MS-LS2.DCI. Disciplinary Core Ideas

LS2.A: Interdependent Relationships in Ecosystems

LS2.A:2. In any ecosystem, organisms and populations with similar requirements for food, water, oxygen, or other resources may compete with each other for limited resources, access to which consequently constrains their growth and reproduction. (MS-LS2-1)

LS2.A:4. Similarly, predatory interactions may reduce the number of organisms or eliminate whole populations of organisms. Mutually beneficial interactions, in contrast, may become so interdependent that each organism requires the other for survival. Although the species involved in these competitive, predatory, and mutually beneficial interactions vary across ecosystems, the patterns of interactions of organisms with their environments, both living and nonliving, are shared. (MS-LS2-2)

LS2.B: Cycle of Matter and Energy Transfer in Ecosystems

LS2.B:1. Food webs are models that demonstrate how matter and energy is transferred between producers, consumers, and decomposers as the three groups interact within an ecosystem. Transfers of matter into and out of the physical environment occur at every level. Decomposers recycle nutrients from dead plant or animal matter back to the soil in terrestrial environments or to the water in aquatic environments. The atoms that make up the organisms in an ecosystem are cycled repeatedly between the living and nonliving parts of the ecosystem. (MS-LS2-3)

LS2.C: Ecosystem Dynamics, Functioning, and Resilience

LS2.C:2. Biodiversity describes the variety of species found in Earth’s terrestrial and oceanic ecosystems. The completeness or integrity of an ecosystem’s biodiversity is often used as a measure of its health. (MS-LS2-5)

LS4.D: Biodiversity and Humans

LS4.D:1. Changes in biodiversity can influence humans’ resources, such as food, energy, and medicines, as well as ecosystem services that humans rely on—for example, water purification and recycling. (MS-LS2-5)

NGSS.MS-ESS. EARTH AND SPACE SCIENCE

MS-ESS1. Earth’s Place in the Universe - Students who demonstrate understanding can:

MS-ESS1-2. Develop and use a model to describe the role of gravity in the motions within galaxies and the solar system.

MS-ESS1-3. Analyze and interpret data to determine scale properties of objects in the solar system.

MS-ESS1.DCI. Disciplinary Core Ideas

ESS1.A: The Universe and Its Stars

ESS1.A:2. Earth and its solar system are part of the Milky Way galaxy, which is one of many galaxies in the universe. (MS-ESS1-2)

ESS1.B: Earth and the Solar System

ESS1.B:1. The solar system consists of the sun and a collection of objects, including planets, their moons, and asteroids that are held in orbit around the sun by its gravitational pull on them. (MS-ESS1-2), (MS-ESS1-3)

MS-ESS2. Earth’s Systems - Students who demonstrate understanding can:

MS-ESS2-1. Develop a model to describe the cycling of Earth’s materials and the flow of energy that drives this process.

MS-ESS2-2. Construct an explanation based on evidence for how geoscience processes have changed Earth’s surface at varying time and spatial scales.

MS-ESS2-3. Analyze and interpret data on the distribution of fossils and rocks, continental shapes, and seafloor structures to provide evidence of the past plate motions.

MS-ESS2-4. Develop a model to describe the cycling of water through Earth’s systems driven by energy from the sun and the force of gravity.

MS-ESS2-5. Collect data to provide evidence for how the motions and complex interactions of air masses results in changes in weather conditions.

MS-ESS2-6. Develop and use a model to describe how unequal heating and rotation of the Earth cause patterns of atmospheric and oceanic circulation that determine regional climates.

MS-ESS2.DCI. Disciplinary Core Ideas

ESS2.A: Earth’s Materials and Systems

ESS2.A:1. All Earth processes are the result of energy flowing and matter cycling within and among the planet’s systems. This energy is derived from the sun and Earth’s hot interior. The energy that flows and matter that cycles produce chemical and physical changes in Earth’s materials and living organisms. (MS-ESS2-1)

ESS2.B: Plate Tectonics and Large-Scale System Interactions

ESS2.B:1. Maps of ancient land and water patterns, based on investigations of rocks and fossils, make clear how Earth’s plates have moved great distances, collided, and spread apart. (MS-ESS2-3)

ESS2.C: The Roles of Water in Earth’s Surface Processes

ESS2.C:1. Water continually cycles among land, ocean, and atmosphere via transpiration, evaporation, condensation and crystallization, and precipitation, as well as downhill flows on land. (MS-ESS2-4)

ESS2.C:3. Global movements of water and its changes in form are propelled by sunlight and gravity. (MS-ESS2-4)

ESS2.C:4. Variations in density due to variations in temperature and salinity drive a global pattern of interconnected ocean currents. (MS-ESS2-6)

ESS2.C:5. Water’s movements—both on the land and underground—cause weathering and erosion, which change the land’s surface features and create underground formations. (MS-ESS2-2)

ESS2.D: Weather and Climate

ESS2.D:1. Weather and climate are influenced by interactions involving sunlight, the ocean, the atmosphere, ice, landforms, and living things. These interactions vary with latitude, altitude, and local and regional geography, all of which can affect oceanic and atmospheric flow patterns. (MS-ESS2-6)

MS-ESS2.CC. Crosscutting Concepts

MS-ESS2.CC.5. Energy and Matter

MS-ESS2.CC.5.1. Within a natural or designed system, the transfer of energy drives the motion and/or cycling of matter. (MS-ESS2-4)

MS-ESS3. Earth and Human Activity - Students who demonstrate understanding can:

MS-ESS3-1. Construct a scientific explanation based on evidence for how the uneven distributions of Earth’s mineral, energy, and groundwater resources are the result of past and current geoscience processes.

MS-ESS3-4. Construct an argument supported by evidence for how increases in human population and per-capita consumption of natural resources impact Earth’s systems.

MS-ESS3-5. Ask questions to clarify evidence of the factors that have caused the rise in global temperatures over the past century.

MS-ESS3.DCI. Disciplinary Core Ideas

ESS3.A: Natural Resources

ESS3.A:1. Humans depend on Earth’s land, ocean, atmosphere, and biosphere for many different resources. Minerals, fresh water, and biosphere resources are limited, and many are not renewable or replaceable over human lifetimes. These resources are distributed unevenly around the planet as a result of past geologic processes. (MS-ESS3-1)

ESS3.D: Global Climate Change

ESS3.D:1. Human activities, such as the release of greenhouse gases from burning fossil fuels, are major factors in the current rise in Earth’s mean surface temperature (global warming). Reducing the level of climate change and reducing human vulnerability to whatever climate changes do occur depend on the understanding of climate science, engineering capabilities, and other kinds of knowledge, such as understanding of human behavior and on applying that knowledge wisely in decisions and activities. (MS-ESS3-5)

MS-ESS3.CC. Crosscutting Concepts

MS-ESS3.CC.3. Stability and Change

MS-ESS3.CC.3.1. Stability might be disturbed either by sudden events or gradual changes that accumulate over time. (MS-ESS3-5)

MS-ESS3.CETS. Connections to Engineering, Technology, and Applications of Science

MS-ESS3.CETS.1. Influence of Science, Engineering, and Technology on Society and the Natural World

MS-ESS3.CETS.1.1. All human activity draws on natural resources and has both short and long-term consequences, positive as well as negative, for the health of people and the natural environment. (MS-ESS3-1), (MS-ESS3-4)