Meaningful STEM learning can happen at home as we problem-solve around the house and make sense of intriguing phenomena around us! Join us as we embark on a mission to create a healthy and nutritious meal for our family! This STEM mini-project can be launched by the teacher and can provide families with a fun project to do in the kitchen.

Meaningful STEM learning can happen at home! Embark on a journey with your students to answer the driving question: How can we design a solution to prevent Washington’s coast from eroding?

Meaningful STEM learning can happen at home as we problem-solve around the house and make sense of intriguing phenomena around us! Join us as we explore plants and animals in nature and use them as inspiration to solve an everyday problem for our family!

This integrated OER unit focuses on the 4th grade NGSS bundle addressing Structure, Function, and Information Processing (Performance expectations 4-PS4-2, 4-LS1-1, and 4-LS1-2). Students are engaged in a storyline which presents them with the problem of preserving the pika population who live in the Columbia River Gorge, a species which has recently been threatened in this region due to climate change. Through a series of activities, labs, and field STEM experiences, students engage in scientific modeling and investigation, while building their understanding of how an organism’s internal and external structures enable survival, growth and reproduction. The unit culminates with the development of a product that can be shared with a public audience to instigate positive change in the community and help protect the pika.

This integrated 3rd grade unit addresses the NGSS Life Science bundles for Interdependent Relationships in Ecosystems (3-LS2-1, 3-LS4-3, and 3-LS4-4) and Inheritance and Variation of Traits: Life Cycles and Traits (3-LS1-1, 3-LS3-1, 3-LS3-2, and 3-LS4-2). Students embark on a mission to protect their native plants and animals by devising a plan to regulate and prevent the spread of invasive species in the area. Through a series of FOSS investigations and other OER (open educational
resource) lessons and activities, students learn about how an organism’s traits aid in survival, how parents pass on traits to their offspring, and how the environment influences plant and animal traits and behaviors.

As our 5th grade students start the shift from childhood to adolescence, it is important for them to be equipped with the knowledge and skills needed to take care of their bodies by making healthy eating choices! This unit strives to engage students in the task of crafting a healthy and delicious snack for younger students in their building. Students master Physical Science performance expectations (5-PS1-1, 5-PS1-2, 5-PS1-3, 5-PS1-4), while learning about the properties of different foods that make them healthy or not! The unit culminates with students constructing a snack for their 1st grade buddies.

Join us on a mission to keep the coffee hot! Students will investigate the insulating properties of different materials and will design a mug sleeve for a grown-up to keep their coffee or tea nice and hot!

In this 3rd grade integrated STEM Storyline focused around the topics of climate and weather, we present students with the challenge of designing and building prototype temporary shelters for people in need. The unit launches with a discussion about the importance of shelter for humans. Then, students explore the significance of local weather conditions, the local climate, and how these may affect us. Students continue by exploring climate conditions around the world and how people have designed housing that shelters them from daily weather and climate. This unit culminates with students engaging in a design thinking process (similar to engineering design) where they design and test a shelter for people to use.

Meaningful STEM learning can happen at home as we use our imagination to solve real problems! This STEM project introduces students to the problem of oil spills around the world. The project culminates with students using their imagination to design a solution to the problem.

This flowchart illustrates the process of STEM Storyline development at Educational Service District 112.

This Unit for the 4th Grade Kit, Waves and Energy, weaves together the various FOSS investigations in the context of an authentic and engaging storyline. Through an imaginary correspondence with a 4th grader who lives in the village of Ghaghara, India, students use a series of investigations to build their skills and content knowledge in order to solve larger problems being faced by their friend, Parvathi. Students engage in project-based learning while using science and engineering practices to help solve everyday problems in the context of Parvathi’s life. Students also use online research and evidence from investigations to construct claims based on evidence which inform and drive their practice of engineering.

How can we use solar energy to improve the lives of people living “off-the-grid” in Kenya? This unit explores the NGSS Middle School bundle for Engineering Design (MS-ETS1-1, MS-ETS1-2, MS-ETS1-3, MS-ETS1-4) by engaging students in a Project-Based engineering task where students develop and apply their understanding of solar energy to create a solar device which can generate electricity for people who have lost power due to a natural disaster.

In this Unit, students embark on a mission to create a campaign which promotes seat belt use for a teenage audience. In the context of this project, students explore NGSS PE’s 3-PS2-2, 3-PS2-1, 3-5-ETS1-1, 3-PS2-3, and 3-PS2-4 while investigating the effects of balanced and unbalanced forces acting on an object. Through a series of collect evidence to write a claim based on evidence for why seatbelts are important.

Download: ForcesAndInteractions.3rdgrade_krEFi7M.pdfDelete
Google Drive with Teacher Resources

Portions of this storyline can be successfully implemented without access to FOSS instructional or lab materials. Specifically, the unit entry event, driving question, supplemental lessons and online resources, etc., can still be used to engage students in learning the addressed NGSS bundle.

For most recent version of this unit, please visit www.stemmaterials.org

This 5th grade STEM Storyline Unit from Washington Educational Service District 112 is focused around Climate Justice, Over five NGSS aligned lessons and using the 5E model, students are presented with the ideas of environmental stewardship and restoration.