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After reading about the use of crickets for human consumption as a food source, students write a response to the following question: How can the addition of crickets make school lunches more nutritious? Students will apply what they have learned about digestion, macronutrients, and human energy needs in order to write an informational paragraph or essay about why crickets are a good food source and can make school lunches more nutritious.

If the continents moved over time, how an why could this have occurred? What can we investigate further that might provide clues about how and why the continents moved?

Alfred Wegener thought that the jigsaw puzzle appearance of continents,  as well as identical fossils and geographic formations, could be explained by the existence of a supercontinent in the ancient past that split apart over time. His theory, continental drift, was widely rejected and ridiculed because he could not explain how and why the massive continents could have moved. Additionally, Wegener also predicted that volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, and mountain building could be explained by the continents moving.

In this unit, your task is to conduct investigations and collect evidence that will uncover the mystery of how and why the continents could have moved. Be sure to consider Wegener’s prediction that continental movement is associated with volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, and mountain building. 

How does the invasion of zebra mussels in the Hudson River affect one biotic or abiotic factor in the river ecosystem? To answer this question, students write a scientific explanation using evidence from texts, videos, and secondary data sources, along with sound scientific reasoning and logic, in order to support their claim.

This performance task is meant to build upon students' prior ideas and what they learn about the universe and celestial bodies. We have designed the unit so students have opportunities to explore and revise/add to the performance task at multiple points, allowing them to apply and evaluate their own understandings about the concepts covered in Unit 1.

In this performance task, students apply their knowledge of the different ways that the body maintains homeostasis, in order to determine the cause for a marathon runner's collapse.

Students complete a decision-making chart in order to generate a claim about a mystery organism. Students then use evidence from the unit to construct a scientific explanation.

In this unit you learned about various natural hazards and how they happen. Use your understandings of these phenomena to make a prediction of which natural disasters are likely to occur New York City? You will then describe the steps residents of NYC should take to prepare for this natural disaster. Additionally, in order to minimize human contributions to extreme weather events create a plan for minimizing your carbon footprint and share it with members of your community.

This link will take you to the resources used during New Visions Earth and Space Science Workshop: The Role of Phenomena.

This link will take you to the resources used during New Visions Earth and Space Science Workshop: Three Dimensions of NGSS and Access Through Routines Part 2.

This link will take you to the resources used during New Visions Earth and Space Science Workshop: Three Dimensions of NGSS and Equity in Sense Making.

In this performance task, students address the following task: "How are human activities altering the physical and living environment? Is it possible to save species from extinction? To answer these questions, write a narrative explaining three possible actions that could lead to the survival of a specific keystone species that is currently under threat. Use evidence from texts, videos, and secondary data sources, along with sound scientific reasoning and logic, to create your narrative."

Your challenge is to determine what your fossil is, how old the fossil is, and if the fossil could be found within the bedrock of New York State. You will organize your data about the fossil with the aid of a variety of questions. Based on the data provided and your Earth Science Reference Table, write a scientific explanation using evidence determining if your fossil could have existed in New York State.