While teaching science is hands-on by nature, Bring Science Alive! takes understanding complex concepts to a new level with phenomena and storylines that help students relate science to the world around them.
MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. (PRWEB) November 01, 2017
TCI, an award-winning online K-12 publishing company created by teachers, for teachers, today unveiled the first components of Bring Science Alive! for middle school. Building on the success of Bring Science Alive! for grades K-5, the first program built from the ground up to align to the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) and the Common Core, the middle school program combines hands-on learning with technology and was developed with the guidance of an advisory board composed of the best minds in science instruction.
“While teaching science is hands-on by nature, Bring Science Alive! takes understanding complex concepts to a new level with phenomena and storylines that help students relate science to the world around them,” said Bert Bower, CEO and president, TCI. “Middle school students are immersed in learning activities that mirror situations that engineers, doctors and other scientists face in their work every day, allowing them to develop an understanding of science careers and their importance as well as potentially discover a STEM career they might be interested in pursuing.”
NGSS emphasize learning by investigating the natural world through the practices of scientific inquiry. Being able to use science understandings and practices allows students to investigate further questions about the natural world and solve meaningful engineering problems. NGSS identifies eight practices of science and engineering. Each lesson of Bring Science Alive! provides scaffolded instruction and reflection of one or more of these practices.
Each unit in Bring Science Alive! for middle school begins with a storyline that allows students to dive deep into a real-world phenomenon, such as the erosion caused by waves from the ocean. Then each individual lesson presents its own phenomenon that engages students in learning while tying it back to the unit-level phenomenon. Students engage in the engineering process to think like an engineer as they solve real-world problems related to the unit-level phenomena. In addition, each lesson includes an assessment that addresses all three dimensions, uses diverse stimuli and allows students to express understanding in multiple formats. Every unit ends with a performance assessment which requires students to perform a task, rather than just select an answer from a list.
Each Bring Science Alive! for middle school program is its own individual module and can be taught in any order teachers prefer, allowing them to customize instruction to meet the instructional program of their state, school and the needs of their students.
Available now for Bring Science Alive! life science is Cells and Genetics ©2018. With this program, students will use evidence to explore traits, survival, and reproduction; the structure and functions of body systems and cells; genes and inheritance of traits, mutations, and engineering and genetics. Adaptations and Ecosystems will follow in 2018.
For earth science, Space ©2018, now available, is a program where students will model cause-and-effect relationships involving Earth’s rotation, revolution, and tilted axis; lunar phases and eclipses, the solar system, galaxies; and the universe. Next up will be Planet Earth in 2018.
Physical science launches with Matter ©2018 and Waves ©2018 both available now. With the Matter program, students will apply the concepts of conservation of matter and energy transfer to model atoms, molecules, particle motion, state changes, and chemical reactions; and explore engineering solutions involving chemical reactions. Waves allows students to explore mechanical waves and their properties by looking at patterns in data, waves in different mediums, the wave model of light, properties of light waves, and technologies using waves to transfer information. Forces and Energy will complete physical science in 2018.
Bring Science Alive! is accessed through an online learning platform that connects students to teachers and teachers to TCI. Teachers access a wealth of resources – interactive HTML5 presentations with in-class investigations, clear standards-based content, interactive student notebooks, tutorials, formative and summative assessments, and more.
Available Bring Science Alive! programs are available for a free, 30-day trial. For more information, visit https://www.teachtci.com/science/middle-school-science/.
About TCI
TCI is an award-winning online K-12 publishing company created by teachers, for teachers. For more than 20 years, the company has partnered with the education community to fundamentally change classroom instruction. TCI’s K-12 programs are based on proven teaching strategies and practices that bring learning alive and achieve consistent, positive classroom results. TCI believes that the best education marries great content, meaningful technology and interactive classroom experiences. The end result: students of all abilities and learning styles succeed. For more information, visit http://www.teachtci.com.