Search the California Content Standards

Title: MS-ESS1 Earth’s Place in the Universe

Performance Expectation: Construct a scientific explanation based on evidence from rock strata for how the geologic time scale is used to organize Earth’s 4.6-billion-year-old history. [Clarification Statement: Emphasis is on how analyses of rock formations and the fossils they contain are used to establish relative ages of major events in Earth’s history. Examples of Earth’s major events could range from being very recent (such as the last Ice Age or the earliest fossils of homo sapiens) to very old (such as the formation of Earth or the earliest evidence of life). Examples can include the formation of mountain chains and ocean basins, the evolution or extinction of particular living organisms, or significant volcanic eruptions.] [Assessment Boundary: Assessment does not include recalling the names of specific periods or epochs and events within them.]

Disciplinary Core Idea(s):
ESS1.C: The History of Planet Earth The geologic time scale interpreted from rock strata provides a way to organize Earth’s history. Analyses of rock strata and the fossil record provide only relative dates, not an absolute scale.

Science & Engineering Practices: Constructing Explanations and Designing Solutions Construct a scientific explanation based on valid and reliable evidence obtained from sources (including the students’ own experiments) and the assumption that theories and laws that describe the natural world operate today as they did in the past and will continue to do so in the future.

Crosscutting Concepts: Scale, Proportion, and Quantity Time, space, and energy phenomena can be observed at various scales using models to study systems that are too large or too small.

California Environmental Principles and Concepts:
N/A

California Common Core State Standards Connections:
ELA/Literacy RST.6-8.1: Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of science and technical texts. WHST.6-8.2: Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas, concepts, and information through the selection, organization, and analysis of relevant content. Mathematics 6.EE.6: Use variables to represent numbers and write expressions when solving a real-world or mathematical problem; understand that a variable can represent an unknown number, or, depending on the purpose at hand, any number in a specified set. 7.EE.4.a-b: Use variables to represent quantities in a real-world or mathematical problem, and construct simple equations and inequalities to solve problems by reasoning about the quantities.

DCI Connections:
Connections to other DCIs in this grade-band: MS.LS4.A; MS.LS4.C Articulation across grade-bands: 3.LS4.A; 3.LS4.C; 4.ESS1.C; HS.PS1.C; HS.LS4.A; HS.LS4.C; HS.ESS1.C; HS.ESS2.A

Title: MS-LS1 From Molecules to Organisms: Structures and Processes

Performance Expectation: Gather and synthesize information that sensory receptors respond to stimuli by sending messages to the brain for immediate behavior or storage as memories. [Assessment Boundary: Assessment does not include mechanisms for the transmission of this information.]

Disciplinary Core Idea(s):
LS1.D: Information Processing Each sense receptor responds to different inputs (electromagnetic, mechanical, chemical), transmitting them as signals that travel along nerve cells to the brain. The signals are then processed in the brain, resulting in immediate behaviors or memories.

Science & Engineering Practices: Obtaining, Evaluating, and Communicating Information Gather, read, and synthesize information from multiple appropriate sources and assess the credibility, accuracy, and possible bias of each publication and methods used, and describe how they are supported or not supported by evidence.

Crosscutting Concepts: Cause and Effect Cause and effect relationships may be used to predict phenomena in natural systems.

California Environmental Principles and Concepts:
Principle II The long-term functioning and health of terrestrial, freshwater, coastal, and marine ecosystems are influenced by their relationships with human societies. Principle IV The exchange of matter between natural systems and human societies affects the long-term functioning of both.

California Common Core State Standards Connections:
ELA/Literacy WHST.6-8.8: Gather relevant information from multiple print and digital sources, using search terms effectively; assess the credibility and accuracy of each source; and quote or paraphrase the data and conclusions of others while avoiding plagiarism and following a standard format for citation.

DCI Connections:
Connections to other DCIs in this grade-band: N/A Articulation across grade-bands: 4.LS1.D; HS.LS1.A

Title: MS-LS2 Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics

Performance Expectation: Analyze and interpret data to provide evidence for the effects of resource availability on organisms and populations of organisms in an ecosystem. [Clarification Statement: Emphasis is on cause and effect relationships between resources and growth of individual organisms and the numbers of organisms in ecosystems during periods of abundant and scarce resources.]

Disciplinary Core Idea(s):
LS2.A: Interdependent Relationships in Ecosystems Organisms, and populations of organisms, are dependent on their environmental interactions both with other living things and with nonliving factors. 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. Growth of organisms and population increases are limited by access to resources.

Science & Engineering Practices: Analyzing and Interpreting Data Analyze and interpret data to provide evidence for phenomena.

Crosscutting Concepts: Cause and Effect Cause and effect relationships may be used to predict phenomena in natural or designed systems.

California Environmental Principles and Concepts:
Principle I The continuation and health of individual human lives and of human communities and societies depend on the health of the natural systems that provide essential goods and ecosystem services. Principle II The long-term functioning and health of terrestrial, freshwater, coastal, and marine ecosystems are influenced by their relationships with human societies. Principle III Natural systems proceed through cycles that humans depend upon, benefit from, and can alter. Principle IV The exchange of matter between natural systems and human societies affects the long-term functioning of both. Principle V Decisions affecting resources and natural systems are based on a wide range of considerations and decision-making processes.

California Common Core State Standards Connections:
ELA/Literacy RST.6-8.1: Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of science and technical texts. RST.6-8.7: Integrate quantitative or technical information expressed in words in a text with a version of that information expressed visually (e.g., in a flowchart, diagram, model, graph, or table).

DCI Connections:
Connections to other DCIs in this grade-band: MS.ESS3.A; MS.ESS3.C Articulation across grade-bands: 3.LS2.C; 3.LS4.D; 5.LS2.A; HS.LS2.A; HS.LS4.C; HS.LS4.D; HS.ESS3.A

Title: MS-PS2 Motion and Stability: Forces and Interactions

Performance Expectation: Ask questions about data to determine the factors that affect the strength of electric and magnetic forces. [Clarification Statement: Examples of devices that use electric and magnetic forces could include electromagnets, electric motors, or generators. Examples of data could include the effect of the number of turns of wire on the strength of an electromagnet, or the effect of increasing the number or strength of magnets on the speed of an electric motor.] [Assessment Boundary: Assessment about questions that require quantitative answers is limited to proportional reasoning and algebraic thinking.]

Disciplinary Core Idea(s):
PS2.B: Types of Interactions Electric and magnetic (electromagnetic) forces can be attractive or repulsive, and their sizes depend on the magnitudes of the charges, currents, or magnetic strengths involved and on the distances between the interacting objects.

Science & Engineering Practices: Asking Questions and Defining Problems Ask questions that can be investigated within the scope of the classroom, outdoor environment, and museums and other public facilities with available resources and, when appropriate, frame a hypothesis based on observations and scientific principles.

Crosscutting Concepts: Cause and Effect Cause and effect relationships may be used to predict phenomena in natural or designed systems.

California Environmental Principles and Concepts:
N/A

California Common Core State Standards Connections:
ELA/Literacy RST.6-8.1: Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of science and technical texts, attending to the precise details of explanations or descriptions. Mathematics MP.2: Reason abstractly and quantitatively.

DCI Connections:
Connections to other DCIs in this grade-band: N/A Articulation across grade-bands: 3.PS2.B; HS.PS2.B

Title: MS-PS2 Motion and Stability: Forces and Interactions

Performance Expectation: 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. [Clarification Statement: Examples of this phenomenon could include the interactions of magnets, electrically-charged strips of tape, and electrically-charged pith balls. Examples of investigations could include first-hand experiences or simulations.] [Assessment Boundary: Assessment is limited to electric and magnetic fields, and limited to qualitative evidence for the existence of fields.]

Disciplinary Core Idea(s):
PS2.B: Types of Interactions Forces that act at a distance (electric, magnetic, and gravitational) can be explained by fields that extend through space and can be mapped by their effect on a test object (a charged object, a magnet, or a ball, respectively).

Science & Engineering Practices: Planning and Carrying Out Investigations Conduct an investigation and evaluate the experimental design to produce data to serve as the basis for evidence that can meet the goals of the investigation.

Crosscutting Concepts: Cause and Effect Cause and effect relationships may be used to predict phenomena in natural or designed systems.

California Environmental Principles and Concepts:
N/A

California Common Core State Standards Connections:
ELA/Literacy RST.6-8.3: Follow precisely a multistep procedure when carrying out experiments, taking measurements, or performing technical tasks. WHST.6-8.7: Conduct short research projects to answer a question (including a self-generated question), drawing on several sources and generating additional related, focused questions that allow for multiple avenues of exploration.

DCI Connections:
Connections to other DCIs in this grade-band: N/A Articulation across grade-bands: 3.PS2.B; HS.PS2.B; HS.PS3.A; HS.PS3.B ; HS.PS3.C

Title: HS-LS2 Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics

Performance Expectation: Use mathematical and/or computational representations to support explanations of factors that affect carrying capacity of ecosystems at different scales. [Clarification Statement: Emphasis is on quantitative analysis and comparison of the relationships among interdependent factors including boundaries, resources, climate, and competition. Examples of mathematical comparisons could include graphs, charts, histograms, and population changes gathered from simulations or historical data sets.] [Assessment Boundary: Assessment does not include deriving mathematical equations to make comparisons.]

Disciplinary Core Idea(s):
LS2.A: Interdependent Relationships in Ecosystems Ecosystems have carrying capacities, which are limits to the numbers of organisms and populations they can support. These limits result from such factors as the availability of living and nonliving resources and from such challenges such as predation, competition, and disease. Organisms would have the capacity to produce populations of great size were it not for the fact that environments and resources are finite. This fundamental tension affects the abundance (number of individuals) of species in any given ecosystem.

Science & Engineering Practices: Using Mathematics and Computational Thinking Use mathematical and/or computational representations of phenomena or design solutions to support explanations.

Crosscutting Concepts: Scale, Proportion, and Quantity The significance of a phenomenon is dependent on the scale, proportion, and quantity at which it occurs.

California Environmental Principles and Concepts:
Principle II The long-term functioning and health of terrestrial, freshwater, coastal, and marine ecosystems are influenced by their relationships with human societies. Principle IV The exchange of matter between natural systems and human societies affects the long-term functioning of both.

California Common Core State Standards Connections:
ELA/Literacy RST.11-12.1: Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of science and technical texts, attending to important distinctions the author makes and to any gaps or inconsistencies in the account. WHST.9–12.2.a–e: Write informative/explanatory texts, including the narration of historical events, scientific procedures/experiments, or technical processes. Mathematics MP.2: Reason abstractly and quantitatively. MP.4: Model with mathematics. N-Q.1-3: Reason quantitatively and use units to solve problems.

DCI Connections:
Connections to other DCIs in this grade-band: N/A Articulation across grade-bands: MS.LS2.A; MS.LS2.C; MS.ESS3.A; MS.ESS3.C

Title: HS-LS2 Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics

Performance Expectation: Use mathematical representations to support and revise explanations based on evidence about factors affecting biodiversity and populations in ecosystems of different scales. [Clarification Statement: Examples of mathematical representations include finding the average, determining trends, and using graphical comparisons of multiple sets of data.] [Assessment Boundary: Assessment is limited to provided data.]

Disciplinary Core Idea(s):
LS2.A: Interdependent Relationships in Ecosystems Ecosystems have carrying capacities, which are limits to the numbers of organisms and populations they can support. These limits result from such factors as the availability of living and nonliving resources and from such challenges such as predation, competition, and disease. Organisms would have the capacity to produce populations of great size were it not for the fact that environments and resources are finite. This fundamental tension affects the abundance (number of individuals) of species in any given ecosystem. LS2.C: Ecosystem Dynamics, Functioning, and Resilience A complex set of interactions within an ecosystem can keep its numbers and types of organisms relatively constant over long periods of time under stable conditions. If a modest biological or physical disturbance to an ecosystem occurs, it may return to its more or less original status (i.e., the ecosystem is resilient), as opposed to becoming a very different ecosystem. Extreme fluctuations in conditions or the size of any population, however, can challenge the functioning of ecosystems in terms of resources and habitat availability.

Science & Engineering Practices: Using Mathematics and Computational Thinking Use mathematical representations of phenomena or design solutions to support and revise explanations. Connections to Nature of Science: Scientific Knowledge is Open to Revision in Light of New Evidence Most scientific knowledge is quite durable, but is, in principle, subject to change based on new evidence and/or reinterpretation of existing evidence.

Crosscutting Concepts: Scale, Proportion, and Quantity Using the concept of orders of magnitude allows one to understand how a model at one scale relates to a model at another scale.

California Environmental Principles and Concepts:
Principle II The long-term functioning and health of terrestrial, freshwater, coastal, and marine ecosystems are influenced by their relationships with human societies. Principle IV The exchange of matter between natural systems and human societies affects the long-term functioning of both.

California Common Core State Standards Connections:
ELA/Literacy RST.11-12.1: Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of science and technical texts, attending to important distinctions the author makes and to any gaps or inconsistencies in the account. WHST.9–12.2.a–e: Write informative/explanatory texts, including the narration of historical events, scientific procedures/experiments, or technical processes. Mathematics MP.2: Reason abstractly and quantitatively. MP.4: Model with mathematics. N-Q.1-3: Reason quantitatively and use units to solve problems.

DCI Connections:
Connections to other DCIs in this grade-band: HS.ESS2.E; HS.ESS3.A; HS.ESS3.C; HS.ESS3.D Articulation across grade-bands: MS.LS2.A; MS.LS2.C; MS.ESS3.C

Title: HS-LS4 HS-LS4 Biological Evolution: Unity and Diversity

Performance Expectation: Create or revise a simulation to test a solution to mitigate adverse impacts of human activity on biodiversity.* [Clarification Statement: Emphasis is on testing solutions for a proposed problem related to threatened or endangered species, or to genetic variation of organisms for multiple species.]

Disciplinary Core Idea(s):
LS4.C: Adaptation Changes in the physical environment, whether naturally occurring or human induced, have thus contributed to the expansion of some species, the emergence of new distinct species as populations diverge under different conditions, and the decline–and sometimes the extinction–of some species. LS4.D: Biodiversity and Humans Humans depend on the living world for the resources and other benefits provided by biodiversity. But human activity is also having adverse impacts on biodiversity through overpopulation, overexploitation, habitat destruction, pollution, introduction of invasive species, and climate change. Thus sustaining biodiversity so that ecosystem functioning and productivity are maintained is essential to supporting and enhancing life on Earth. Sustaining biodiversity also aids humanity by preserving landscapes of recreational or inspirational value. (Note: This Disciplinary Core Idea is also addressed by HS-LS2-7.) ETS1.B: Developing Possible Solutions When evaluating solutions, it is important to take into account a range of constraints, including cost, safety, reliability, and aesthetics, and to consider social, cultural, and environmental impacts. (secondary to HS-LS4-6) Both physical models and computers can be used in various ways to aid in the Engineering, Technology, and Applications of Science process. Computers are useful for a variety of purposes, such as running simulations to test different ways of solving a problem or to see which one is most efficient or economical; and in making a persuasive presentation to a client about how a given design will meet his or her needs. (secondary to HS-LS4-6)

Science & Engineering Practices: Using Mathematics and Computational Thinking Create or revise a simulation of a phenomenon, designed device, process, or system.

Crosscutting Concepts: Cause and Effect Empirical evidence is required to differentiate between cause and correlation and make claims about specific causes and effects.

California Environmental Principles and Concepts:
Principle I The continuation and health of individual human lives and of human communities and societies depend on the health of the natural systems that provide essential goods and ecosystem services. Principle II The long-term functioning and health of terrestrial, freshwater, coastal, and marine ecosystems are influenced by their relationships with human societies.

California Common Core State Standards Connections:
ELA/Literacy WHST.9-12.5: Develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or trying a new approach, focusing on addressing what is most significant for a specific purpose and audience. WHST.9-12.7: Conduct short as well as more sustained research projects to answer a question (including a self-generated question) or solve a problem; narrow or broaden the inquiry when appropriate; synthesize multiple sources on the subject, demonstrating understanding of the subject under investigation.

DCI Connections:
Connections to other DCIs in this grade-band: HS.ESS2.D; HS.ESS2.E; HS.ESS3.A; HS.ESS3.C; HS.ESS3.D Articulation across grade-bands: MS.LS2.C; MS.ESS3.C

Title: HS-PS2 Motion and Stability: Forces and Interactions

Performance Expectation: Plan and conduct an investigation to provide evidence that an electric current can produce a magnetic field and that a changing magnetic field can produce an electric current. [Assessment Boundary: Assessment is limited to designing and conducting investigations with provided materials and tools.]

Disciplinary Core Idea(s):
PS2.B: Types of Interactions Forces at a distance are explained by fields (gravitational, electric, and magnetic) permeating space that can transfer energy through space. Magnets or electric currents cause magnetic fields; electric charges or changing magnetic fields cause electric fields. PS3.A: Definitions of Energy “Electrical energy” may mean energy stored in a battery or energy transmitted by electric currents. (secondary to HS-PS2-5)

Science & Engineering Practices: Planning and Carrying Out Investigations Plan and conduct an investigation individually and collaboratively to produce data to serve as the basis for evidence, and in the design: decide on types, how much, and accuracy of data needed to produce reliable measurements and consider limitations on the precision of the data (e.g., number of trials, cost, risk, time), and refine the design accordingly.

Crosscutting Concepts: Cause and Effect Empirical evidence is required to differentiate between cause and correlation and make claims about specific causes and effects.

California Environmental Principles and Concepts:
N/A

California Common Core State Standards Connections:
ELA/Literacy WHST.9-12.7: Conduct short as well as more sustained research projects to answer a question (including a self-generated question) or solve a problem; narrow or broaden the inquiry when appropriate; synthesize multiple sources on the subject, demonstrating understanding of the subject under investigation. WHST.11-12.8: Gather relevant information from multiple authoritative print and digital sources, using advanced searches effectively; assess the strengths and limitations of each source in terms of the specific task, purpose, and audience; integrate information into the text selectively to maintain the flow of ideas, avoiding plagiarism and overreliance on any one source and following a standard format for citation. WHST.9-12.9: Draw evidence from informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research. Mathematics N-Q.1-3: Reason quantitatively and use units to solve problems.

DCI Connections:
Connections to other DCIs in this grade-band: HS.PS3.A; HS.PS4.B; HS.ESS2.A; HS.ESS3.A Articulation across grade-bands: MS.PS2.B; MS.ESS1.B

Title: HS-PS3 Energy

Performance Expectation: Develop and use a model of two objects interacting through electric or magnetic fields to illustrate the forces between objects and the changes in energy of the objects due to the interaction. [Clarification Statement: Examples of models could include drawings, diagrams, and texts, such as drawings of what happens when two charges of opposite polarity are near each other.] [Assessment Boundary: Assessment is limited to systems containing two objects.]

Disciplinary Core Idea(s):
PS3.C: Relationship Between Energy and Forces When two objects interacting through a field change relative position, the energy stored in the field is changed.

Science & Engineering Practices: Developing and Using Models Develop and use a model based on evidence to illustrate the relationships between systems or between components of a system.

Crosscutting Concepts: Cause and Effect Cause and effect relationships can be suggested and predicted for complex natural and human designed systems by examining what is known about smaller scale mechanisms within the system.

California Environmental Principles and Concepts:
N/A

California Common Core State Standards Connections:
ELA/Literacy WHST.9-12.7: Conduct short as well as more sustained research projects to answer a question (including a self-generated question) or solve a problem; narrow or broaden the inquiry when appropriate; synthesize multiple sources on the subject, demonstrating understanding of the subject under investigation. WHST.9-10.8: Gather relevant information from multiple authoritative print and digital resources (primary and secondary), using advanced searches effectively; assess the usefulness of each source in answering the research question; integrate information into the text selectively to maintain the flow of ideas, avoiding plagiarism and following a standard format for citation. WHST.11-12.8: Gather relevant information from multiple authoritative print and digital sources, using advanced searches effectively; assess the strengths and limitations of each source in terms of the specific task, purpose, and audience; integrate information into the text selectively to maintain the flow of ideas, avoiding plagiarism overreliance on any one source and following a standard format for citation. WHST.9-12.9: Draw evidence from informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research. SL.11-12.5: Make strategic use of digital media (e.g., textual, graphical, audio, visual, and interactive elements) in presentations to enhance understanding of findings, reasoning, and evidence and to add interest. Mathematics MP.2: Reason abstractly and quantitatively. MP.4: Model with mathematics.

DCI Connections:
Connections to other DCIs in this grade-band: HS.PS2.B Articulation across grade-bands: MS.PS2.B; MS.PS3.C