MS-ESS2-3 lessons
Analyze and interpret data on the distribution of fossils and rocks, continental shapes, and seafloor structures to provide evidence of the past plate motions.
The Next Generation Science Standards code MS-ESS2-3 asks students to: “Analyze and interpret data on the distribution of fossils and rocks, continental shapes, and seafloor structures to provide evidence of the past plate motions.” These Fieldbook lessons teach it hands-on, with everyday materials, a printable teacher guide and a student sheet.
Restless Earth: Fossils, Soils, Volcanoes and Plates Grades 4–7 · partly supports this standard
- Where do volcanoes and earthquakes happen? 50–60 min
Teams plot twenty-two real volcanoes and earthquakes from a data table onto a world map using latitude and longitude. They join the dots, find the lines and rings they make, and use the pattern to say which of three cities is most likely to feel earthquakes.
- What do moving plates do, and can a building survive? 80–90 min (easy to split over two periods)
Teams move two foam plates on a tray of syrup to pull them apart and push them together, then slide sandpaper blocks to feel an earthquake build and release. They design and test straw towers on a shake table, compare two designs, and explain how engineers reduce earthquake damage.
NGSS is used as written in Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, so the code MS-ESS2-3 matches there. Other states word and number their own versions: see curriculum alignment for your state's codes.
More NGSS standards for middle school
All standards we teach · Curriculum alignment by state and province
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