MS-LS1-2 lessons
Develop and use a model to describe the function of a cell as a whole and ways parts of cells contribute to the function.
The Next Generation Science Standards code MS-LS1-2 asks students to: “Develop and use a model to describe the function of a cell as a whole and ways parts of cells contribute to the function.” These Fieldbook lessons teach it hands-on, with everyday materials, a printable teacher guide and a student sheet.
Cells: The Smallest Living Things Grades 7–8 · partly supports this standard
- How do things get in and out of a cell? Two sessions: 45 min, then 30 min the next day
Students weigh potato strips, soak them in plain and salty water, and measure how their mass and stiffness change. They use the results to explain diffusion and osmosis, and why a wilted salad goes limp.
- Can you pull DNA out of a strawberry? 50–60 min
Students mash strawberries with dish soap and salt, filter the juice, and watch a cloudy white tangle of DNA appear when the teacher layers cold rubbing alcohol on top. They explain what each ingredient did to the cell, and test what happens without soap.
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-LS1-2 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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