The Next Generation Science Standards outline a 3-dimensional approach to teaching and learning according to which students should use science skills to learn science concepts through the lens of phenomena they can witness in our macroscopic world.

I use the Active Learning Action Plan to create activities for my own students in my own classroom, and I not yet required to comply with NGSS.  I created this approach with student engagement and achievement in mind, not the beaurocracy of a complex, ill-managed education system.

If you are required to meet these expectations, the training and tools provided in this Plan will support your planning and prep for direct instruction. 

I teach high school chemistry and plan to, in time, create a curriculum for biology and physics, as well.

Activities can be easily differentiated for special needs or honors-level students, though that instruction is not included in this program.

State standards and teacher expectations are moving toward more student activity and overall ownership of learning at every grade level.

The sooner students learn and begin practicing science skills, the more proficient they will be by the time they graduate!

However, the technology resources I’m most familiar with online are intended for students in middle and high school.  Elementary teachers may need to spend some additional time searching for student-controlled resources like simulations.

The sooner science teachers can adopt student-centered, inquiry-based strategies that require more focused, thoughtful action the better!

By starting with this approach early in your career, you’re less likely to feel bored and burnout … instead, you might wake up feeling excited to go to work and content in the knowledge that you’re commitment is creating true life-long learners.

This program includes the exact process I used as I prepared to transition my online science classroom to a student-centered culture with active learning practices … and that was after 9 years of working with the traditional, lecture-lab mindset! 

If you know what you want to accomplish but you don’t how or you haven’t been successful yet, this program will be very helpful to begin the process of change.

The beating heart of every lesson I deliver is an inquiry-based activity designed using this Action Plan.  It takes me about 1 hour to create the activity and an additional 1 hour to build out the other parts of the lesson (those which are not included in the Action Plan).

Like any new endeavor, you should realize it may take time to become fluent.  You and I probably work differently, lead within different content areas, have different degrees of content area expertise, and aim to achieve different depths of knowledge with our student groups.

While the time it takes to create activities will vary from teacher to teacher, I would guarantee that the time to design them will take longer than if you were to create a brand new lecture presentation.

HOWEVER, science never goes out of style!  State standards and teacher expectations are moving toward more student activity and overall ownership of learning.  You’ll be able to use your new lessons for a very long time!

AND … doing it with guidance will always be more efficient than going solo.

When you drop your question in the private community feed, you can expect a written answer from me within 24 hours, Monday-Friday.  Other teachers may also reply with their ideas and answers to your questions.

More focused feedback and dedicated support including personalized reviews are included for members of the Digital Instructional Design Studio.

If the Active Learning Action Plan I’ve provided doesn’t allow you to create activities that encourage students to question and discover the core ideas of your content and be more independent in their doing OR you aren’t finding more fulfillment from this different style of teaching, just email me and I’ll happily issue you a full refund.