Science Standards
High School Science Standards (NGSS*)
All 71 high school performance expectations of the Next Generation Science Standards, each explained in plain English. The official wording of each one is a click away.
71 standards
Physical Science
24 standardsStructure and Properties of Matter
HS-PS1-1
Treat the periodic table as a model and predict how main group elements behave from their outer electrons, like how reactive a metal is or how many bonds it forms.
Official wording
Use the periodic table as a model to predict the relative properties of elements based on the patterns of electrons in the outermost energy level of atoms.
HS-PS1-3
Plan and run an investigation comparing melting point, boiling point and surface tension across substances to infer how strongly their particles attract.
Official wording
Plan and conduct an investigation to gather evidence to compare the structure of substances at the bulk scale to infer the strength of electrical forces between particles.
HS-PS1-8
Draw simple models showing how the nucleus changes in fission, fusion and alpha, beta and gamma decay, and how the energy released dwarfs that of chemical changes.
Official wording
Develop models to illustrate the changes in the composition of the nucleus of the atom and the energy released during the processes of fission, fusion, and radioactive decay.
HS-PS2-6
Explain to others how the molecular structure of a designed material makes it work, like why wires are metal or why long chain molecules make plastic tough.
Official wording
Communicate scientific and technical information about why the molecular-level structure is important in the functioning of designed materials.
Chemical Reactions
HS-PS1-2
Build and revise an explanation of how a simple reaction turns out using outer electrons and periodic table trends, like sodium and chlorine forming table salt.
Official wording
Construct and revise an explanation for the outcome of a simple chemical reaction based on the outermost electron states of atoms, trends in the periodic table, and knowledge of the patterns of chemical properties.
HS-PS1-4
Develop a model showing that whether a reaction releases or absorbs energy depends on the overall change in bond energy, using drawings or energy diagrams.
Official wording
Develop a model to illustrate that the release or absorption of energy from a chemical reaction system depends upon the changes in total bond energy.
HS-PS1-5
Use evidence about molecular collisions to explain why raising the temperature or concentration of reactants speeds up a reaction, like milk souring faster when warm.
Official wording
Apply scientific principles and evidence to provide an explanation about the effects of changing the temperature or concentration of the reacting particles on the rate at which a reaction occurs.
HS-PS1-6
Improve the design of a chemical reaction by changing one condition, like adding reactant or removing product, so that more product forms at equilibrium.
Official wording
Refine the design of a chemical system by specifying a change in conditions that would produce increased amounts of products at equilibrium.
HS-PS1-7
Use math, including the mole, to show that a chemical reaction keeps every atom and so keeps the total mass, comparing reactant and product masses.
Official wording
Use mathematical representations to support the claim that atoms, and therefore mass, are conserved during a chemical reaction.
Forces and Interactions
HS-PS2-1
Analyze motion data, like position or speed graphs of a falling object or a cart on a ramp, to show that net force equals mass times acceleration.
Official wording
Analyze data to support the claim that Newton’s second law of motion describes the mathematical relationship among the net force on a macroscopic object, its mass, and its acceleration.
HS-PS2-2
Use math to show that two objects colliding in a straight line keep the same total momentum when no outside net force acts on them.
Official wording
Use mathematical representations to support the claim that the total momentum of a system of objects is conserved when there is no net force on the system.
HS-PS2-3
Design, test and improve a device that reduces the force on an object during a collision, like a football helmet or a parachute.
Official wording
Apply science and engineering ideas to design, evaluate, and refine a device that minimizes the force on a macroscopic object during a collision.
HS-PS2-4
Use the inverse square laws for gravity and electric charge to calculate and describe the gravitational and electric forces between two objects.
Official wording
Use mathematical representations of Newton’s Law of Gravitation and Coulomb’s Law to describe and predict the gravitational and electrostatic forces between objects.
HS-PS2-5
Plan and run an investigation showing that a current creates a magnetic field and a changing magnetic field creates a current, like a magnet moving through a coil.
Official wording
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.
Energy
HS-PS3-1
Build a computational model that works out the energy change of one part of a system when the other parts and the energy flowing in and out are known.
Official wording
Create a computational model to calculate the change in the energy of one component in a system when the change in energy of the other component(s) and energy flows in and out of the system are known.
HS-PS3-2
Develop and use models showing that the energy of everyday objects is a mix of motion energy and energy stored by position, like a rolling ball or a lifted book.
Official wording
Develop and use models to illustrate that energy at the macroscopic scale can be accounted for as a combination of energy associated with the motion of particles (objects) and energy associated with the relative positions of particles (objects).
HS-PS3-3
Design, build and improve a device that turns one form of energy into another within set limits, like a solar oven, wind turbine or Rube Goldberg machine.
Official wording
Design, build, and refine a device that works within given constraints to convert one form of energy into another form of energy.
HS-PS3-4
Plan and run an investigation showing that thermal energy spreads out evenly when hot and cold things combine in a closed system, like mixing warm and cold water.
Official wording
Plan and conduct an investigation to provide evidence that the transfer of thermal energy when two components of different temperature are combined within a closed system results in a more uniform energy distribution among the components in the system (second law of thermodynamics).
HS-PS3-5
Model two charges or magnets acting on each other through a field to show the forces they feel and how their energy changes, like opposite charges drawing together.
Official wording
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.
Waves and Electromagnetic Radiation
HS-PS4-1
Use math to relate the frequency, wavelength and speed of waves in different materials, like light slowing in glass or sound moving faster in water than air.
Official wording
Use mathematical representations to support a claim regarding relationships among the frequency, wavelength, and speed of waves traveling in various media.
HS-PS4-2
Weigh questions about the benefits of storing and sending information digitally, like reliable copying and sharing, against risks like deletion and theft.
Official wording
Evaluate questions about the advantages of using digital transmission and storage of information.
HS-PS4-3
Evaluate the evidence that electromagnetic radiation fits a wave model in some cases and a particle model in others, like interference versus the photoelectric effect.
Official wording
Evaluate the claims, evidence, and reasoning behind the idea that electromagnetic radiation can be described either by a wave model or a particle model, and that for some situations one model is more useful than the other.
HS-PS4-4
Judge how trustworthy published claims are about what different frequencies of electromagnetic radiation do when absorbed, like ultraviolet light damaging skin cells.
Official wording
Evaluate the validity and reliability of claims in published materials of the effects that different frequencies of electromagnetic radiation have when absorbed by matter.
HS-PS4-5
Explain to others how technologies such as solar cells, medical scanners and cell phones use wave behavior to send and capture information and energy.
Official wording
Communicate technical information about how some technological devices use the principles of wave behavior and wave interactions with matter to transmit and capture information and energy.
Life Science
24 standardsStructure and Function
HS-LS1-1
Use evidence to explain how the code in DNA shapes proteins, the molecules that do the work of life in systems of specialized cells.
Official wording
Construct an explanation based on evidence for how the structure of DNA determines the structure of proteins, which carry out the essential functions of life through systems of specialized cells.
HS-LS1-2
Develop and use a model of how cells, tissues, organs and organ systems work together in a body, like an artery using muscle and elastic tissue to move blood.
Official wording
Develop and use a model to illustrate the hierarchical organization of interacting systems that provide specific functions within multicellular organisms.
HS-LS1-3
Plan and run an investigation showing how feedback loops maintain homeostasis, like heart rate rising during exercise or leaf pores closing as soil dries.
Official wording
Plan and conduct an investigation to provide evidence that feedback mechanisms maintain homeostasis.
Matter and Energy in Organisms and Ecosystems
HS-LS1-5
Use a model to show how plants capture light energy and store it as chemical energy in sugar, tracking the carbon dioxide and water in and oxygen out.
Official wording
Use a model to illustrate how photosynthesis transforms light energy into stored chemical energy.
HS-LS1-6
Build and revise an evidence-based explanation of how atoms from sugars join with other elements to make amino acids and other large carbon-based molecules.
Official wording
Construct and revise an explanation based on evidence for how carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen from sugar molecules may combine with other elements to form amino acids and/or other large carbon-based molecules.
HS-LS1-7
Use a model to show that cellular respiration breaks bonds in food and oxygen and forms new compounds, releasing a net amount of energy the cell can use.
Official wording
Use a model to illustrate that cellular respiration is a chemical process whereby the bonds of food molecules and oxygen molecules are broken and the bonds in new compounds are formed, resulting in a net transfer of energy.
HS-LS2-3
Build and revise an evidence-based explanation of how matter cycles and energy flows when organisms respire with or without oxygen, like yeast in rising bread.
Official wording
Construct and revise an explanation based on evidence for the cycling of matter and flow of energy in aerobic and anaerobic conditions.
HS-LS2-4
Use math on biomass at each trophic level to show how energy moves up a food web and how atoms like carbon and nitrogen are conserved as they cycle.
Official wording
Use mathematical representations to support claims for the cycling of matter and flow of energy among organisms in an ecosystem.
HS-LS2-5
Develop a model showing how photosynthesis and cellular respiration move carbon between living things, the air, the oceans and the rocks and soil.
Official wording
Develop a model to illustrate the role of photosynthesis and cellular respiration in the cycling of carbon among the biosphere, atmosphere, hydrosphere, and geosphere.
Interdependent Relationships in Ecosystems
HS-LS2-1
Use math or computer models to explain what sets the carrying capacity of an ecosystem at different scales, from space and food to climate and competition.
Official wording
Use mathematical and/or computational representations to support explanations of factors that affect carrying capacity of ecosystems at different scales.
HS-LS2-2
Use math, like averages and trends in data sets, to support and revise explanations of what changes biodiversity and population sizes in ecosystems of any size.
Official wording
Use mathematical representations to support and revise explanations based on evidence about factors affecting biodiversity and populations in ecosystems of different scales.
HS-LS2-6
Evaluate the case that stable ecosystems keep steady numbers and kinds of organisms, but big changes like a volcanic eruption can create a new ecosystem.
Official wording
Evaluate claims, evidence, and reasoning that the complex interactions in ecosystems maintain relatively consistent numbers and types of organisms in stable conditions, but changing conditions may result in a new ecosystem.
HS-LS2-7
Design, test and improve a solution that limits the harm people do to the environment and biodiversity, like building dams or spreading invasive species.
Official wording
Design, evaluate, and refine a solution for reducing the impacts of human activities on the environment and biodiversity.
HS-LS2-8
Evaluate evidence on how group behaviors like flocking, schooling and cooperative hunting help individuals and species survive and reproduce.
Official wording
Evaluate evidence for the role of group behavior on individual and species’ chances to survive and reproduce.
HS-LS4-6
Build or improve a computer simulation that tests a design for protecting biodiversity from human impacts, like saving an endangered species or its genetic variety.
Official wording
Create or revise a simulation to test a solution to mitigate adverse impacts of human activity on biodiversity.
Inheritance and Variation of Traits
HS-LS1-4
Use a model to show how mitosis and cell differentiation let a single cell grow into a complex organism and keep its tissues working.
Official wording
Use a model to illustrate the role of cellular division (mitosis) and differentiation in producing and maintaining complex organisms.
HS-LS3-1
Ask questions to clarify how DNA and chromosomes carry the instructions for traits that parents pass on to their offspring.
Official wording
Ask questions to clarify relationships about the role of DNA and chromosomes in coding the instructions for characteristic traits passed from parents to offspring.
HS-LS3-2
Make and defend an evidence-based claim that new inheritable variation comes from meiosis shuffling genes, copying errors in DNA or mutations caused by the environment.
Official wording
Make and defend a claim based on evidence that inheritable genetic variations may result from (1) new genetic combinations through meiosis, (2) viable errors occurring during replication, and/or (3) mutations caused by environmental factors.
HS-LS3-3
Use statistics and probability to explain how expressed traits vary and are spread across a population, shaped by both genes and environment.
Official wording
Apply concepts of statistics and probability to explain the variation and distribution of expressed traits in a population.
Natural Selection and Evolution
HS-LS4-1
Communicate how several lines of evidence, like DNA similarities, shared body structures and embryo development, support common ancestry and evolution.
Official wording
Communicate scientific information that common ancestry and biological evolution are supported by multiple lines of empirical evidence.
HS-LS4-2
Explain with evidence how evolution results from population growth, inherited variation, competition for limited resources and the success of better-adapted organisms.
Official wording
Construct an explanation based on evidence that the process of evolution primarily results from four factors: (1) the potential for a species to increase in number, (2) the heritable genetic variation of individuals in a species due to mutation and sexual reproduction, (3) competition for limited resources, and (4) the proliferation of those organisms that are better able to survive and reproduce in the environment.
HS-LS4-3
Use statistics and probability to show that organisms with a helpful inherited trait tend to become a larger share of a population over generations.
Official wording
Apply concepts of statistics and probability to support explanations that organisms with an advantageous heritable trait tend to increase in proportion to organisms lacking this trait.
HS-LS4-4
Use data to explain how natural selection adapts populations over time, like differences in temperature, acidity or geographic barriers shifting gene frequencies.
Official wording
Construct an explanation based on evidence for how natural selection leads to adaptation of populations.
HS-LS4-5
Evaluate evidence that changing environments, like deforestation or drought, can make some species more numerous, give rise to new species and drive others extinct.
Official wording
Evaluate the evidence supporting claims that changes in environmental conditions may result in (1) increases in the number of individuals of some species, (2) the emergence of new species over time, and (3) the extinction of other species.
Earth and Space Science
19 standardsSpace Systems
HS-ESS1-1
Model, using evidence from other stars, how long the sun will shine and how fusion in its core releases energy that travels to Earth as radiation.
Official wording
Develop a model based on evidence to illustrate the life span of the sun and the role of nuclear fusion in the sun’s core to release energy that eventually reaches Earth in the form of radiation.
HS-ESS1-2
Explain the Big Bang theory using evidence like red-shifted light from distant galaxies, the cosmic microwave background and the mix of hydrogen and helium in stars.
Official wording
Construct an explanation of the Big Bang theory based on astronomical evidence of light spectra, motion of distant galaxies, and composition of matter in the universe.
HS-ESS1-3
Communicate how stars forge new elements over their life cycles, with the elements made depending on how massive the star is and its stage of life.
Official wording
Communicate scientific ideas about the way stars, over their life cycle, produce elements.
HS-ESS1-4
Use math or computer models based on gravity to predict the orbits of planets, moons and human-made satellites around one central body.
Official wording
Use mathematical or computational representations to predict the motion of orbiting objects in the solar system.
History of Earth
HS-ESS1-5
Evaluate evidence of moving continents and seafloor and use plate tectonics to explain rock ages, like ocean crust getting older farther from mid-ocean ridges.
Official wording
Evaluate evidence of the past and current movements of continental and oceanic crust and the theory of plate tectonics to explain the ages of crustal rocks.
HS-ESS1-6
Use evidence from ancient rocks, meteorites and cratered moons to reconstruct how Earth formed about 4.6 billion years ago and what its early history was like.
Official wording
Apply scientific reasoning and evidence from ancient Earth materials, meteorites, and other planetary surfaces to construct an account of Earth’s formation and early history.
HS-ESS2-1
Develop a model showing how forces that build up, like volcanoes and uplift, and forces that wear down, like erosion, shape land and seafloor features over time.
Official wording
Develop a model to illustrate how Earth’s internal and surface processes operate at different spatial and temporal scales to form continental and ocean-floor features.
Earth's Systems
HS-ESS2-2
Analyze geoscience data to show that one change on Earth can set off feedbacks in other systems, like melting ice reflecting less sunlight and causing more warming.
Official wording
Analyze geoscience data to make the claim that one change to Earth's surface can create feedbacks that cause changes to other Earth systems.
HS-ESS2-3
Use evidence like seismic waves to model the layers inside Earth and how thermal convection in the mantle cycles matter and drives plate motion.
Official wording
Develop a model based on evidence of Earth’s interior to describe the cycling of matter by thermal convection.
HS-ESS2-5
Plan and run an investigation into the properties of water and how it shapes rocks and land, like frost wedging, stream erosion or dissolving minerals.
Official wording
Plan and conduct an investigation of the properties of water and its effects on Earth materials and surface processes.
HS-ESS2-6
Develop a quantitative model tracking how much carbon moves among the ocean, atmosphere, rocks and soil, and living things including people.
Official wording
Develop a quantitative model to describe the cycling of carbon among the hydrosphere, atmosphere, geosphere, and biosphere.
HS-ESS2-7
Argue from evidence that life and Earth systems have shaped each other over time, like early photosynthesis filling the air with oxygen.
Official wording
Construct an argument based on evidence about the simultaneous coevolution of Earth’s systems and life on Earth.
Weather and Climate
HS-ESS2-4
Use a model to show how changes in the energy entering and leaving Earth systems alter climate, from volcanic eruptions to slow shifts in the orbit of Earth.
Official wording
Use a model to describe how variations in the flow of energy into and out of Earth’s systems result in changes in climate.
HS-ESS3-5
Analyze geoscience data and climate model results to forecast how fast global or regional climate is changing and what that will mean for sea level or ice.
Official wording
Analyze geoscience data and the results from global climate models to make an evidence-based forecast of the current rate of global or regional climate change and associated future impacts to Earth's systems.
Human Sustainability
HS-ESS3-1
Use evidence to explain how natural resources, natural hazards and climate change have shaped where and how people live, like cities built along rivers.
Official wording
Construct an explanation based on evidence for how the availability of natural resources, occurrence of natural hazards, and changes in climate have influenced human activity.
HS-ESS3-2
Evaluate competing designs for producing and managing energy and mineral resources by weighing costs against benefits, like ways to mine coal or reuse metals.
Official wording
Evaluate competing design solutions for developing, managing, and utilizing energy and mineral resources based on cost-benefit ratios.
HS-ESS3-3
Build a simple computer simulation or spreadsheet showing how the way we manage resources affects both biodiversity and how long human populations can thrive.
Official wording
Create a computational simulation to illustrate the relationships among the management of natural resources, the sustainability of human populations, and biodiversity.
HS-ESS3-4
Evaluate or improve a technological design that reduces human impacts on natural systems, from local recycling to large efforts to cool the planet.
Official wording
Evaluate or refine a technological solution that reduces impacts of human activities on natural systems.
HS-ESS3-6
Use the results of computer models to show how Earth systems interact and how human activity is changing them, like more carbon dioxide acidifying the oceans.
Official wording
Use a computational representation to illustrate the relationships among Earth systems and how those relationships are being modified due to human activity.
Engineering, Technology, and Applications of Science
4 standardsEngineering Design
HS-ETS1-1
Analyze a big global challenge, like access to clean water, to define the measurable and descriptive criteria and constraints a solution must meet for society.
Official wording
Analyze a major global challenge to specify qualitative and quantitative criteria and constraints for solutions that account for societal needs and wants.
HS-ETS1-2
Design a solution to a big real-world problem by splitting it into smaller parts that engineering can solve one at a time.
Official wording
Design a solution to a complex real-world problem by breaking it down into smaller, more manageable problems that can be solved through engineering.
HS-ETS1-3
Judge a solution to a complex problem by ranking criteria and weighing trade-offs in cost, safety, reliability, looks and social and environmental impact.
Official wording
Evaluate a solution to a complex real-world problem based on prioritized criteria and trade-offs that account for a range of constraints, including cost, safety, reliability, and aesthetics as well as possible social, cultural, and environmental impacts.
HS-ETS1-4
Run a computer simulation to test how possible solutions to a complex problem with many criteria and constraints would affect the systems involved.
Official wording
Use a computer simulation to model the impact of proposed solutions to a complex real-world problem with numerous criteria and constraints on interactions within and between systems relevant to the problem.
The official document
Official wording from NGSS Lead States. 2013. Next Generation Science Standards: For States, By States. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. The plain-English lines and everything else on this page are EMStudio’s own explanations, written beside the official wording. They are not part of the standards.
*NGSS is a registered trademark of WestEd. Neither WestEd nor the lead states and partners that developed the Next Generation Science Standards were involved in the production of this product, and do not endorse it.