Middle School NGSS Question Stem Bank:
Standards for NGSS
Life Science
From Molecules to Organisms: Structures and Processes
Standard
Basic: Conceptual
“Understand”
Standard: Procedural
“Doing
Expanded: Application
MS-LS1-1. Conduct an
investigation to provide
evidence that living things
are made of cells; either
one cell or many different
numbers and types of
cells.
The smallest functional unit of all
living organisms is the _________
Compare and contrast living, non-living, and
dead substances in relation to the presence
of cells.
Design and conduct an investigation to
provide evidence that all living things
are made up of cells.
MS-LS1-2. Develop and
use a model to describe
the function of a cell as a
whole and ways parts of
cells contribute to the
function.
What is the function of the cell
membrane?
If a single cell has more mitochondria than
another cell, what do you believe can be
assumed about its function...? (​ Note: Only
analytical task if this specific example has
not been used in class)
Develop and create a model of a cell to
demonstrate how all of the organelles
in the cell work together to contribute to
the function of the cell.
MS-LS1-3. Use argument
supported by evidence for
how the body is a system
of interacting subsystems
composed of groups of
cells.
Describe the hierarchy of
organization within organisms.
What evidence or data would be required to
place organs together in an organ system?
Develop an argument based upon
evidence to rebuke the following
statement; “An organism can have
organs and organ systems, but be
lacking in tissues.”
* It may be appropriate to read some of the longer problems out loud especially with lower readers
1
Middle School NGSS Question Stem Bank:
Standards for NGSS
MS-LS1-4. Use argument
based on empirical
evidence and scientific
reasoning to support an
explanation for how
characteristic animal
behaviors and specialized
plant structures affect the
probability of successful
reproduction of animals
and plants respectively.
Define reproduction.
MS-LS1-5. Construct a
scientific explanation
based on evidence for
how environmental and
genetic factors influence
the growth of organisms.
Analyze a data set to determine the
relationship between particular
characteristic behaviors and the probability
that the individual will reproduce.
Design an experiment to observe
particular behaviors of an animal to
determine whether it increases the
probability for the organism to
reproduce and the data required to
support the hypothesis.
List some environmental factors that
could affect the growth of a plant.
Analyze data and evidence to determine the
effects that both environmental and genetic
factors influence the growth of organisms.
Create a model that demonstrates the
effects that of environmental factors on
plant growth.
MS-LS1-6. Construct a
scientific explanation
based on evidence for the
role of photosynthesis in
the cycling of matter and
flow of energy into and
out of organisms.
Label this diagram of photosynthesis.
Analyze data to determine the wavelengths
and carbon dioxide concentrations plants
will most efficiently cycle matter in.
Conduct an experiment to determine
how efficiently plants convert carbon
dioxide into organic molecules and how
that matter is passed to other
organisms.
MS-LS1-7. Develop a
model to describe how
food is rearranged
through chemical
reactions forming new
molecules that support
growth and/or release
energy as this matter
moves through an
organism.
What process is used to break down
organic molecules to get energy?
Compare and contrast the processes of
photosynthesis and cellular respiration.
Develop a model to represent how
organic molecules are created through
photosynthesis and are then broken
down using cellular respiration to
create energy usable for cellular
processes.
MS-LS1-8. Gather and
synthesize information
that sensory receptors
respond to stimuli by
sending messages to the
Differentiate between the central
nervous system and peripheral
nervous system.
Evaluate a model of response to stimuli to
verify that sensory receptors send
messages to the brain to respond.
If an individual is paralyzed from the
waist down and puts their foot on
something hot, why would a response
to that stimuli be blocked?
What is the difference between
sexual and asexual reproduction?
* It may be appropriate to read some of the longer problems out loud especially with lower readers
2
Middle School NGSS Question Stem Bank:
Standards for NGSS
brain for immediate
behavior or storage as
memories.
Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics
Standard
Basic: Conceptual
“Understand”
Standard: Procedural
“Doing
Expanded: Application
MS-LS2-1.
Analyze and
interpret data to
provide evidence
for the effects of
resource
availability on
organisms and
populations of
organisms in an
ecosystem.
What are some of the resources within
an ecosystem which organisms depend
upon?
Analyze and interpret data to determine the
effect that resource availability has upon an
ecosystem.
Make a prediction about what would
happen to a community if there was a
natural disaster that caused a
particular resource to become scarce.
Be sure to indicate what would happen
to multiple populations and their
corresponding effects.
MS-LS2-2.
Construct an
explanation that
predicts patterns
of interactions
among organisms
across multiple
ecosystems.
Differentiate between biotic and abiotic
components of an ecosystem.
Analyze and interpret data to determine the
effect that the predator-prey relationship
plays within an ecosystem.
Create a model that explains the
different interactions between
organisms and predicts the potential
impact that there could be if any of the
organisms are lost.
MS-LS2-3.
Develop a model
to describe the
cycling of matter
and flow of energy
among living and
nonliving parts of
an ecosystem.
What do we mean by conservation of
matter?
Interpret and label the following food web.
Create a food web based upon
information provided from data to
represent the flow of energy and
matter through an ecosystem.
What are the different types of
interactions within a community of
organisms?
What is a decomposer?
* It may be appropriate to read some of the longer problems out loud especially with lower readers
3
Middle School NGSS Question Stem Bank:
Standards for NGSS
MS-LS2-4.
Construct an
argument
supported by
empirical evidence
that changes to
physical or
biological
components of an
ecosystem affect
populations.
Differentiate between biotic and abiotic
components of an ecosystem.
MS-LS2-5.
Evaluate
competing design
solutions for
maintaining
biodiversity and
ecosystem
services.
Define biodiversity.
What are some abiotic components that
affect an ecosystem?
Analyze and interpret data to determine the
effects that changes in physical or
biological components of an ecosystem
have on population sizes.
Based upon prior investigations and
analysis make a prediction regarding
the effects on population size that a
particular physical or biological
component would have in a unique or
new situation.
Analyze and interpret data to determine the
depth to which humans impact biodiversity
in nature.
Identify and describe additional
evidence (in the form of data,
information, or other appropriate
forms) that is relevant to problems,
design solutions, and evaluation of the
solutions relating to biodiversity.
Heredity: Inheritance and Variation of Traits
* It may be appropriate to read some of the longer problems out loud especially with lower readers
4
Middle School NGSS Question Stem Bank:
Standards for NGSS
Standard
Basic: Conceptual
“Understand”
Standard: Procedural
“Doing
MS-LS3-1.
Develop and use
a model to
describe why
structural changes
to genes
(mutations)
located on
chromosomes
may affect
proteins and may
result in harmful,
beneficial, or
neutral effects to
the structure and
function of the
organism.
DNA in the nucleus contains information
to create _________.
If DNA contains the information required to
create proteins and proteins are the basic
building blocks of cells, make a prediction
as to what would happen if you change any
of the DNA.
Develop and create a model to
describe how and why structural
changes in the genes of DNA may
affect proteins and cells.
MS-LS3-2.
Develop and use
a model to
describe why
asexual
reproduction
results in offspring
with identical
genetic
information and
sexual
reproduction
results in offspring
with genetic
variation.
Differentiate between sexual and
asexual reproduction.
Using a punnett square determine what the
offspring will look like if you cross a
heterozygous individual with a homozygous
dominant individual.
Rolling your tongue is a dominant trait
to not rolling your tongue. Tom’s great
grandparents on both sides could roll
their tongues but Tom cannot. Develop
a model to demonstrate how this could
be the case.
What are the building blocks of
proteins?
Expanded: Application
Biological Evolution: Unity and Diversity
* It may be appropriate to read some of the longer problems out loud especially with lower readers
5
Middle School NGSS Question Stem Bank:
Standards for NGSS
Standard
Basic: Conceptual
“Understand”
Standard: Procedural
“Doing
Expanded: Application
MS-LS4-1.
Analyze and
interpret data for
patterns in the
fossil record that
document the
existence,
diversity,
extinction, and
change of life
forms throughout
the history of life
on Earth under the
assumption that
natural laws
operate today as
in the past.
Label the following diagram from oldest
to newest.
Analyze and interpret data for patterns to
determine at what point in history the last
mass extinction was.
Based upon data and scientists
current research, analyze and develop
an argument to argue why some think
we are in the midst of the sixth mass
extinction.
MS-LS4-2. Apply
scientific ideas to
construct an
explanation for the
anatomical
similarities and
differences among
modern organisms
and between
modern and fossil
organisms to infer
evolutionary
relationships.
What are some anatomical similarities
between all the animals in this diagram?
Analyze this cladogram to determine what
anatomical similarities a lizard and mouse
have.
Create a cladogram based upon
anatomical similarities and differences
between modern and fossil organisms
to determine their evolutionary
relationships.
MS-LS4-3.
Analyze displays
Make observations about similarities in
the patterns of development of different
Given the following diagram, compare and
contrast the embryological development of
Given the following diagram, make a
prediction as to which organisms are
* It may be appropriate to read some of the longer problems out loud especially with lower readers
6
Middle School NGSS Question Stem Bank:
Standards for NGSS
of pictorial data to
compare patterns
of similarities in
the embryological
development
across multiple
species to identify
relationships not
evident in the fully
formed anatomy.
organisms based upon the following
diagram.
3 different organisms.
most closely related evolutionarily.
MS-LS4-4.
Construct an
explanation based
on evidence that
describes how
genetic variations
of traits in a
population
increase some
individuals’
probability of
surviving and
reproducing in a
specific
environment.
What is natural selection?
What are the major components of
natural selection?
Analyze and interpret data to construct an
argument that genetic variations of traits in
a population increase some individuals’
probability of surviving and reproducing.
Given a particular set of data in one
environment, make a prediction
regarding an individual’s probability of
surviving and reproducing in another
environment.
MS-LS4-5. Gather
Differentiate between artificial selection
Analyze and interpret data to determine
Identify a problem regarding the
* It may be appropriate to read some of the longer problems out loud especially with lower readers
7
Middle School NGSS Question Stem Bank:
Standards for NGSS
and synthesize
information about
the technologies
that have changed
the way humans
influence the
inheritance of
desired traits in
organisms.
and natural selection.
how artificial selection and other human
technologies have solved problems.
inheritance of bad or unwanted
genetics, and hypothesize a potential
technology that could help fix the
problem.
MS-LS4-6. Use
mathematical
representations to
support
explanations of
how natural
selection may lead
to increases and
decreases of
specific traits in
populations over
time.
If two traits are found in a 1:1 ratio, but
one trait becomes more advantageous
than the other, will the ratio of the two
traits remain the same or change?
If tree height is determined by a single trait,
based upon the histogram below,
determine which traits are most
advantageous (tall, short, or medium).
Based upon multiple histograms under
different environmental conditions for
an organism, create a predictive
histogram of that same organism
under unique environmental conditions
and support it with an argument.
* It may be appropriate to read some of the longer problems out loud especially with lower readers
8