Curriculum Offerings

inquiryHub high school and middle school curricula, guided by the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) and STEM standards in computer science and AI education, uses research-based approaches to teach science in a deeply digital environment, where students apply science and engineering ideas and practices to explain phenomena and solve problems.

inquiryHub curricula, such as those we developed as part of the Developers’ Consortium for OpenSciEd, are designed to go beyond traditional science content. By focusing on phenomena relevant to students' lives and communities, the courses provide opportunities to authentically engage with science and engineering practices. The combination of community science, technology, and a focus on science and engineering practices has been shown to help students feel more like scientists, including the belief that their ability to do science can make a difference in their world (Bang & Medin, 2010; Calabrese Barton & Tan, 2010; Roth & Lee, 2003; Tzou & Bell, 2010).

Our Curriculum Offerings

OpenSciEd High School Science Curriculum

The inquiryHub team led the development of courses in three- Biology, Chemistry, and Physics with Earth and space science integrated into each course. Featuring storyline instructional models and exciting new anchors, the units were selected using interest data from students. Additionally, all materials were field tested in more than 300 schools across the country to ensure they meet high standards for student engagement and learning. Through a collaboration with the Learning in Places Collaborative, we have integrated ethical decision making into phenomena and design challenges. Additionally, an integral component of the development process has been external validation of alignment to the NGSS by NextGenScience’s Science Peer Review Panel using the EQuIP rubric and reviews by educators who are part of Science Educators for Equity, Diversity, and Social Justice.

Access the OpenSciEd High School Curriculum Materials and Kit Lists

While slide decks and resources from the curriculum and professional learning materials are free and available for anyone to use, they are most effective when used with a trained facilitator.

SchoolWide Labs Curriculum

The SchoolWide Labs unit materials focus on high-quality computational thinking for STEM learning in grades 3-8. The materials are anchored in phenomena, aligned to CSTA, ISTE, AI4K12, and NGSS standards. Students use programmable sensors to make sense of the world and design solutions to personally meaningful problems.

Access the SchoolWide Labs unit materials

While slide decks and resources from the curriculum and professional learning materials are free and available for anyone to use, they are most effective when used with a trained facilitator.

AI in Education Curriculum

How can we create inclusive game worlds where we can play games where everyone can be themselves and everyone can belong?

This six-lesson, problem-based unit is focused on teaching students about how and when AI can be used to help people create welcoming and inclusive online communities. It is best suited for middle school classrooms. The unit addresses goals for:

  • AI education: How computers learn from data and how AI can impact society in both positive and negative ways (AI4K12 Big Ideas: Learning and Societal Impact)

  • Justice and Culturally Sustaining Pedagogies: How to design technologies and systems with “humans in the loop” that address persistent algorithmic bias and create communities that welcome forms of expression that reflect and sustain their cultural communities’ values and practices

  • Science and Engineering Practices: Students engage specifically with key practices in engineering design to define  problems and test solutions.

The unit is organized around a storyline that is built around anticipated student questions about a problem they encounter in the first lesson. Students pursue answers to these questions in search of a solution to the question that anchors this first lesson: How can we create inclusive game worlds where we can play games where we can be ourselves and everyone can belong?

Access the AI in Education Curriculum

While slide decks and resources from the curriculum and professional learning materials are free and available for anyone to use, they are most effective when used with a trained facilitator.