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Science and Engineering Practices
  1. Asking questions and defining problems
  2. Developing and using models
  3. Planning and carrying out investigations
  4. Analyzing and interpreting data
  5. Using mathematics and computational thinking
  6. Constructing explanations and designing solutions
  7. Engaging in argument from evidence
  8. Obtaining, evaluating, and communicating information.

For more information, see Appendix I of the 2016 Massachusetts Curriculum Framework for Science and Technology/Engineering.
 

Science and Technology/Engineering | 7
 

Earth and Space Sciences | Earth's Systems
  
7.ESS.2.2

Construct an explanation based on evidence for how Earth’s surface has changed over scales that range from local to global in size. Clarification Statements: Examples of processes occurring over large, global spatial scales include plate motion, formation of mountains and ocean basins, and ice ages. Examples of changes occurring over small, local spatial scales include earthquakes and seasonal weathering and erosion.
  
7.ESS.2.4

Develop a model to explain how the energy of the Sun and Earth’s gravity drive the cycling of water, including changes of state, as it moves through multiple pathways in Earth’s hydrosphere. Clarification Statement: Examples of models can be conceptual or physical. State Assessment Boundary: A quantitative understanding of the latent heats of vaporization and fusion is not expected in state assessment.
 

Earth and Space Sciences | Earth and Human Activity
  
7.ESS.3.2

Obtain and communicate information on how data from past geologic events are analyzed for patterns and used to forecast the location and likelihood of future catastrophic events. Clarification Statements: Geologic events include earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, floods, and landslides. Examples of data typically analyzed can include the locations, magnitudes, and frequencies of the natural hazards. State Assessment Boundary: Active analysis of data or forecasting is not expected in state assessment.
  
7.ESS.3.4

Construct an argument supported by evidence that human activities and technologies can mitigate the impact of increases in human population and per capita consumption of natural resources on the environment. Clarification Statements: Arguments should be based on examining historical data such as population graphs, natural resource distribution maps, and water quality studies over time. Examples of negative impacts can include changes to the amount and quality of natural resources such as water, mineral, and energy supplies.
 

Life Science | From Molecules to Organisms: Structures and Processes
  
7.LS.1.4

Construct an explanation based on evidence for how characteristic animal behaviors and specialized plant structures increase the probability of successful reproduction of animals and plants. Clarification Statements: Examples of animal behaviors that affect the probability of animal reproduction could include nest building to protect young from cold, herding of animals to protect young from predators, and vocalizations and colorful plumage to attract mates for breeding. Examples of animal behaviors that affect the probability of plant reproduction could include (a) transferring pollen or seeds and (b) creating conditions for seed germination and growth. Examples of plant structures that affect the probability of plant reproduction could include bright flowers attracting butterflies that transfer pollen, flower nectar, and odors that attract insects that transfer pollen, and hard shells on nuts that squirrels bury.State Assessment Boundary: Natural selection is not expected in state assessment.
 

Life Science | Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics
  
7.LS.2.1

Analyze and interpret data to provide evidence for the effects of periods of abundant and scarce resources on the growth of organisms and the size of populations in an ecosystem.
  
7.LS.2.2

Describe how relationships among and between organisms in an ecosystem can be competitive, predatory, parasitic, and mutually beneficial and that these interactions are found across multiple ecosystems. Clarification Statement: Emphasis is on describing consistent patterns of interactions in different ecosystems in terms of relationships among and between organisms.
  
7.LS.2.3

Develop a model to describe that matter and energy are transferred among living and nonliving parts of an ecosystem and that both matter and energy are conserved through these processes. Clarification Statements: Cycling of matter should include the role of photosynthesis, cellular respiration, and decomposition, as well as transfer among producers, consumers (primary, secondary, and tertiary), and decomposers. Models may include food webs and food chains. State Assessment Boundary: Cycling of specific atoms (such as carbon or oxygen), or the biochemical steps of photosynthesis, cellular respiration, and decomposition are not expected in state assessment.
  
7.LS.2.4

Analyze data to provide evidence that disruptions (natural or human-made) to any physical or biological component of an ecosystem can lead to shifts in all its populations. Clarification Statement: Focus should be on ecosystem characteristics varying over time, including disruptions such as hurricanes, floods, wildfires, oil spills, and construction.
  
7.LS.2.5

Evaluate competing design solutions for protecting an ecosystem. Discuss benefits and limitations of each design.* Clarification Statements: Examples of design solutions could include water, land, and species protection and the prevention of soil erosion. Examples of design solution constraints could include scientific, economic, and social considerations.
  
7.LS.2.6

Explain how changes to the biodiversity of an ecosystem—the variety of species found in the ecosystem—may limit the availability of resources humans use. Clarification Statement: Examples of resources can include food, energy, medicine, and clean water.
 

Physical Science | Motion and Stability: Forces and Interactions
  
7.PS.2.3

Analyze data to describe the effect of distance and magnitude of electric charge on the strength of electric forces. Clarification Statement: Includes both attractive and repulsive forces. State Assessment Boundaries: State assessment will be limited to proportional reasoning. Calculations using Coulomb’s law or interactions of sub-atomic particles are not expected in state assessment.
  
7.PS.2.5

Use scientific evidence to argue that fields exist between objects with mass, between magnetic objects, and between electrically charged objects that exert force on each other even though the objects are not in contact. Clarification Statement: Emphasis is on evidence that demonstrates the existence of fields, limited to gravitational, electric, and magnetic fields. State Assessment Boundary: Calculations of force are not expected in state assessment.
 

Physical Science | Energy
  
7.PS.3.1

Construct and interpret data and graphs to describe the relationships among kinetic energy, mass, and speed of an object. Clarification Statements: Examples could include riding a bicycle at different speeds and rolling different-sized rocks downhill. Consider relationships between kinetic energy vs. mass and kinetic energy vs. speed separate from each other; emphasis is on the difference between the linear and exponential relationships. State Assessment Boundary: Calculation or manipulation of the formula for kinetic energy is not expected in state assessment.
  
7.PS.3.2

Develop a model to describe the relationship between the relative positions of objects interacting at a distance and their relative potential energy in the system. Clarification Statements: Examples of objects within systems interacting at varying distances could include Earth and either a roller coaster cart at varying positions on a hill or objects at varying heights on shelves, changing the direction/orientation of a magnet, and a balloon with static electrical charge being brought closer to a stream of water. Examples of models could include representations, diagrams, pictures, and written descriptions of systems. State Assessment Boundaries: State assessment will be limited to electric, magnetic, and gravitational interactions and to interactions of two objects at a time. Calculations of potential energy are not expected in state assessment.
  
7.PS.3.3

Apply scientific principles of energy and heat transfer to design, construct, and test a device to minimize or maximize thermal energy transfer.* Clarification Statement: Examples of devices could include an insulated box, a solar cooker, and a vacuum flask. State Assessment Boundary: Accounting for specific heat or calculations of the total amount of thermal energy transferred is not expected in state assessment.
  
7.PS.3.4

Conduct an investigation to determine the relationships among the energy transferred, how well the type of matter retains or radiates heat, the mass, and the change in the average kinetic energy of the particles as measured by the temperature of the sample. State Assessment Boundary: Calculations of specific heat or the total amount of thermal energy transferred are not expected in state assessment.
  
7.PS.3.5

Present evidence to support the claim that when the kinetic energy of an object changes, energy is transferred to or from the object. Clarification Statement: Examples of empirical evidence could include an inventory or other representation of the energy before and after the transfer in the form of temperature changes or motion of an object. State Assessment Boundary: Calculations of energy are not expected in state assessment.
  
7.PS.3.6

Use a model to explain how thermal energy is transferred out of hotter regions or objects and into colder ones by convection, conduction, and radiation.
  
7.PS.3.7

Use informational text to describe the relationship between kinetic and potential energy and illustrate conversions from one form to another. Clarification Statement: Types of kinetic energy include motion, sound, thermal, and light; types of potential energy include gravitational, elastic, and chemical.

Last Updated: August 4, 2025

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