MS: NGSS - FREE CER Practice Invisible Forces

FREE Invisible Forces CER Practice | Electricity, Magnetism & Fields | NGSS Middle School (MS-PS2-3, MS-PS2-5, MS-PS2-1)

Help students write strong Claim–Evidence–Reasoning explanations with this ready-to-use practice for grades 6–8. Students work through four short, data-rich scenarios about magnetic force, electric force, invisible fields, and collisions. They learn to back up every claim with specific evidence and to explain the science behind it. It takes about 45 minutes, and the scenarios are the same in both versions, so your whole class can discuss them together.

The Four Scenarios

1. Magnet and Paperclips (guided): How does distance affect magnetic force?
2. Static Electricity (independent): How does the amount of charge affect electric force?
3. Evidence of an Invisible Field: What do iron filings and a compass reveal about a magnet's field?
4. Egg Crash Engineering Challenge: Which design best reduced the force on the egg during a collision?

What's Included

• Teacher Guide (4 pages): when to use it, a timed 45-minute lesson flow, "Listen for" and "Watch for" notes with quick fixes for common misconceptions, a differentiation menu, a scoring guide, and a full NGSS alignment page
• Student CER Practice: all four scenarios, a CER checklist, Think Like a Scientist questions, Critique a CER, and an optional Honors Extension
• Modified Version: the same four scenarios with a vocabulary table, sentence frames, word banks, labeled data, and multiple choice
• Answer Keys for both versions: the standard key shows Meets, Approaching, and Needs Development examples for every scenario

Differentiation Built In

• ELL / multilingual learners: vocabulary support, sentence frames, word banks, and oral rehearsal
• Neurodivergent learners: one scenario per page, color-coding, chunking, and typed or dictated answers
• Advanced / gifted & honors students: a rebuttal, proportional reasoning with electromagnet data, and critiquing an engineering design

Aligned to NGSS

• MS-PS2-3: factors that affect the strength of electric and magnetic forces
• MS-PS2-5: evidence that fields exist between objects that are not touching
• MS-PS2-1: Newton's Third Law and designing a solution for a collision
• Practices and concepts: engaging in argument from evidence, constructing explanations, analyzing data, cause and effect

Perfect For

• Practice before a lab write-up or performance task
• Review before a unit test
• A sub plan or a quick check for understanding

Get the Full Experience: Bundle It!

This free practice is designed to work alongside two NextWave Science resources:

• Invisible Forces: Electricity, Magnetism & Fields Unit Plan. A complete 11-lesson NGSS unit with a teacher guide, student notes, station cards, exit tickets, an end-of-unit assessment, and answer keys. Use this CER practice before Lesson 10, when students write their own CERs from investigation data.
• Invisible Forces Lab Bundle. Three hands-on labs:
• Electromagnet Core Lab: test how the core material affects electromagnet strength
• Magnetic Shielding Lab: investigate which materials block a magnetic field
• Static Electricity Lab: measure how distance affects electric force

Together, the unit, the labs, and this CER practice give students a full arc. They observe invisible forces, investigate what makes them stronger, and explain their results with evidence.

Terms of Use: This resource is for single-classroom use. Please share the link to this page with colleagues instead of sharing the file.