How do our bodies manage to heal wounds, build the stamina to run marathons, and give us the energy—even while we’re sleeping—to keep us alive and functioning? Matter and Energy for Growth and Activity prompts high school students to explore fascinating questions like these. It takes a new approach to teaching essential ideas about food, human body systems, matter and energy changes, and chemical reactions.

Developed by a team of scientists and science educators and then tested in classrooms, the 14 phenomena-based lessons in this book follow a coherent sequence. They unfold in two main sections: (1) making sense of the matter changes involved in human growth and (2) making sense of the energy changes involved in human growth and activity. Matter and Energy is unique because it does the following:

• Targets important ideas about changes in both physical and biological systems within the same unit. The book first engages students in seeing the usefulness of the ideas in making sense of phenomena in simple physical systems. Then it shows how to apply these ideas to make sense of related phenomena in complex biological systems. This interdisciplinary approach reflects the way science is practiced in the real world.

• Supports all three dimensions of the Next Generation Science Standards. Disciplinary core ideas, crosscutting concepts, and science practices are all integrated in this unit.

• Emphasizes important relationships between mathematics and science. Students interpret data sets and graphs to provide evidence for claims. They also do simple computations to explain puzzling phenomena—for example, why does energy have to be added to ignite a marshmallow even though the burning marshmallow releases lots of energy?

• Builds on the middle school unit Toward High School Biology (also published by NSTA Press). Together the two units help students deepen their understanding of matter and energy changes in plants and animals and the role of chemical reactions in the growth, repair, and activity of living organisms.

Matter and Energy for Growth and Activity, Teacher Edition provides in-depth guidance and answer keys for teachers using these experiential lessons. A set of online resources includes interactive media, videos, and handouts. The Student Edition has all the student handouts with teaching tips and sample answers removed. Between both books, you have the support you need to help your students turn abstract ideas into applicable knowledge—a critical first step in learning.