The Framework and NGSS emphasize using lines of evidence to construct explanations and
develop arguments that demonstrate understanding about scientific phenomena. For this vision to
be actualized in science classrooms, students must engage in investigations where they reason
about their established lines of evidence as they construct explanations of phenomena. Reasoning
about the evidence they have gathered enables students to construct and then defend explanations
through argumentation. However, there is a blurriness for many teachers around these
contemporary science practices. The purpose of this article is to clarify these practices by (a)
identifying characteristics of explanations and arguments, (b) delineating how to engage students
in science practices that develop lines of evidence they can use to make sense of phenomena, and
(c) offering guidance on how to scaffold explanations and arguments around a local
phenomenon. In this article I use the example of Niagara Falls, which is a local phenomenon for
my middle school science students. Contemporary standards require a shift in classroom culture,
instructional practices, and students’ understanding of what it means to learn science. This article
helps middle school science teachers make this shift.