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Every science teacher knows that learning doesn’t happen in a textbook: It happens over Bunsen burners, in collaborative groups, over periods of diligent observations, and in fascinating physics experiments. In short, science learning should be fun — especially for middle schoolers just learning to follow the scientific process
Engage every student with science games for middle school, from digital resources to printable board games. These classroom games help students review science concepts, get them out of their seats, and, most importantly, get into science!
Sensational Science Games for Grade 6
When you’re planning STEM activities for middle school, it’s easy to remember the awe-inspiring labs and collaborative experiments. But don’t forget the classroom games that keep students interested in the science fundamentals! Use these science games for 6th grade as unit reviews or activities for your next Friday Fun Day.
- Science Memory: Print a grid of pictures that represent science concepts, such as parts of a food chain or types of energy. Have students cut them up, place the pictures face down, and try to match them in a game of Memory.
- Energy Relay Race: How long does each type of energy last? Give teams units of “energy” (represented by foam blocks or rolls of paper) and host a relay race outside for students to strategically pass each other the energy and cross the finish line.
- Biology Bingo: After finishing a biology unit, pass out blank Bingo sheets and have students write their biology vocabulary words in each one. Call out the definitions in a Bingo game, and see who can get five in a row!
- Four Biomes: Assign a biome to each corner of the room (such as desert, rainforest, ocean, and prairie) and call out an animal or plant. Students run to the corner where they think that organism lives — and anyone who’s in the wrong corner is out!
Start science class right with back-to-school games
Introduce students to the themes of the upcoming year when you integrate science concepts into your back-to-school games. Whether it’s funny surveys that assess prior understanding or games that get students working together for the first time, these activities are great icebreakers for middle schoolers.
Back to School SCIENCE GAME ACTIVITY 2 Truths and a Lie SCIENCE TRIVIA Questions
By Flying Colors Science
Grades: 6th-10th
Subject: General Science
Combine a getting-to-know-you activity and your first lesson with this unique and engaging resource. Using 55 printer-friendly cards on different science themes, pairs or groups of students work together to figure out which statement cards are true, and which ones are lies.
Use games to review fundamental physics concepts
Middle schoolers may not be ready for more advanced physics lessons, but establishing the basics can help them be successful by the time high school physics comes around. Use engaging, collaborative science games for middle schoolers to apply what they’ve learned in a physics unit and to review important concepts that they’ll need going forward in the year.
Waves Trivia Board Game Project | Physical Science Notebook | Middle School
By Science World of Fun
Grades: 4th-10th
Subject: Physical Science
How much do your middle schoolers know about properties of light, sound, and waves? A thorough resource guides students through creating their own trivia board game to review mechanical, electromagnetic, transverse, and longitudinal waves, as well as reflection and refraction of light, and compression, rarefaction, and frequencies of sounds.
Specialized Science Games for Grade 7
By the time middle schoolers reach 7th grade science, they’re ready to learn more about life science, types of energy, and biology basics. They’re also learning how to be responsible lab participants and how to work with others to form hypotheses and draw conclusions. Use these science games for 7th grade to build on what they learned last year, and to prepare them for a successful year in middle school science.
- Find My Baby: Does a whale have a calf or a kitten? Print the names of animals and their baby names, and give one to each student. Have pairs of students try to find each other (such as joey to kangaroo, cub to bear, etc.).
- Science Pictionary: All you need is a whiteboard, some markers, and a list of science concepts to review. Split the class into two teams and have one person at a time draw a concept you secretly show them (such as “photosynthesis” or “wind energy”). They try to get their team to guess the word by drawing it on the board.
- Paper Airplane Races: Experiment with aerodynamics and engineering design with paper airplanes. Individuals, pairs, or groups design and create the best paper airplanes, then race them to see which travels the furthest.
- Science Taboo: Don’t say the science word! Create cards with one science vocabulary word at the top (such as “electricity”) and add five words that students can’t use to describe it (such as “energy,” “light,” “plug,” “spark,” and “current”). Students try to get their team to guess their word without saying the secret words.
Gamify science basics to help students remember the rules
Do your middle schoolers know their way around a lab? Get them used to a middle school classroom — and the lab safety rules therein — with games that can effectively help them understand how they should act in a lab and how to conduct an experiment.
Board Game for Science Lab Safety & Scientific Thinking
By The Biology Blend
Grades: 7th-12th
Subject: General Science
Lab safety and the scientific method are two concepts that middle schoolers need to learn early in the school year. Print a well-equipped resource that comes with rules of play, scorecards, teacher instruction guides, a game board, and premade and editable game cards for small groups to review lab safety and scientific thinking.
Scholarly Science Games for Grade 8
Before eighth graders get to high school, there are a few important middle school science concepts left for them to master. Use science games for 8th graders to work more independently, implement the scientific method, and access the knowledge they gained throughout their years in middle school science.
- Science Escape Room: Use a list of escape room ideas for middle schoolers to work their way out of using only their scientific knowledge and teamwork skills. Feel free to include scientific principles, vocabulary, and formulas in the codes that they need to break!
- Build an Element: Bring in Legos, Jenga blocks, or any other kind of blocks for students to create an element you’ve assigned. Bonus points if they can do it creatively with their own materials.
- Science Jeopardy: Can your students guess the types of energy for $500? Create an interactive presentation in which students answer science review questions in the classic Jeopardy! “What Is” format.
- Trivia Teams: Bring the fun of Trivia Night to your middle school science classroom. Small groups huddle up to answer questions and riddles you call out, using whiteboards and pens to gather points for their team.
Get things moving with physical science review games
Physical science studies energy, which your 8th graders likely have plenty of by the time they reach your classroom! Get them out of their seats and into your lesson with review games that cover important physical science concepts.
Physical Science Vocabulary Review Game
By It’s Not Rocket Science
Grade: 8th-11th
Subject: Physical Science
How much do your middle schoolers remember from their physical science unit? Put their knowledge to the test with a review game inspired by the TV show “Password.” This classroom resource includes three editable PowerPoints with physical science, chemistry, and physics vocabulary words, implementation suggestions for teachers, and a timer in presentation mode.
Online Science Games for Middle School
Need science games for middle schoolers to access on their devices or at home? Use these scholastic resources to assign high-quality, NGSS-aligned science games for homework review or extra fun in science class.
Energize your middle school science class with TPT
You don’t need to be a rocket scientist to know that students learn better when they’re having fun. Adding science games for middle school to your curriculum or end-of-unit review is an effective way to engage all learners in your classroom and to ensure that they’ll enjoy science just as much as you do.
Find more middle school science-themed games for your specific classroom setting or unit needs. And for daily ways to enrich your curriculum and expand your students’ minds, add brain teasers for middle school to your warm-ups or exit tickets.