Life Cycle of a Star Station Lab - MS

This modular, student-led activity will keep your middle school students engaged while exploring the life cycle of stars. With everything included, you’ll save a ton of prep time while empowering students to direct their own learning.

In this interactive lab, students will recognize that the Sun is located in the Milky Way galaxy and is closer to Earth than any other star, while also learning how stars form, evolve, and change over time. Designed for flexibility, this resource works seamlessly for both in-class and virtual learning.

Texas Teachers: This resource aligns with the 2017 TEKS (not updated for the 2021 TEKS).

Differentiated, Modular, and Student-Centered

Each station lab includes eight core activities plus a bonus challenge station, giving every learner a personalized experience. Teachers facilitate while students investigate independently or in small groups.

All signage, resources, and task cards are included. The Explore It! station may require a few simple materials you likely already have in your classroom.

The Stations

Input Stations – Build Understanding

• Explore It! – Hands-on demo or digital drag-and-drop in PowerPoint/Google Slides

• Read It! – Differentiated passages (English & Spanish) with vocabulary and comprehension questions

• Research It! – Website-based activity with guided tasks

• Watch It! – Short video with reflection questions

Output Stations – Show Understanding

• Organize It! – Printable or digital card sorts/manipulatives

• Illustrate It! – Sketches or diagrams of star stages

• Write It! – Open-ended short-answer prompts

• Assess It! – Task cards + a vocabulary-in-context writing activity

Bonus Station – Challenge It!
Perfect for early finishers or advanced learners, with crosswords, games, and mini-projects to extend learning

Virtual & In-Class Flexibility

This station lab is fully compatible with Google Slides and PowerPoint, making it easy to implement in both physical and digital classrooms.

Why Teachers Love It:

• Differentiated to support all learners

• Multimodal activities to keep students engaged

• Flexible in digital or print formats

• Minimal prep required

This station lab is also part of the Life Cycle of a Star 5E Lesson Plan, which expands into editable presentations, interactive notebooks, student-choice projects, assessments, and more.

This is a finished product; it will be updated with formatting or corrections as needed. Future improvements and new features will be sold as a separate product.