Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Launches First K-12 Curricula Built from the Ground Up to Address Next Generation Science Standards

BOSTON – Global learning company Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (HMH) today announced the release of HMH Science Dimensions™, the first comprehensive K-12 science curriculum created specifically to meet the new Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), a set of science education standards developed by states nationwide. HMH Science Dimensions is the first program designed, tested, and engineered to address the complexities of NGSS and lead students to mastery of its concepts.

“HMH Science Dimensions represents an entirely new approach to teaching science, one that is grounded in the real-world application of scientific concepts. This comprehensive program focuses on investigative activities and three-dimensional learning and leverages technology to provide new opportunities for engagement,” said Mary Cullinane, Chief Content Officer and Executive Vice President of Product Planning, Development and Marketing, HMH. “Our focus on experiential and interactive learning supports students and teachers as they pursue integrated and holistic scientific understanding within the NGSS framework.”

Special features from HMH Science Dimensions include:

• Interactive online learning components, such as videos and animations, real-time feedback on assignments, and self-selected learning paths to empower student choice;
• Dedicated engineering tasks and activities across all grade levels;
• Embedded professional learning and pedagogical support to help educators adjust to NGSS, including best practice guides and built-in videos.

Through HMH Field Trips powered by Google Expeditions, HMH Science Dimensions will include virtual reality field trips that extend lessons beyond the classroom. Students will be able to travel on 3D, 360-degree field trips led by the teacher, resulting in a more immersive learning experience for students. Relevant programs will include teacher guides with student activities and lesson plans, enabling educators to integrate the virtual field trips seamlessly into their NGSS instruction. Over 20 field trips will be available, including explorations of prehistoric caves, ancient swamps, and the rocket launch pad at Cape Canaveral.

The HMH Science Dimensions high school biology and earth and space science programs will also feature exclusive work from Randall Munroe, a former NASA roboticist and the New York Times bestselling author of What If? and Thing Explainer. Digital and print editions will include curriculum-aligned content from Thing Explainer that explains complex scientific ideas using the 1,000 most commonly-used words in the English language. There will also be four brand new pieces of work created by Munroe exclusively for HMH, including “How Forests Come Back” (which covers how forests recover following a natural disaster) and “Books Inside of Us” (an exploration of genetic inheritance between parents and children).

HMH Science Dimensions will be available for back to school 2017. For more information, please visit www.hmhco.com/ScienceDimensions.

About Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (NASDAQ:HMHC) is a global learning company dedicated to changing people’s lives by fostering passionate, curious learners. As a leading provider of pre-K–12 education content, services, and cutting-edge technology solutions across a variety of media, HMH enables learning in a changing landscape. HMH is uniquely positioned to create engaging and effective educational content and experiences from early childhood to beyond the classroom.  HMH serves more than 50 million students in over 150 countries worldwide, while its award-winning children's books, novels, non-fiction, and reference titles are enjoyed by readers throughout the world. For more information, visit www.hmhco.com.

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