FAQ
Need help logging in or accessing your resources? Having trouble printing? Get answers to FAQs and troubleshooting tips below.
If you can’t find the answer to your question or still need help, submit a support request.
General Questions
My resources are sold in my resource shop as well as at TeachersPayTeachers. Resources in both shops are identical. In addition, the regular price is identical at each location. However, sales prices may fluctuate from location to location due to sales or coupons available.
Yes! I am able to offer special customer and product discounts in my own shop that TpT does not allow. For example, if your department team of 4 biology teachers would all like to purchase licenses for the full year biology curriculum, I can create a coupon code that allows you to get the multiple license discount that TpT offers, but will give each individual teacher access to the resources and all future updates (on TpT when multiple licenses are purchased, they are purchased through one account, and thus only that account has access to the resource updates for life.)
Additionally, there is no way for me to contact you through TpT when I make updates to a resource (which happens more often than you think!) If you choose to purchase through my site, you will get an email each time a resource is updated so that you know to re-download and have the most up-to-date version.
Due to the downloadable nature of digital products, once a resource is purchased, it cannot be returned or refunded.
Please ensure that you look carefully at what you are buying and read the description underneath each resource before you make a purchase. Your satisfaction means a lot to me, and I am more than happy to answer any and all questions prior to your purchase, so you can be confident in investing in my resources.
If you have a problem or question about your order, please reach out so that I can assist you.
You can download my full Terms of Use here, but in summary:
You may:
- Use this item for your own classroom, students, or for your own personal use.
- Buy additional licenses for others to use this product at a discount (email me for a group coupon code!)
- Review this product to recommend others buy it in blog posts, at professional development workshops, or other venues as long as credit is given to my store with a direct link to my store/product.
You may not:
- Upload this product to any unsecured website or server that other teachers can access for free.
- Give this product to others without the purchase of an additional license for them (this includes emailing, printing copies, or sharing through a website, cloud or other network.)
- Copy or modify any part of this document to offer others for free or for sale.
- Use the resources for commercial use, such as teaching a course on OutSchool or a similar platform using these resources.
While I love that you’d like to share, it is against my Terms of Use to email or redistribute free or paid resources from my website or shop (including resources purchased on TeachersPayTeachers). Each resource is for single classroom or personal use only.
You will be breaking copyright laws if you share the resources you have purchased or downloaded. This includes, but is not limited to:
- Emailing files
- Uploading to shared drives
- Sharing logins
- Uploading to websites or learning management systems that can be accessed by anyone in the general public.
If a colleague or friend would like a license to use a resource, please share a link to the resource so that they can purchase a single use license for themselves. Have a team of teachers that want to use a curriculum together? Email me at rebecca@itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com and let me know the email addresses for each teacher. I can then send you a group 10% discount coupon code! If your team includes more than 5 teachers, email me for additional discount details.
The majority of my resources are not fully editable. Specifically, most of the documents are secured PDFs, meaning you can print them but not edit or copy/paste the text. The paperless digital student packets for each unit will be accessed via a Google Drive™ link in a PDF file that students can type into, but not change the essential content of. You can see a sample of a paperless digital packet here. You must “Make a Copy” to save to your drive in order to be able to type into the text boxes.
Editable versions of resources are only included as Word docs for the unit plans, quizzes, and tests. The PowerPoint lecture notes also have editable text. This is to protect the copyright and intellectual property of my own work, plus the work of many dedicated clip artists that are included in this product. If you have questions about this, please don’t hesitate to email me with them prior to purchasing!
I am unable to take custom requests or make personal changes to my resources at this time. Please read the resource description carefully to ensure that the resource meets your needs prior to purchasing.
However, I do regularly update my resources to improve them. If you have a suggestion for a resource edit, you can let me know by submitting a support request. Please know that I do consider all suggestions, but I ask that you understand that not all suggestions will be accepted.
My curricula were written to align with the DCIs in the *NGSS. The crosscutting concepts and science and engineering practices are embedded throughout each unit so that the units reflect the three dimensions of the NGSS. An NGSS alignment document is included with each unit with suggestions for phenomena that can be used as you develop storylines specific to your students and their interests. My hope is that my curricula provide you all of the foundational resources you need for figuring out “what” to teach, so that you can then focus your energy on “how” you want to teach.
*Note: NGSS is a registered trademark of Achieve. Neither Achieve nor the lead states and partners that developed the Next Generation Science Standards were involved in the production of this product, and do not endorse it.
Email me at rebecca@itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com with a PDF or link to your state standards and I will be happy to review them for you prior to you making a purchase!
I completely understand that purchasing a full year curriculum is a large investment – and I want you to be confident if you choose to make that investment! Due to the nature of digital resources, I cannot provide refunds. Because of this, it is important you know exactly what you are buying before you do!
This is why I highly recommend to every teacher that you just purchase one unit first to test out before making such a large investment in purchasing the whole curriculum. This way you can see my style and make sure it is a good fit for you and your students first and minimize the financial risk.
If you like the unit and decide to go ahead and purchase the full curriculum bundle, we can subtract the purchase of the initial unit you tested out.
If purchasing on this site, shoot me an email at rebecca@itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com with your account info so that I can check that you did already purchase a unit to test out. Then I will make you a custom coupon code to use when purchasing the full year bundle.
If purchasing from my TpT store, you will need to purchase the bundle and THEN submit your Order ID numbers for the bundle and unit to TpT on their Contact page (or email them to me if you prefer I do it for you) and you can request a refund for the original unit purchased that you tested out. As long as this is done within one year of the original purchase and you have also purchased the bundle, TpT will honor this request as they see it as a duplicate purchase, which falls within their refund policy.
Note: You must either purchase both the individual unit AND the bundle from my personal store OR purchase both on TpT (Ex. You can’t purchase the unit on this site and then the bundle on TpT and try to get the refund).
If you have questions about this, feel free to email prior to purchasing at rebecca@itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com.
All of my units come with all of the student handouts in a packet format that can be used on paper (PDF to print) or digitally in a paperless version for Google Drive™ and/or Microsoft OneDrive™. All of the PowerPoint notes also come with a lecture video to help your students learn from afar. You can see all of my lecture videos on my YouTube channel here, and see a free sample of a paperless digital packet so you can see what the formatting and usability is like prior to purchasing by clicking here.
I did not specifically write my curricula for a distance learning setting (who could have predicted this pandemic?), but each curriculum can still be used in a modified format, and all will be fully usable when we are one day back in our classrooms! I include a document with tips for using the resources within each unit in a virtual teaching and/or homeschool setting to help you. If you have questions about which resources may or may not work from home, shoot me an email and we can discuss!
- All units come with detailed implementation notes and answer keys. I wrote them all with enough detail for my long-term substitutes while I was on maternity leave.
- All student resources for each unit are compiled into one packet that can be printed and put in a binder or bound as a workbook. These keep students organized and able to work through the material with ease.
- All lecture notes come with accompanying lecture videos on my YouTube channel.
- I wrote the curriculum for teachers with small budgets, so all of the materials for the labs and activities can often be acquired cheaply and easily from Amazon or Walmart.
- I wrote each curriculum to be able to be used without (or alongside of) any textbook. They really are all-inclusive for everything you need!
Nope! I specifically wrote each curriculum to be able to be used independently from a textbook. This is because I never taught in a school that had access to quality textbooks, so I wanted to create something for other teachers in my same position. Because of this, you can really use any textbook you have for additional support for your students!
Account Support
You must have an account to purchase from my shop. You will create your account during the checkout process.
Once you have an account, you’ll be able to view your past orders, access previous purchases, and update your details. You’ll also be able to shop quickly as your information will be saved when you’re logged in as a user in the future.
School email filters can be very strict and often block emails. This means you may not receive the receipt and download link for your purchases.
Because of this, I recommend using your personal/home email address ensures these important emails land in your inbox.
Regardless, if you notice after purchasing that you didn’t receive an email from It’s Not Rocket Science Shop, check your SPAM folder. Mark the email as “Report Not Spam” so that all future correspondence makes it to your inbox.
You can access your account by clicking My Account in the menu at the top or at the bottom of the page.
Click the “Lost your Password” link on the My Account page. You will be prompted to enter your email address and then you will receive an email with a link to reset your password. If you don’t see this email in your inbox, CHECK YOUR SPAM FOLDER! Mark the email as “Report Not Spam” to avoid this issue in the future.
If you get an error saying your email address doesn’t exist, you have likely entered your email address incorrectly during the account creation process. If that’s the case, you’ll need to send through a support email so the team can troubleshoot this for you.
Sometimes my emails land in your junk or spam folder, especially if it’s the first time you’ve gotten a message from me. If you don’t see an email you’re expecting, check there first.
If you find the email in your spam or junk folder, mark it as “not spam” or move it to your inbox. You can also then add my email address to your contacts. This will help future emails arrive correctly.
If you don’t find the email in your spam or junk folder, submit a support request so I can troubleshoot this for you. You will receive a response in 1-2 business days.
You have likely entered your email address incorrectly during the account creation process or you registered using a different email address. Either way, you’ll need to submit a support request so I can troubleshoot this for you. You will receive a response in 1-2 business days.
If you’ve made a mistake, you can change your email address by logging into your account (using the incorrect email address) and then going to your “Login Settings” in the dashboard.
However, if you know you’ve made a mistake but you’re not sure of the spelling or error, submit a support request so I can troubleshoot this for you. You will receive a response in 1-2 business days.
Purchasing and Payments
I accept most major credit cards via PayProudly, a secure credit processing company that donates a portion of the credit card processing fees on my end to a local educational charity where I live.
I do NOT accept personal checks or money orders, but I DO accept purchase orders. You can read more about paying with a school or district purchase order here.
Payments are processed securely through PayProudly. I love this company because they donate a portion of my credit card processing fees to a local charity of my choice.
All of your payment information is stored by PayProudly, so I cannot see any of your payment information.
Currently, my shop sells items to all countries except those in the European Union (EU). Customers in the EU may purchase items from Teachers Pay Teachers.
All of your purchases are store in your account. You can access the receipts by logging in to your account and clicking Order History.
Some states require a sales tax. At checkout when you input your billing address, it will auto-calculate whether or not you owe sales tax based on the state you live in.
If you are tax exempt, you must submit a PDF with proof of exemption status PRIOR to purchase. Email your proof of tax exemption to rebecca@itsnotrocketscienceclassroom.com and let us know the email address for the person purchasing and creating the account. We will mark your account as tax exempt so that when you go to purchase, you will automatically not be charged sales tax.
Accessing your resources
After you have completed your purchase, you will be taken to an Order Received page. You can download your purchase right away by clicking on the yellow download button as pictured below. This will begin downloading the zip file. Note: The full year curriculum bundles are 1-2 GB, so they will take a few minutes to fully download! Once completed, you can open in your downloads window/folder and save to your computer.
You’ll also receive an email once your purchase is complete. If you don’t see this in your inbox, make sure to check your Spam/Junk folder. Mark the email as not spam so that it will be moved to your inbox and all future correspondence from me will make it to your inbox as well. The download button in your email will take you to your account where you’ll need to log in using the details you provided during your account set up at checkout. Once you log in, you can access all of your downloads by clicking Download your purchases.
YES!! All of your purchases come with free updates! You can access your purchases anytime in your account. You’ll have access for as long as the site is active, but it’s always a good idea to save a copy to your computer or USB drive, just in case!
All you need to do is log into your account. Click on My Downloads, and you’ll be able to download all of your purchases there.
This is usually because you have purchased your products using a different email address/account. If this happens, make sure to try signing into both accounts you’ve made.
Due to the size of my resources, the files are available to download as a ZIP file. A ZIP file is a compressed folder containing multiple files. I use ZIP files to provide multiple files in one resource.
Both Windows and Mac OSX are able to open and uncompress ZIP files without additional software. iPhones and iPads will require an additional app.
You can find detailed step by step instructions for opening a zip file on TpT’s support page here.
I am not able to provide support for downloading resources on mobile devices or tablets. Due to the wide variety of phones, tablets and devices available, I cannot test on every platform. Additionally, the size of my resource files are so large that many mobile devices cannot handle them.
You will need to download your purchases onto a computer or laptop. All file types are listed in the resource descriptions, and due to the size of my resources, all are saved in a zip file. You will need to be able to unzip the file on your computer to access the resources. You will also need to have a program (like Adobe Reader – it is free!) that allows you to download and view PDF files on your computer.
In order to protect files from being shared illegally, all download links are protected so that only the person that purchased the product can use the link.
You may see this error message on a resource that you purchased if you click the download link in an email but are already signed into the site with a different email address or if you have forwarded the purchase email to another email address.
If you encounter this error, simply visit the site and log in to your account. You can download all of your purchases on the My Downloads page.
Technical Issues
If you open a file in your internet browser, Preview app, temporary files, or downloads, you may experience errors. You need to unzip the files, and save to your computer. From there, all PDFs should be opened in Adobe Acrobat Reader. (The free version is all you need!)
Here is how to open the file in Adobe:
1. Download and save the file to your computer (somewhere other than the downloads folder).
2. Right click the file name and choose Open in Adobe Acrobat.
If you have opened the resource in Adobe Acrobat, and are still having difficulty, make sure your copy of Adobe is up to date by downloading the most recent version. Open Adobe Acrobat Reader and click Help > Check for Updates on the top toolbar.
All .pptx files (such as lecture notes and activity implementation slides) can be opened in PowerPoint or Google Slides and still retain all of their features. All .docx files (such as editable unit plans and tests) can be opened in Microsoft Word or Google Docs (Note: formatting of Word docs may be distorted in Google Docs.)
All files are ready for you to print at home, at school, or via a printing company. Follow the steps below to print your PDF.
1. Click to download the file from your account.
2. Be sure to save the file to your desktop computer rather than just opening the resource and attempting to print from Downloads.
3. Open the file with Adobe Acrobat Reader. (You only need the free version!)
4. Select File>Print and then ensure the printer settings are correct.
If you’re having trouble printing a PDF, please be sure that you’re opening the PDF with the latest version of Adobe Acrobat Reader. Printing PDF files from your web browser or the Preview app frequently cause errors such as black boxes behind images, fonts not printing correctly, etc.
Adobe regularly updates their software and when they do, it can cause technical issues. Open Adobe Acrobat Reader and click Help > Check for Updates on the top toolbar to make sure you have the most up-to-date version.
If you still have issues printing, try the following:
1. Open the PDF file with Adobe Acrobat Reader
2. Click “Print”
3. In the “Page Sizing & Handling” section, select “Shrink Oversized Pages” if needed.
4. Click on “Advanced”
5. Check the “Print as Image” box.
6. Print the document.
All resources are designed to be printed on 8.5 x 11 paper. Be sure to select ‘fit to page’ when printing your resource to ensure that important parts of the page aren’t being cut off during the printing process.
If you want to share only specific pages of a pdf with your students, you can do this!
If using Windows: Open the PDF in Adobe, click File –> Print –> Print to PDF. From there you can change the range to select pages that you can then save as a separate file.
If using a Mac, you have to do this through Preview, not Adobe. I have a step by step video of this process here.
Within a unit, go to the “Packets” folder and open the first PDF, titled “Access to Digital Packets”. This file provides step by step instructions, and includes links to the paperless digital packets for the unit. You must Make a Copy of the packet to your drive in order to be able to interact with it and share it with your students. You can see an example for how to do this here.
HELP! I'm still having trouble!
If your question wasn’t answered above and you’re still having trouble, please submit a support request so I can troubleshoot this for you. You will receive a response in 1-2 business days.
