Mystery Science
Mystery Science (legal entity Mystery.org), a Discovery Education subsidiary, is a K-5 web-based science curriculum platform delivering 200+ standards-aligned, phenomena-driven video lessons and hands-on activities to U.S. elementary teachers, schools, and homeschool families on a subscription basis.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2015
- HeadquartersSan Francisco, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Mystery Science does
Mystery Science (legal entity: Mystery.org) is a K-5 science curriculum platform delivering standards-aligned, phenomena-driven lessons to elementary teachers and students. The web-based product combines short video mini-lessons with hands-on investigations, printable materials lists, differentiated activities for K-2 and 3-5 bands, written and 3D assessments, and an optional Anchor Layer for instructional scaffolding. Spanish-language narration, Clever SSO, and Google Classroom/Drive integrations support broad classroom deployment across all 50 U.S. states.
The company was founded in 2015 (firmographics indicate 2014) and was acquired by Discovery Education around 2020; it now operates as a product within Discovery Education's K-12 portfolio alongside Science Techbook, Doodle Math, Pivot Interactives, and a sister product, Mystery Writing (2nd-5th grade writing curriculum). Adjacent offerings include the Science + Writing Bundle (24%/25% discount) and Mystery Packs, pre-packaged physical science supply kits delivered to classrooms.
Commercial mechanics are subscription-based. Schools pay $2,199 (Science), $1,799 (Writing), or $2,999 (Bundle) annually for site-wide access; homeschool families pay $199/$149/$259 with access extending through June 30, 2027. Go-to-market combines a product-led free trial (with a remaining-trial counter on site), a teacher referral/invite program, a bottom-of-funnel advocacy team that sells to administrators on teachers' behalf, and Discovery Education's enterprise sales channel. Distribution is primarily direct, augmented by Clever SSO; revenue figures are not publicly disclosed.
Mystery Science firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Mystery Science
- Legal name
- Mystery.org
- Website
- https://mysteryscience.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2015
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Mystery Science (legal entity Mystery.org), a Discovery Education subsidiary, is a K-5 web-based science curriculum platform delivering 200+ standards-aligned, phenomena-driven video lessons and hands-on activities to U.S. elementary teachers, schools, and homeschool families on a subscription basis.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Mystery Science industry classification
Industry- Product category
- K-5 Science Curriculum Software
- NAICS
- All Other Schools and Instruction (61169), Software Publishers (5132)
- SIC
- Services-Educational Services (8200)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Hands-on Science Exploration & Experiments (Lab Kits, Science Clubs) (EDAMABAA)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Early Science & Discovery Content (EDAGACAD)
Keywords
Where Mystery Science is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- San Francisco
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Mystery Science business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure, Supply Chain
Revenue model
- School/District Memberships: Annual subscription memberships for schools and districts providing full access to all teachers. Pricing varies by school size (small schools with fewer than 200 K-5 students receive special pricing). Districts can lock in multi-year pricing.
- Homeschool Memberships: Individual homeschool family subscriptions with full access to curriculum through June 30, 2027. Discounted pricing available in April and August. Bulk discounts for homeschool groups of 100+ families.
- Science + Writing Bundle: Combined subscription to both Mystery Science and Mystery Writing products at discounted rate (24% savings for schools, 25% for homeschool).
- Classroom Scholarships: Free access program for teachers who need more time to advocate for school membership. Provides access until June 30, 2027 for one homeroom teacher. Limited scholarships per eligible school.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Annual | Science + Writing Bundle for Schools |
| Subscription | Annual | Science Only for Schools |
| Subscription | Annual | Writing Only for Schools |
| Subscription | Multi-year contract | Science + Writing Bundle for Homeschool |
| Subscription | Multi-year contract | Science Only for Homeschool |
| Subscription | Multi-year contract | Writing Only for Homeschool |
| Freemium | Annual | Free Trial |
| Freemium | Annual | Classroom Scholarship |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels7 records
Mystery Science product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Mystery Science provides a web-based, standards-aligned K-5 science curriculum consisting of 200+ video-driven lessons with hands-on investigations, materials lists, mini-lessons, written and 3D assessments, and an optional Anchor Layer for differentiated instruction. The offering is sold as annual school and district memberships with Spanish-language support and is bundled optionally with the companion Mystery Writing curriculum and Mystery Packs physical supply kits.
Product overview
Mystery Science is an online educational platform offering standards-aligned science curriculum for elementary students (Kindergarten through 5th grade). The core product, Mystery Science, provides over 200 video-based mini-lessons with accompanying hands-on activities organized by grade level and scientific topics. The platform operates on a school membership model where all teachers at a subscribing school receive full access. An optional companion product, Mystery Writing, offers standards-aligned writing instruction for grades 2-5 using a research-backed logic model with built-in assessments. These two curricula can be purchased separately or together as a Science + Writing Bundle at a discounted rate. Additionally, Mystery Packs provide pre-organized physical science supply kits that complement the hands-on activities in the curriculum.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Mystery Writing: Standards-aligned writing curriculum for 2nd-5th grade students, featuring research-backed logic models, differentiated instruction, and built-in assessments.
- Mystery Packs
Products and services
- Mystery Science (K-5 Science Curriculum) Standards-aligned, phenomena-driven science curriculum for elementary students (K-5) featuring video mini-lessons, hands-on activities, and assessments. The curriculum includes 200+ lessons organized by grade level and scientific topics covering life science, physical science, earth science, and engineering. Sold to schools, districts, and homeschool families.
- Mystery Science School Membership Annual school-wide subscription providing all teachers at a school full access to the Mystery Science curriculum, including all units, lessons, activities, mini-lessons, Anchor Layer, and teaching resources. Pricing varies by school size, with small-school pricing for schools with fewer than 200 K-5 students.
- Mystery Writing Standards-aligned writing curriculum for grades 2-5 featuring research-backed logic models, differentiated instruction, and built-in assessments and rubrics. Available as a standalone product or bundled with Mystery Science.
- Science + Writing Bundle Combined subscription bundle offering full access to both Mystery Science and Mystery Writing curricula at a discounted price (24% savings for schools, 25% for homeschool families compared to purchasing separately).
- Mystery Packs Pre-packaged physical science supply kits organized and delivered to classrooms, containing materials needed for hands-on investigations and activities throughout the school year.
Quantifiable outcome
- 4.7-4.9 rating on individual lessons based on thousands of teacher reviews
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Mystery Science
Customer profileNamed customers4 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Mystery Science technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration4 records
Feature6 records
Mystery Science partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- Discovery EducationcoreDiscovery Education acquired Mystery Science, integrating it into their portfolio of K-12 digital education solutions. Mystery Science operates as a product under Discovery Education alongside other education technology products including Science Techbook, Doodle Math, Pivot Interactives, and Mystery Writing.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Mystery Science competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Amplify Education: Amplify offers comprehensive K-8 science curriculum (Amplify Science) with hands-on investigations, phenomenon-driven instruction, and NGSS alignment — directly comparable to Mystery Science's product positioning, target market, and pedagogy.
- Generation Genius: Generation Genius provides K-8 science video lessons paired with hands-on experiments and teacher resources, competing head-to-head with Mystery Science in the elementary science curriculum subscription category.
- STEMscopes: STEMscopes (by Accelerate Learning) delivers K-12 STEM curriculum with hands-on investigations, digital lessons, and assessment tools — a direct competitor for K-5 science adoption dollars in US school districts.
- BrainPOP: BrainPOP and BrainPOP Jr. offer animated K-8 educational videos across science and other subjects with quizzes and activities, overlapping with Mystery Science's video mini-lesson approach for the same K-5 audience.
- TCI (Teachers' Curriculum Institute): TCI provides K-12 standards-aligned curriculum with hands-on activities and interactive lessons across science and social studies, competing for the same school and district curriculum budget allocations as Mystery Science.
- Science4Us: Science4Us focuses specifically on K-2 science and engineering with interactive online lessons, directly overlapping with Mystery Science's K-5 early elementary segment and the same hands-on, phenomenon-based approach.
Broad incumbents
- Discovery Education Science Techbook: Discovery Education's Science Techbook is a full K-12 digital science textbook platform that sits alongside Mystery Science within the same parent company's portfolio — comparable subject coverage but broader scope and more comprehensive LMS/assessment tooling.
- FOSS (Full Option Science System): FOSS is a research-based K-8 science curriculum from UC Berkeley's Lawrence Hall of Science with hands-on kits and NGSS alignment — an established incumbent frequently selected over Mystery Science in district adoptions.
Peers
- Mystery Science Packs (physical supplies):
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks7 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Mystery Science social profiles
Digital presenceMystery Science financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Mystery Science leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Mystery Science funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds2 records
Investors7 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Mystery Science M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Mystery Science
What does Mystery Science do?
Mystery Science provides a web-based, standards-aligned K-5 science curriculum consisting of 200+ video-driven lessons with hands-on investigations, materials lists, mini-lessons, written and 3D assessments, and an optional Anchor Layer for differentiated instruction. The offering is sold as annual school and district memberships with Spanish-language support and is bundled optionally with the companion Mystery Writing curriculum and Mystery Packs physical supply kits.
Is Mystery Science a public or private company?
Mystery Science is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was Mystery Science founded?
Mystery Science was founded in 2015. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Mystery Science based?
Mystery Science is headquartered in San Francisco, United States, in the North America region.
How does Mystery Science make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. School/District Memberships are the primary driver. The others are homeschool Memberships, science + Writing Bundle and classroom Scholarships.
Who are Mystery Science's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Amplify Education, Generation Genius, STEMscopes, BrainPOP, TCI (Teachers' Curriculum Institute) and Science4Us. Broad incumbents are Discovery Education Science Techbook and FOSS (Full Option Science System). Mystery Science Packs (physical supplies) is listed as a peer.
Does Mystery Science have an API?
No public API is recorded for Mystery Science.
What industry is Mystery Science in?
Mystery Science's product category is K-5 Science Curriculum Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EDAMABAA, Hands-on Science Exploration & Experiments (Lab Kits, Science Clubs), with a secondary code of EDAGACAD, Early Science & Discovery Content. Its NAICS code is 61169 and its SIC code is 8200.