There is a growing need for classroom materials that position students as agents of scientific discovery—designing investigations, collecting data, and drawing conclusions based on experimental evidence. Our project, MothEd, was founded to create a place-based, student-oriented, moth-themed unit that supports authentic student agency and scientific inquiry. Developed materials were assembled into a comprehensive teacher guide that introduces educators to the curriculum and supports them in implementing student-led research projects in their classrooms. Students are supported in asking testable research questions, making predictions, building low-cost do-it-yourself moth traps, collecting specimens, drawing empirically based conclusions, and sharing their findings with invested audiences. While the MothEd Teacher Guide can be implemented across the K–12 spectrum, it was specifically designed for middle school grades and is freely available for use. Teachers who have implemented the curriculum report greater student engagement, student ownership of learning, and connections that students make to authentic scientific practices.