MS-ETS1-2 lessons
Evaluate competing design solutions using a systematic process to see how well they meet the criteria and constraints of the problem.
The Next Generation Science Standards code MS-ETS1-2 asks students to: “Evaluate competing design solutions using a systematic process to see how well they meet the criteria and constraints of the problem.” These Fieldbook lessons teach it hands-on, with everyday materials, a printable teacher guide and a student sheet.
Forces and Motion: Crash, Push and Stop Grade 8
- Can you design a crumple zone? Two periods of 45–60 min (or one 75–90 min block)
Teams design, build and test a crumple zone that lets a raw egg in a zip bag survive a cart crash into a wall, working to a budget and a size limit. They measure how far each design crushed and use class data to explain why a longer stop means a smaller force.
Stone, Bamboo and Storms: Building in Vietnam Grades 6–7
- How did rain carve the islands of Hạ Long Bay? 60 min, plus 15 minutes the next day
Science and English together, for English learners at CEFR B1. Teams drop limestone and shells into vinegar, water and soda water, watch for bubbles and weigh what is left the next day. Then they use the evidence to explain to a tour boat guide how weak acid in rain carved the towers and caves of Hạ Long Bay.
- Why do builders in Vietnam trust bamboo? 60 min, or two 35-minute periods
Science and English together, for English learners at CEFR B1. Teams make four beams from identical sheets of paper (a flat sheet, a solid rod, a hollow tube and a tube with 'nodes'), load each one with water until it bends, and work out strength per gram. Then they use the evidence to explain why bamboo is shaped the way it is, and design a bamboo footbridge.
- How can a roof survive a typhoon? 60 min, or two 35-minute periods
Science and English together, for English learners at CEFR B1. Teams build a card house, then test roofs in the wind from a fan: loose, long overhang, short overhang, weighted and tied down. They use the results to explain why wind lifts roofs and to advise a family in Đà Nẵng before a typhoon.
NGSS is used as written in Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, so the code MS-ETS1-2 matches there. Other states word and number their own versions: see curriculum alignment for your state's codes.
More NGSS standards for middle school
All standards we teach · Curriculum alignment by state and province
Three full lessons, free
Make a free account and download any three Fieldbook lessons as printable PDFs. No card needed.