MS-PS1-4 lessons
Develop a model that predicts and describes changes in particle motion, temperature and state of a pure substance when thermal energy is added or removed.
The Next Generation Science Standards code MS-PS1-4 asks students to: “Develop a model that predicts and describes changes in particle motion, temperature and state of a pure substance when thermal energy is added or removed.” These Fieldbook lessons teach it hands-on, with everyday materials, a printable teacher guide and a student sheet.
Hot and Cold: Particles on the Move Grade 6 · partly supports this standard
- Why do bike tires go soft in winter? 45–60 min
Students stretch a balloon over a bottle, move it between warm and ice water, and find out what happens to air particles when they cool down. Then they explain a cyclist's 'flat' tire on the first cold morning.
- Why does food colouring spread faster in hot water? 45–60 min
Two cups, two drops, one race. Students drop food colouring into warm and ice-cold water at the same moment, then explain what the moving colour tells us about particles they can't see.
- How does a thermometer know? 50–60 min
Teams build a working thermometer from a bottle of coloured water and a clear straw, then calibrate it against a real thermometer. At the end, they explain how any liquid thermometer 'knows' the temperature.
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-PS1-4 matches there. Other states word and number their own versions: see curriculum alignment for your state's codes.
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