Mississippi Science P.5.5B.4
The Standard
- P.5.5B
- Students will demonstrate an understanding of mixtures and solutions.
Design an effective system (e.g., sifting, filtration, evaporation, magnetic attraction, or floatation) for separating various mixtures. Use an engineering design process to define the problem, design, construct, evaluate, and improve the system. *
2026 Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science · Organization of Matter and Chemical Interactions
Teacher's field guide
What This Standard Means
What Students Need to Do
- Students choose tools that fit the materials in a mixture. They plan and build a series of steps, check what each step separates, then improve the system based on the results.
What Mastery Looks Like
- A student uses a magnet for steel clips, a filter for sand in water, and evaporation for saltwater. They put the steps in order, check what they collected, and change a step if materials remain mixed.
Common Misconceptions
- Students may think a filter traps dissolved salt or that a magnet attracts every metal. They may stop after one step even when the mixture needs more, or assume the system worked without checking what was collected.
How to Assess It
- Give students this prompt: “A cup contains sand and saltwater. Sketch a system that recovers the sand and salt. Label the tools in order, how you would check the results, and one change if sand gets through.”
Lesson moves
Ways to Teach It
Have teams sketch, build, test, and revise a separator for sand, water, and steel clips using a bagged magnet, funnel, and coffee filter.
Ask, “How would you get both salt and sand back from a cup of saltwater and sand?” Have partners defend the order of tools.
Hand out cards labeled saltwater, muddy water, and steel clips in rice; pairs match each with evaporation, a filter, or a magnet.
Model water treatment by filtering muddy water; compare clarity before and after, and label the filtered water unsafe to drink.
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