NGSS 2-PS1-3
The Standard
Make observations to construct an evidence-based account of how an object made of a small set of pieces can be disassembled and made into a new object.
Next Generation Science Standards
Teacher's field guide
What This Standard Means
What Students Need to Do
- Students take apart an object built from a few pieces, then rearrange those pieces into a different object. They observe each step and use those observations as evidence that the pieces were reused.
What Mastery Looks Like
- A student can build two clearly different objects from the same set of pieces. They can draw or describe both designs and use counted or named pieces as evidence that none were added.
Common Misconceptions
- Students may think changing the arrangement changes the pieces themselves, or that a new object requires new materials. They may also describe what they built without citing observations such as the number, color, or shape of pieces reused.
How to Assess It
- Give each student six linking cubes. Ask them to build one object, sketch it, rebuild the cubes as a different object, then write one observation proving they reused the pieces.
Lesson moves
Ways to Teach It
Give pairs eight building bricks to make a bridge, record the pieces, take it apart, and use all eight to make an animal.
Ask students to write, “How do you know the second object used the same pieces?” and support the answer with two observations.
Play Same Pieces Challenge: teams draw an object card, build it with five cubes, then rebuild before the timer ends.
Show photos of a wooden pallet remade as a planter, then ask which visible boards provide evidence of reuse.
Free download
Printable 2-PS1-3 Worksheet
A ready-to-print activity worksheet aligned to 2-PS1-3, with an answer key for the teacher on its own page. No account needed.
PDF, US Letter, prints cleanly in black and white.
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