HS-PS2-3
The standard
Apply scientific and engineering ideas to design, evaluate, and refine a device that minimizes the force on a macroscopic object during a collision.
Next Generation Science Standards
What this standard means
Students need to use force, momentum, impulse, and energy ideas to design a device that protects an object in a collision. They should explain how increasing stopping time or distance can reduce force, then use evidence from tests to improve the design.
Mastery looks like a student building a testable prototype, collecting simple data, comparing designs, and explaining changes with physics, not just “more padding.” Common sticking points are confusing force with energy, ignoring fair tests, and making design changes without evidence.
Ways to teach it
- Hands-on: Drop an egg in a paper cup device from one meter, then redesign using straws, cotton balls, tape, and index cards.
- Prompt: Explain why a crumple zone helps passengers more than a rigid front bumper during the same crash.
- Quick assessment: Show two collision graphs with different stopping times and ask which has less average force and why.
- Real-world connection: Compare a bike helmet, airbag, and phone case, then list how each increases stopping time or spreads force.
Plan a lesson for HS-PS2-3
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Related standards
- MS-ESS3-3
Apply scientific principles to design a method for monitoring and minimizing a human impact on the environment.
- MS-PS3-3
Apply scientific principles to design, construct, and test a device that either minimizes or maximizes thermal energy transfer.
- MS-PS2-1
Apply Newton's Third Law to design a solution to a problem involving the motion of two colliding objects.
- 4-PS3-4
Apply scientific ideas to design, test, and refine a device that converts energy from one form to another.