Grade 4 Lesson plan
Lifting a Load with the Wexbury Mill Wheel
A 60-minute grade 4 lesson in which groups build a water wheel for a fictional mill, time how fast it lifts three washers, then change one feature and test again.
NGSS · Grades 3–5
3-5-ETS1-3 Run fair tests to improve a model or prototype
Plan and carry out fair tests in which variables are controlled and failure points are considered to identify aspects of a model or prototype that can be improved.
Why water teaches this standard well
A water filter or model dam is ideal for fair testing: hold the water volume constant, change one filter layer at a time, and watch for the failure point where the design leaks or clogs. Iterating toward clearer water mirrors how treatment plants tune their processes to hit quality targets.
Materials tagged with this code are written to the full standard , and each carries a written note explaining the alignment. See how we review materials.
34 materials aligned to 3-5-ETS1-3
Lesson plans
Grade 3 Lesson plan
Quarry Ridge Model Dam: Building a Reservoir on Slate Creek
A grade 3 engineering lesson: students fair-test dam materials to hold back model Slate Creek, then solve liquid-volume word problems about their fictional reservoir.
Grade 5 Lesson plan
Fenwick's Wren Creek Dam: A Grade 5 Build-and-Improve Challenge
A grade 5 engineering design challenge where teams build a model dam across Wren Creek, test it for leaks, then improve one feature at a time in a fair second round.
Worksheets
Grade 3 Worksheet
Harrowby's Tower Height Test: A Grade 3 Water Pressure Worksheet
A grade 3 worksheet built on an invented bottle test from a made-up town, with a scaled bar graph of squirt lengths and questions about where to put a tower.
Math problem sets
Grade 3 Math problem set
Marrowdale Garden Club's Lid Test: A Grade 3 Fair Test Set
Six tubs at a fictional school garden, three with lids and three without, give grade 3 students trial data to subtract, share equally, and compare.
Grade 5 Math problem set
Ashcott's Drain Screens: A Grade 5 Fair Test Problem Set
A grade 5 problem set weighing debris and drain times from four storm drain screen trials in a fictional town, including one trial that was not a fair test.
Labs & experiments
Grades 5–6 Lab / experiment
Gravel, Sand, and Charcoal: Building a Column Water Filter
Teams build two column water filters in different layer orders, pour standardized muddy water through each, and compare clarity data in a fair, science-fair-ready test.
Grade 4 Lab / experiment
Dip, Scoop, or Pour: The Merrivane Owls' Dugout Water Cooler
A grade 4 health lab in which students coat their fingertips with cinnamon as a stand-in for germs and test three ways of serving water from a shared team cooler.
Grade 3 Lab / experiment
Barleyford Slope Ground Covers: A Grade 3 Fair Test
A grade 3 tray investigation comparing bare soil, a grass mat, and wood chips on a tilted slope, then adding a stone row and retesting the best cover.
Grade 5 Lab / experiment
Fenmere Orchard Mulch Depth: A Grade 5 Water-Saving Fair Test
Teams weigh three soil cups over two days to find whether thin or thick mulch holds water better, then recommend a ring depth for a fictional orchard.
Grade 3 Lab / experiment
The Settling Jar Test at Cloverstock Creek: A Grade 3 Lab
A grade 3 lab in which teams shake three jars holding sand, garden soil, and potting mix, then score how fast each one clears at five, ten, and twenty minutes.
Grade 5 Lab / experiment
Three Soils at Pelmore Flats: A Grade 5 Soak-Through Fair Test
Students time the same cup of water through sand, garden soil, and a half-and-half mix to recommend a soil for a fictional town's rain garden and name what to improve.
Grade 3 Lab / experiment
Stonewick Settling Tank: A Grade 3 Water-Clearing Fair Test
A grade 3 engineering lab where students model a settling tank, change only the rest time in a fair test, and measure how much clear water forms on top of the mud.
Grade 4 Lab / experiment
Claypool School's Drain Slope: A Sand-and-Water Fair Test
A grade 4 lab where groups tilt a foil channel to three heights, time the water, and measure the sand left behind to find the slope that carries grit away.
Grade 5 Lab / experiment
Otterdale Garden Soil Drainage: A Grade 5 Percolation Lab
A grade 5 fair-test lab where teams pour water through gravel, sand, and soil to find which drains fastest, then use the data to pick a base for a rain garden.
Grade 3 Lab / experiment
Lumbry Bend's Water Wheel: A Grade 3 Pour-Height Fair Test
A grade 3 lab in which teams build a cork water wheel and test whether pouring one liter from a greater height makes the wheel spin more times in ten seconds.
Classroom activities
Grade 3 Classroom activity
Hartsmere Ridge Land Placement: A Grade 3 Design Challenge
A grade 3 model watershed challenge where teams place land cards and one grass strip on a paper ridge, then test two placements to protect a town water intake.
Grade 4 Classroom activity
Foxmarsh Pond Oil Spill: A Boom Material Fair Test
A grade 4 hands-on station activity in which teams fair-test three floating boom materials against hold, float, and setup rules before recommending one to a park.
Grade 5 Classroom activity
Pennick Creek Intake Screen: A Grade 5 Mesh Choice Activity
Teams pour a model of leafy creek water through three mesh screens, time each one, and choose the mesh that meets a fictional town's two intake rules at once.
Grade 4 Classroom activity
Building a Solar Still for Tulmere Point's Salty Water
A grade 4 activity in which groups build two solar stills that differ only in the stone on the cover, compare what each collects, and test both waters for salt.
Grade 3 Classroom activity
Sedge Creek Farm Irrigation Channel Design Challenge
A grade 3 engineering activity where teams build and fair-test a tray channel that carries water from a well to three crop rows with the least spill.
Grade 5 Classroom activity
Marsh Hollow Settling Basin: A Grade 5 Fair-Test Activity
A grade 5 hands-on activity where teams compare still and stirred jars of muddy water to see how a settling basin lets heavy dirt sink out at a treatment plant.
Grade 4 Classroom activity
Two-Minute Tap Test at Abernathy School: A Fair-Test Rotation
A grade 4 hands-on rotation comparing two toothbrushing habits by catching and measuring the water each one uses over the same two minutes.
Grade 4 Classroom activity
Holding the Chandry Creek Bank: A Cover Fair Test
A grade 4 station rotation testing bare soil, grass mat, and gravel on identical sloped trays to see which cover keeps a fictional creek bank from washing away.
Grade 3 Classroom activity
Build a Mini Model of an Underground Water Supply: A Grade 3 Activity
Grade 3 teams pack two soil cups differently, pour equal water on each, and time which soil lets the water soak in faster in a fair test.
Grade 4 Classroom activity
Design a Filter for Pinegrove's Cloudy Water: A Fair-Test Build
A grade 4 build activity where teams design a layered gravity filter within a layer limit and a time limit, then test it.
Grade 4 Classroom activity
Lifting Water at Redbridge: Build a Model Waterwheel Pump
A grade 4 build activity where small groups construct a spinning paddle wheel that scoops and lifts water, then run a fair test comparing angled and flat paddle cups.
Grade 5 Classroom activity
Clear the Creek: A Grade 5 Water Filter Design Challenge
A hands-on grade 5 engineering activity where teams layer filter materials to clear simulated muddy creek water, test results, and redesign for a second round.
Projects
Grade 3 Project
Brindlewood Cafeteria Grease Catcher: A Grade 3 Design Project
A five-session grade 3 project building a sink catcher for a fictional school kitchen, tested twice against stated flow, catch, and cleaning limits.
Grade 4 Project
A Spillway for Pebblecreek Pond: A Grade 4 Flood Design Project
A four-session grade 4 project where teams build a model earth dam, watch it wash out in a storm pour, then design and fair-test a spillway on a token budget.
Grade 4 Project
A Sampling Pole for Thrushwater Creek: A Grade 4 Design Project
A four-session grade 4 project in which teams build and refine a pole that dips a water sample from four feet out over a creek without spilling or tipping.
Grade 5 Project
Rushbeck Brook Sediment Plan: A Grade 5 Site Design Project
A four-session grade 5 project where teams design, model, test, and revise a mud-control plan for a fictional building site above a brook, then pitch it.
Grade 3 Project
Camp Alder Creek Filter Challenge: A Grade 3 Design Project
A four-session grade 3 engineering project where teams design and fair-test a sand and gravel filter for a fictional camp's muddy creek water on a fixed budget.
Graphic organizers
Grade 5 Graphic organizer
Wistman Row Storm Inlet: A Grade 5 Failure Point Chain
A grade 5 cause-effect chain organizer that turns a clogged model storm drain into a named failure point, a cause, two possible fixes, and a retest plan.