Unit Plan 32 (Grade 3 Science): Engineering Better Habitats

Focus: Generate and compare designs that improve habitats or animal safety, then test and revise them to make claims about which solutions work best and why.

Grade Level: 3

Subject Area: Science (Life Science • Engineering Design • Human Impacts)

Total Unit Duration: 5 sessions (one week), 45–60 minutes per session

I. Introduction

In this unit, students act as engineers for living things, designing ways to make habitats safer and healthier in the face of environmental problems. They look at examples such as animals crossing roads, litter in schoolyards, lack of plants for pollinators, or birds hitting windows. Students then generate multiple design ideas, compare them using criteria and constraints, and plan simple fair tests to see which designs work better. Finally, they revise their designs and make a claim about the merit of their best solution, using evidence, addressing 3-LS4-4, 3–5-ETS1-2, and 3–5-ETS1-3.

Essential Questions

• What kinds of engineering solutions can help improve habitats or animal safety when humans cause problems?
• How do criteria and constraints guide which designs are better or more realistic?
• What is a fair test, and how can we use it to compare two or more designs?
• How can we make a claim about the merit of a design solution and support it with evidence from our tests?

II. Objectives and Standards

Learning Objectives — Students will be able to:

1. Identify and describe a human-caused habitat problem (e.g., litter, unsafe crossings, lack of plants) that affects organisms.
2. Generate multiple design solutions for improving habitats or animal safety and compare them using criteria and constraints (3–5-ETS1-2).
3. Select designs to test and plan fair tests that keep variables the same except for the part being compared (3–5-ETS1-3).
4. Carry out simple tests or demonstrations, collect observations/data, and use them to decide which design works better.
5. Make a claim about the merit of a solution (how good/helpful it is) to a habitat or safety problem and support it with evidence from tests (3-LS4-4).
6. Communicate design ideas, test results, and claims clearly using models, diagrams, and short written or oral explanations.

Standards Alignment — 3rd Grade (NGSS-Aligned)

• 3-LS4-4 — Make a claim about the merit of a solution to a problem caused by environmental changes.
• 3–5-ETS1-2 — Generate and compare multiple solutions to a problem based on how well they meet the criteria and constraints.
• 3–5-ETS1-3 — 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.

Success Criteria — Student Language

• I can describe a habitat or animal-safety problem caused by people.
• I can brainstorm and compare more than one solution using criteria and constraints.
• I can help plan and run a fair test that changes only one thing at a time.
• I can use evidence from our tests to decide which design works better.
• I can make a claim about the merit of one solution and explain why it is better using our test results.