NGSS & Engineering
Grades 6-12
Presented by Tehama County Department of Education
Workshop Outcomes
Participants will practice:
 Making visible the NGSS Performance Expectations to supplement
current curriculum and align to engineering problems.
 Understanding how phenomena and driving questions work to
support the implementation of the NGSS.
 Understanding how the NGSS dimensions work cohesively to
address Performance Expectations.
 Creating their own engineering prototype.
Table Discussions
1. Look over the pictures of the different cars that were ranked as the most gas efficient
between 2012-2015.
2. Discuss with your partners: What do you notice about the body design and exterior
structure that you might consider add to why these cars are fuel efficient?
3. Be ready to share whole group.
BACKGROUND NGSS
Performance Expectations
MS-PS 2-2
Plan an investigation to provide evidence that the change in an object’s motion depends on the sum
of the forces on the object and the mass of the object.
HS-PS 2-1
Analyze data to support the claim that Newton’s second law of motion describes the mathematical
relationship among the net force on a macroscopic object, its mass, and its acceleration.
MS –ETS – 1-3
Analyze data from tests to determine similarities and differences among several design solutions to
identify the best characteristics of each that can be combined into a new solution to better meet the
criteria for success.
HS-ETS – 1-2
Design a solution to a complex real-world problem by breaking it down into smaller, more
manageable problems that can be solved through engineering.
THE PHENOMENA
What structural and
exterior design features
allow these cars to
attain fuel efficiency
close to or greater than
50 miles/gallon?
Driving Question: What factors affect the speed and
distance an object travels over a given time?
Case of Our Current Affairs:
• Carbon dioxide (CO2) from burning gasoline and diesel
THE PROBLEM
contributes to global climate change. We can do our
part to reduce climate change by reducing your carbon
footprint!
• Oil is a non-renewable resource, and we cannot sustain
With gas prices at historic highs,
engineering consultants in
automotive design and engineering
are asking your team to build a car
that gets 100 mpg. You will not be
responsible for changing the engine
design or fuel compositions, but for
building a prototype with the best
structural and design features to
allow consumers to reduce their fuel
costs by 50%.
our current rate of use indefinitely. Using it wisely now
allows us time to find alternative technologies and
fuels that will be more sustainable.
• Our dependence on oil makes us vulnerable to oil
market manipulation and price shocks. Find out how oil
dependence hurts our economy!
• Gas prices keep rising…the average American spends
over $2000 for gasoline each year.
SEP, DCI, CCC
Science and Engineering
Practices
Disciplinary Core Ideas
 Asking and Defining Questions
 Developing and Using Models
 Planning and Carrying Out
 ETS 1B – Developing
Possible Solutions
 PS 2A – Forces and Motion
Investigations
 Analyzing and Interpreting Data
 Engaging in Argument from
Evidence
 Obtaining, Evaluating and
Communicating Information
Cross Cutting Concepts
 Cause and Effect
 Influence of Science,
Engineering, and Technology
on Society and the Natural
World
Direct Instruction
• Newton’s Second Law of Motion
Force = Mass x Acceleration
Acceleration = speed/time
Speed = distance/time
Acceleration is
produced when a
force acts on a mass.
Prediction: What do you predict will occur to the distance traveled if we increase the
mass of an object (truck) going down a slope? Is there a certain amount of mass that
will support an increase in distance? Justify your reasoning using the above formulas.
Science Investigation
Purpose: To determine the
effect of Mass on car travel
distance
PRACTICES
Asking and Defining
Questions
Analyzing and Interpreting
Data
Obtaining, Evaluating and
Communicating Information
CROSS
CUTTING
CONCEPTS
Cause and Effect
Materials:
Toy truck
ramp
meter stick
fishing weights
Instructions:
1. Your team will be allowed to test your truck using three
different masses of fishing weights.
2. Determine the different masses you will test. Construct a
data table to show the different masses in relation to the
distance the truck travels.
3. Begin by testing the distance the truck travels down the
ramp without any added mass. Record this distance.
4. Place the masses in the bed of the toy truck.
5. Test each different mass by releasing the truck down the
ramp and measuring the distance from the end of the ramp
to the final resting place with a meter stick.
6. Record your results in your data table.
7. Explain in a paragraph how mass effects the distance an
object travels. Use evidence from the investigation to
support your claim.
Additional Resources
Informational Text Reading
•
FROM RACE CARS TO OUR CARS: FUEL EFFICIENCY
Across the world, high performance race cars speed their way to glory and prize money for
their drivers. Every driver wants his/her car to make it to the finish line sooner than other
drivers. That often means going further on a tank of fuel – what we know as fuel efficiency.
Non-race car drivers also want to go as far as possible on the fuel in their cars, which is why
many of the cars we see on the road today have fuel-saving technologies that were first
developed for race cars. Smooth and Sleek Race cars don’t have sleek bodies just to make
them look cool - their shape has a lot to do with how they use fuel. As a car moves, it
pushes through the air in front of it. The air, which is made up of molecules, pushes back
against the car. This pushing force caused by the air is called drag or air resistance. Drag is
what counteracts the forward force of thrust from a car’s engine and slows down its
forward motion. There are two main types of drag that affect cars - Form Drag and Surface
Friction Drag. Form drag is drag that is caused by the shape of an object travelling through
a fluid material, such as air. Some shapes move fairly smoothly through air while others do
not. Shapes that are tapered front to back, like an airfoil (see top of Figure 1), move
through air without creating a lot of turbulence (disturbed air) behind them. However,
shapes like the sphere and the flat plate (see Figure 1) create a lot of turbulence behind
them. This turbulence creates drag which slows down an object’s forward movement. In the
case of a car, energy is used and fuel is consumed not only to move the car itself, but also to
push through the air. With streamlined shapes less energy and fuel is used in the moving of
air, so more will go into moving the car.
Science Investigations
• What a Drag!
http://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fairprojects/project_ideas/Aero_p022.shtml#procedure
• Mini-Labs on Newton’s Laws
Handout – Newton’s Laws Lab
http://teachers.net/lessonplans/posts/661.html
• Newton’s Laws Demonstrations
http://www.exo.net/~donr/activities/Newton's_Laws_Demonst
rations.pdf
Engineering Project – Balloon-powered Car
YOUR TASK
• With gas prices at
historic highs,
engineering consultants
in automotive design
and engineering are
asking your team to
build a car that gets 100
mpg. You will not be
responsible for
changing the engine
design or fuel
compositions, but for
building a prototype with
the best structural and
design features to allow
consumers to reduce
their fuel costs by 50%.
Purpose
To experiment with ways
of increasing the distance
the rocket car travels.
Description
Construct racing cars using
any of the materials provided.
They will be powered by the
thrust of an inflated balloon.
In two racing trials, the racers
shoot along a straight course,
and the distance the racers
travel is measured. Between
trials, redesign your racers to
improve their performance
and solve any “mechanical “
problems that crop up.
Submit a detailed report with
data that explains the design
of the racers and how they
performed with revisions.
Constraints
• Use only supplies provided
• Connect balloon to car as
demonstrated
•
•
Draw the design of your car
•
Three attempts allowed per
trial run – two trials
•
Record data for all
parameters after second
trial run on data sheets and
posters.
Regardless of how much
curving a racer car does,
the measured distance is
how far along the straight
line of the race course the
car reached
Engineering Revisions
 Chart your Results: Choose a team member to chart their results on the
large graphs on the wall.
 Data Walks: With your team walk around and review and analyze each data
chart.
 Reflection: At your tables discuss the revisions you would like to make to
your racer car and write down the information in the space provided.
SCIENCE OLYMICS 2010:
The Balloon Car Competition
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wNzqvGEM4-A