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Keeping the Museum Pinwheels Standing

Compare model bases for a science museum's outdoor pinwheels. Use wind-test data, cost limits, and design goals to judge protection.

Grade 3ScienceInteractive · Printable

Aligned to3-ESS3-1

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What’s included

Single worksheet
Auto-graded online
1 NGSS standard
Printable answer key
14 questions
Classroom-ready

Details

Format: Interactive · Printable
Grade: Grade 3
Subject: Science
Question types: Fill in the blank, Multiple choice, Circle the answer, Sorting, Short answer

About this worksheet

What students practice

Students compare wind-test data to judge designs that reduce damage to an outdoor exhibit.
Students evaluate protective designs using a fall limit and a cost limit.
Students support a design choice with evidence and identify limits of model tests.

How to use

Read the investigation together and review what each bar measures. Have students compare the designs independently, then discuss their evidence-based recommendations.

Curriculum

NGSS standard covered

3-ESS3-1

Judge a design that reduces the damage from a weather hazard such as floods, strong winds or lightning.

Preview

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Name Date

Keeping the Museum Pinwheels Standing

Use wind-test evidence to judge two protective designs.

Test Two Protective Bases

Read the investigation. Use the graph to compare the bases.

A Windy Exhibit

A science museum is planning an outdoor pinwheel exhibit. Strong winds could tip the tall stands and bend the pinwheels when they hit the ground. Before building the exhibit, a class tests small models indoors. The models help the museum compare designs without putting people outside in dangerous weather.

The class makes two changes to the original stand. One design has wide feet that reach outward. The other has a weighted ring around the bottom. The pinwheels, stand heights, and stand materials stay the same. The class also tests original stands with no added protection.

First, an adult sets a fan at a marked spot. Students place one model on a marked spot on the floor. The adult runs the fan for 30 seconds. Students record whether the stand falls. They repeat these steps with 10 models of each kind. The fan speed, fan distance, floor surface, and blowing time stay the same.

The graph shows Test 1. For Test 2, the class resets the models and repeats the same steps. These are model tests with a fan, not tests in a real storm.