What Exactly Are We Fixing?
A 50-minute Grade 1 lesson on gathering information about a situation people want to change, and defining the problem.
What Exactly Are We Fixing? is a free 50-minute Kindergarten to Grade 2 science lesson plan for Common Core standard K-2-ETS1-1 — ask, look and gather information to define a problem worth solving. It is timed across 5 sections, gives the exact wording to use where the wording carries the mathematics, names 3 misconceptions with the teaching move that addresses each, and ends with an exit ticket and a printable worksheet with its answer key.
- Grade:
- Kindergarten to Grade 2
- Length:
- 50 minutes
- Standard:
- K-2-ETS1-1
Kindergarten to Grade 2 · Engineering Design
K-2-ETS1-1
Ask questions, make observations, and gather information about a situation people want to change to define a simple problem that can be solved through the development of a new or improved object or tool.
Objective
Students will be able to gather information about a situation and write the problem as a how-to question.
Students are successful when they can
- Asks at least two people about the situation.
- Says what is going wrong and for whom.
- Writes it as a 'how to' question.
What you need
- Clipboards and a three-question interview sheet
- 'How to …' sentence strips
- The printable practice sheet linked at the end of this plan
The lesson
Warm-up — the vague complaint
5 min- Write 'the corridor is annoying' on the board.
- Ask what anybody could build for that.
Teach — ask before you decide
13 min- Take a real situation: messages do not get across the playground.
- Ask three questions about it: what goes wrong, when, and who it affects.
- Write the answers up, then write the how-to: how to get a message across a noisy playground.
- Compare with the vague version. The how-to says what a solution would have to do.
- Show a bad definition: 'make a better shout'. Ask what better means here.
- Say the three moves: ask, look, then write it as how to.
“What exactly goes wrong, and who for?”
Investigate — interview and define
17 min- Pairs pick a situation in the classroom or corridor.
- They interview two people with the three questions.
- They write what they found, then a how-to strip.
- Pairs read their strip out and the class says whether a solution could be built for it.
Independent practice
12 min- Students complete the 'What Exactly Are We Fixing?' page.
- Check the chosen problem is something an object could solve.
Close
3 min- Keep the best how-to strip for the design lesson.
What goes wrong, and why
Each of these is a reasoning error rather than carelessness. The fix addresses the reasoning.
Defines the problem from their own view only.
Why: They noticed it, so they know it.
Fix: Interview two people. It may be a different problem to them.
Writes a solution instead of a problem.
Why: The idea arrives first.
Fix: The how-to says what has to be achieved. The solution comes after.
Picks a problem nothing could be built for.
Why: It is a real annoyance.
Fix: Ask what object would help. If none could, choose another problem.
If they are not there yet
- One interview question rather than three.
- A how-to strip with the first half written.
If they finish early
- Define a problem that two groups disagree about.
- Say how you would know the problem was solved.
- Find information that changed how you defined it.
Exit ticket
Messages do not get across the playground. Write that as a how-to problem, and say who it affects.
What to look for: 'How to get a message across a noisy playground', affecting the people trying to send them. A solution instead of a problem means the how-to move needs another run.
Printable practice for K-2-ETS1-1
Free to print and copy, answer key included. Each sheet can generate a fresh set of problems for a retake.
- What Exactly Are We Fixing?Circle the best answer.
Questions about What Exactly Are We Fixing?
How long does the What Exactly Are We Fixing? lesson take?
50 minutes, split across 5 timed sections: warm-up 5 min, teach 13 min, investigate 17 min, independent practice 12 min, close 3 min. The minutes are stated per section and add up to the stated length, so the plan can be cut or extended at a section boundary rather than abandoned halfway.
Which standard does What Exactly Are We Fixing? teach?
K-2-ETS1-1 — K-2-ETS1-1, Engineering Design for Kindergarten to Grade 2: “Ask questions, make observations, and gather information about a situation people want to change to define a simple problem that can be solved through the development of a new or improved object or tool.” In plain terms, ask, look and gather information to define a problem worth solving.
What do I need to teach this lesson?
Clipboards and a three-question interview sheet, 'How to …' sentence strips and the printable practice sheet linked at the end of this plan. Everything listed is either ordinary classroom equipment or a free printable from this site — there is nothing to buy and nothing to prepare beyond photocopying.
What mistakes should I expect in this lesson?
Three, each a reasoning error rather than carelessness: defines the problem from their own view only; writes a solution instead of a problem and picks a problem nothing could be built for. The plan gives the thinking behind each one and the teaching move that addresses the thinking rather than the symptom.
How do I know whether the lesson worked?
The exit ticket asks: “Messages do not get across the playground. Write that as a how-to problem, and say who it affects.” 'How to get a message across a noisy playground', affecting the people trying to send them. A solution instead of a problem means the how-to move needs another run. That tells you whether the class needs a reteach or a thirty-second conversation before you plan tomorrow.
Is there a worksheet to go with What Exactly Are We Fixing??
Yes — 1 printable K-2-ETS1-1 worksheet, linked at the end of the plan and free like the rest of the site. Each one comes with an answer key and 25 versions, so the practice after the lesson can be a different paper on every desk.
Is What Exactly Are We Fixing? free to use?
Yes. The plan, its printables and their answer keys are free to read, print and photocopy for your own class, with no account and no email capture. It was last reviewed on 8 September 2026. Please do not resell it or republish it as your own.
Last reviewed 2026-09-08. Aligned to K-2-ETS1-1 of the Next Generation Science Standards.