Skip to content
LessonPrint

Scoring the Options is a free printable Grade 3 to Grade 5 science worksheet on comparing multiple solutions against criteria and constraints, aligned to Common Core standard 3-5-ETS1-2. It prints 8 questions with an answer key on its own sheet of paper, in 25 versions that each ask different questions, so no two pupils in the class work from the same page. Print it from the browser or download it as a PDF — no account, no email.

Set 17 of 25 · the same problems every time you open this link.

Next setLesson plan

One paper per pupil

12345678910111213141516171819202122232425

Set 1 has all 25 in a single PDF. All 25 sets ask different questions.

Scoring the Options

3-5-ETS1-2

NameDate

Circle the best answer.

1.Why generate several solutions before comparing?
  • A.Because three is a lucky number
  • B.The first idea is rarely the best against every criterion
  • C.To use more paper
2.What makes a comparison unfair?
  • A.Scoring one design generously because it is yours
  • B.Having four criteria
  • C.Using a grid
3.A design fails one criterion badly and passes the rest. What should you record?
  • A.Only that it failed
  • B.Nothing at all
  • C.Which criterion it fails and by how much
4.Why record why a design was rejected?
  • A.Part of it may be useful in a later design
  • B.To be discouraging
  • C.To fill the sheet
5.One design scores highest but needs mains power, which is not allowed. What follows?
  • A.The constraint is dropped
  • B.It wins anyway
  • C.It is ruled out for breaking a constraint
6.Two teams score the same design differently. What should they do?
  • A.Agree what the criterion means, then score again
  • B.Ignore the disagreement
  • C.Average the two scores silently
7.Three designs are scored against four criteria. What decides the winner?
  • A.Which looks strongest
  • B.Which was built first
  • C.How well each meets the criteria, once any breaking a constraint is removed
8.Two designs tie on every criterion. What is a fair way to decide?
  • A.Compare them on cost, build time or ease of repair
  • B.Pick the newer idea
  • C.Toss a coin and say nothing

LessonPrint · 3-5-ETS1-2 · Set 17 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — Scoring the Options

Set 17. Prints on its own sheet.

  1. 1.The first idea is rarely the best against every criterion
  2. 2.Scoring one design generously because it is yours
  3. 3.Which criterion it fails and by how much
  4. 4.Part of it may be useful in a later design
  5. 5.It is ruled out for breaking a constraint
  6. 6.Agree what the criterion means, then score again
  7. 7.How well each meets the criteria, once any breaking a constraint is removed
  8. 8.Compare them on cost, build time or ease of repair

More practice for 3-5-ETS1-2

Compare several possible solutions against the criteria and the constraints.

Teaching this next? Scoring the Options is the 55-minute plan for it, with the misconceptions to expect.

All Grade 3 to Grade 5 worksheets

Last reviewed 2026-09-05. Aligned to 3-5-ETS1-2 of the Next Generation Science Standards.