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Where It Gives Way is a free printable Grade 3 to Grade 5 science worksheet on fair tests with variables controlled to find failure points, aligned to Common Core standard 3-5-ETS1-3. 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 15 of 25 · the same problems every time you open this link.

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

Where It Gives Way

3-5-ETS1-3

NameDate

Circle the best answer.

1.Why repeat a test three times?
  • A.To fill the lesson
  • B.One result might be a bad build rather than a bad design
  • C.To use more materials
2.You test two shelters in the wind. What must be identical?
  • A.The colours
  • B.The names of the builders
  • C.The wind speed, the exposure and how you judge failure
3.A shelter collapses at the same corner every time. What is that?
  • A.A reason to stop testing
  • B.A failure point, and the thing to redesign
  • C.Bad luck
4.You change the material and the joints at the same time. What is the problem?
  • A.Two changes are always better
  • B.Nothing, it improved
  • C.You cannot tell which change caused the difference
5.You strengthen the corner and it fails somewhere else. What does that mean?
  • A.Nothing was learned
  • B.The failure point moved, so the first fix worked
  • C.The design got worse
6.A test shows no failure at all. What should you do?
  • A.Stop testing
  • B.Increase the load until it does, to find the limit
  • C.Declare it perfect
7.What should be recorded besides the result?
  • A.The weather outside
  • B.What was held the same, so somebody else can judge the test
  • C.Who was fastest
8.Why add load in equal steps rather than all at once?
  • A.It looks tidier
  • B.So you can tell at what load it failed
  • C.It is quicker

LessonPrint · 3-5-ETS1-3 · Set 15 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — Where It Gives Way

Set 15. Prints on its own sheet.

  1. 1.One result might be a bad build rather than a bad design
  2. 2.The wind speed, the exposure and how you judge failure
  3. 3.A failure point, and the thing to redesign
  4. 4.You cannot tell which change caused the difference
  5. 5.The failure point moved, so the first fix worked
  6. 6.Increase the load until it does, to find the limit
  7. 7.What was held the same, so somebody else can judge the test
  8. 8.So you can tell at what load it failed

More practice for 3-5-ETS1-3

Run fair tests, controlling the variables, to find what to improve.

Teaching this next? Where It Gives Way 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-ETS1-3 of the Next Generation Science Standards.