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Judging Between Designs 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 4 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.

Judging Between Designs

3-5-ETS1-2

NameDate

Circle the best answer.

1.Two designs score identically. What is a defensible tie-break?
  • A.Whichever was built first
  • B.A criterion agreed in advance, such as cost or ease of repair
  • C.The teacher decides silently
2.Three filters are tested. What should the comparison be based on?
  • A.Which looks cleanest
  • B.Measured performance against each criterion, with constraint failures removed
  • C.Which took longest to build
3.Why record why a rejected design failed?
  • A.Part of it may solve a later problem
  • B.To justify the rejection
  • C.It is not worth recording
4.A design fails one criterion badly. What is worth recording?
  • A.Only that it failed
  • B.Which criterion and by how much, in case the design is revised
  • C.Nothing
5.What makes a comparison honest?
  • A.Using more criteria
  • B.Scoring your own last
  • C.The same evidence and the same standard applied to every design
6.Why should solutions be generated before any is evaluated?
  • A.It is traditional
  • B.Evaluating early narrows the field before the best idea appears
  • C.It fills time
7.One design meets every criterion but costs twice the budget. What follows?
  • A.It is ruled out, unless the budget itself is renegotiated openly
  • B.It wins on merit
  • C.The budget is ignored
8.Two groups score the same design differently. What should happen?
  • A.Average the scores quietly
  • B.Keep both scores
  • C.They agree what the criterion means and rescore

LessonPrint · 3-5-ETS1-2 · Set 4 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — Judging Between Designs

Set 4. Prints on its own sheet.

  1. 1.A criterion agreed in advance, such as cost or ease of repair
  2. 2.Measured performance against each criterion, with constraint failures removed
  3. 3.Part of it may solve a later problem
  4. 4.Which criterion and by how much, in case the design is revised
  5. 5.The same evidence and the same standard applied to every design
  6. 6.Evaluating early narrows the field before the best idea appears
  7. 7.It is ruled out, unless the budget itself is renegotiated openly
  8. 8.They agree what the criterion means and rescore

More practice for 3-5-ETS1-2

Compare several possible solutions against the criteria and the constraints.

Teaching this next? Judging Between Designs is the 60-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.