MS-PS3-3: Designing a Device to Control Heat Flow
Also called NGSS MS-PS3-3 · Topic: Energy · Physical Science
The Official Wording
Apply scientific principles to design, construct, and test a device that either minimizes or maximizes thermal energy transfer.
Clarification statement: Examples of devices could include an insulated box, a solar cooker, and a Styrofoam cup.
Assessment boundary: Assessment does not include calculating the total amount of thermal energy transferred.
NGSS Lead States, 2013 · Read it on nextgenscience.org · checked October 15, 2026
What MS-PS3-3 Means in Plain English
Students design, build and test something that either slows heat flow, like a container that keeps soup hot, or speeds it up, like a solar cooker. They pick materials using what they know about conductors and insulators, then test and improve.
Students judge success by temperature readings over time, not by calculating how much thermal energy moved. The work builds on how particle motion relates to temperature (MS-PS1-4) and uses the engineering design steps in MS-ETS1-1 through MS-ETS1-4.
MS-PS3-3 I Can Statements
- I can choose materials that slow or speed up heat flow.
- I can test my design by tracking temperature over time.
- I can use test results to improve my design.
MS-PS3-3 Worked Example
A design challenge a class can run with glass jars of hot tap water and everyday wrapping materials.
Which wrap keeps a jar of hot water warmest for 30 minutes?
Set It Up: Four identical glass jars with lids, hot tap water, bubble wrap, felt, an old wool sock, aluminum foil, rubber bands and a thermometer.
- Define the goal: keep the water as hot as possible for 30 minutes using only the materials on the table.Criteria and constraints listed
- Fill each jar with the same amount of hot tap water at about 50 °C and leave one jar bare as the control.All start at 50 °C
- Wrap the other jars in bubble wrap, felt and the wool sock, then read every temperature after 30 minutes.Bare 38, bubble wrap 43, felt 42, sock 44 °C
- Combine the two best materials, sock over bubble wrap with a foil outer layer, and test again.Combined wrap: 46 °C
- Look for where heat still escapes and plan the next change.Bare lid loses heat, wrap it next
Layering bubble wrap, wool and foil kept the water warmest, losing only 4 °C in 30 minutes.
Why it works: Materials that hold still pockets of air are poor conductors, so they slow the flow of thermal energy from the hot water to the cooler room.
Common Mistakes with MS-PS3-3
Thinking cold flows in
“The wrap keeps the cold out.”
Try this: Thermal energy always moves from warmer to cooler. A good wrap slows heat leaving the jar rather than blocking cold.
Thinking warm materials add heat
“Wool makes the water hotter.”
Try this: Wool and felt do not make heat. They trap air that slows heat escaping, so the water simply cools more slowly.
Running an unfair test
Starting one jar at 55 °C and another at 45 °C
Try this: Start every jar with the same amount of water at the same temperature, and read them all after the same time.
Where MS-PS3-3 Fits
Practice MS-PS3-3
Quick Check
- Why does a foam cup keep cocoa warm longer than a metal cup?
- A solar cooker is painted black inside. Why?
- Your design kept the water only 2 °C warmer than the control. What is your next step?