MS-PS3-4: Mass, Materials and Temperature Change
Also called NGSS MS-PS3-4 · Topic: Energy · Physical Science
The Official Wording
Plan an investigation to determine the relationships among the energy transferred, the type of matter, the mass, and the change in the average kinetic energy of the particles as measured by the temperature of the sample.
Clarification statement: Examples of experiments could include comparing final water temperatures after different masses of ice melted in the same volume of water with the same initial temperature, the temperature change of samples of different materials with the same mass as they cool or heat in the environment, or the same material with different masses when a specific amount of energy is added.
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-PS3-4 Means in Plain English
Students plan an investigation into how much a sample's temperature changes when energy goes in or out. They compare different materials with the same mass, or the same material in different amounts, and see that both matter. Temperature is their window into average particle motion.
Students compare temperature changes and do not calculate the total thermal energy transferred. The work builds on particle motion and temperature (MS-PS1-4) and prepares students for specific heat and energy flow in HS-PS3-4.
MS-PS3-4 I Can Statements
- I can plan a fair test of how materials warm up.
- I can explain why more mass warms more slowly.
- I can link temperature to how fast particles move.
MS-PS3-4 Worked Example
A warming test a class can run with USB mug warmers, water and vegetable oil.
With the same energy going in, do the type of material and its mass change how much a sample warms?
Set It Up: Two USB mug warmers, three identical steel mugs, water, vegetable oil, a kitchen scale and a digital thermometer.
- Weigh 100 g of water into one mug and 100 g of vegetable oil into another, both at room temperature.Both start at 22 °C
- Set each mug on a mug warmer for 10 minutes, stirring gently before the reading.Same heater, same time
- Read the final temperatures.Water 34 °C, oil 45 °C
- Repeat with 200 g of water in the third mug on the same warmer for 10 minutes.200 g of water: 28 °C
- Record each temperature rise in a table.Oil +23, 100 g water +12, 200 g water +6
With the same energy in, the oil warmed about twice as much as the water, and doubling the water's mass halved its rise.
Why it works: Different materials need different amounts of energy to speed up their particles, and a bigger sample spreads the same energy over more particles.
Common Mistakes with MS-PS3-4
Treating heat and temperature as the same
“Both mugs got the same heat, so they should reach the same temperature.”
Try this: Equal energy in can produce different temperature changes. The material and the mass decide how much the temperature rises.
Changing more than one variable
Comparing 100 g of oil with 200 g of water
Try this: Keep mass the same when testing materials, and keep the material the same when testing mass, so one result has one cause.
Thinking the bigger sample got less energy
“The big mug only reached 28 °C, so it got less energy.”
Try this: Both mugs got the same energy. The larger sample shared it among more particles, so each sped up less.
Where MS-PS3-4 Fits
Practice MS-PS3-4
Quick Check
- You add the same energy to 1 kg and 2 kg of water. Which warms more?
- Beach sand gets hot faster than the sea in the same sun. What does that show?
- What does a thermometer actually measure?