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Keeping a Patch Cool

A 45-minute Kindergarten lesson on designing and testing a cover that keeps the ground cooler in the sun.

Keeping a Patch Cool is a free 45-minute Kindergarten science lesson plan for Common Core standard K-PS3-2 — build something that keeps a patch of ground cooler in the sun. It is timed across 5 sections, gives the exact wording to use where the wording carries the mathematics, names 3 misconceptions with the teaching move that addresses each, and ends with an exit ticket and a printable worksheet with its answer key.

Grade:
Kindergarten
Length:
45 minutes
Standard:
K-PS3-2

Kindergarten · Physical Science

K-PS3-2

Use tools and materials to design and build a structure that will reduce the warming effect of sunlight on an area.

Objective

Students will be able to build a cover and use a test to say whether it kept the ground cooler.

Students are successful when they can

  • Builds something that blocks sunlight from a patch.
  • Compares the covered patch with an uncovered one.
  • Explains the result by how much light was blocked.

What you need

  • Card, cloth, clear plastic, sticks and tape
  • Two thermometers, or the back of a hand
  • The printable practice sheet linked at the end of this plan

The lesson

Warm-up — the sandpit at noon

5 min
  1. Say the problem: the sandpit is too hot to play in at noon.
  2. Ask what could be done, and collect ideas without judging them.

Teach — what a cover has to do

12 min
  1. Hold a clear plastic sheet over a patch and ask whether it will help. Look through it.
  2. Hold a thick card over the same patch. Ask what is different.
  3. Name the job: stop the sunlight landing on the ground.
  4. Read the three-covers record: 30 degrees bare, 25 under cloth, 21 under card.
  5. Ask which cover blocked most light, and match it to the coolest number.
  6. Say what has to stay the same to make it a fair test: same patch, same hour, same day.
“Can the light still get through? Then what will it do to the ground?”

Investigate — build and test a cover

15 min
  1. Groups build a small cover from card, cloth or plastic and stand it over a patch outside.
  2. They leave a patch beside it uncovered.
  3. After ten minutes they compare the two patches by hand or thermometer.
  4. They say which was cooler and what their cover was made of.

Independent practice

10 min
  1. Students complete the 'Keeping a Patch Cool' page.
  2. Look for reasons about blocking light rather than about the cover being nice.

Close

3 min
  1. Choose the group's best cover and say what made it work.

What goes wrong, and why

Each of these is a reasoning error rather than carelessness. The fix addresses the reasoning.

Thinks a clear cover works as well as a solid one.

Why: It is still a cover.

Fix: Look through it. If the light gets through, it lands on the ground.

Puts the cover beside the patch rather than between it and the sun.

Why: The cover is 'on the patch' in a loose sense.

Fix: Follow the light with a finger. The cover has to be in its way.

Judges the cover without an uncovered patch to compare.

Why: The covered patch feels cool.

Fix: Cool compared with what? Keep a bare patch beside it.

If they are not there yet

  • Pre-cut cover pieces and a ready-made stand.
  • Compare two covers rather than designing one.

If they finish early

  • Test whether a higher cover works better than a low one.
  • Design a cover that also lets the rain through.
  • Predict what a white cover would do compared with a black one.

Exit ticket

Which would keep the ground cooler, a clear plastic sheet or a thick card? Say why.

What to look for: The card, because it stops the sunlight reaching the ground. Choosing the plastic means the blocking idea needs another run.

Printable practice for K-PS3-2

Free to print and copy, answer key included. Each sheet can generate a fresh set of problems for a retake.

Questions about Keeping a Patch Cool

How long does the Keeping a Patch Cool lesson take?

45 minutes, split across 5 timed sections: warm-up 5 min, teach 12 min, investigate 15 min, independent practice 10 min, close 3 min. The minutes are stated per section and add up to the stated length, so the plan can be cut or extended at a section boundary rather than abandoned halfway.

Which standard does Keeping a Patch Cool teach?

K-PS3-2 — K-PS3-2, Physical Science for Kindergarten: “Use tools and materials to design and build a structure that will reduce the warming effect of sunlight on an area.” In plain terms, build something that keeps a patch of ground cooler in the sun.

What do I need to teach this lesson?

Card, cloth, clear plastic, sticks and tape, two thermometers, or the back of a hand and the printable practice sheet linked at the end of this plan. Everything listed is either ordinary classroom equipment or a free printable from this site — there is nothing to buy and nothing to prepare beyond photocopying.

What mistakes should I expect in this lesson?

Three, each a reasoning error rather than carelessness: thinks a clear cover works as well as a solid one; puts the cover beside the patch rather than between it and the sun and judges the cover without an uncovered patch to compare. The plan gives the thinking behind each one and the teaching move that addresses the thinking rather than the symptom.

How do I know whether the lesson worked?

The exit ticket asks: “Which would keep the ground cooler, a clear plastic sheet or a thick card? Say why.” The card, because it stops the sunlight reaching the ground. Choosing the plastic means the blocking idea needs another run. That tells you whether the class needs a reteach or a thirty-second conversation before you plan tomorrow.

Is there a worksheet to go with Keeping a Patch Cool?

Yes — 1 printable K-PS3-2 worksheet, linked at the end of the plan and free like the rest of the site. Each one comes with an answer key and 25 versions, so the practice after the lesson can be a different paper on every desk.

Is Keeping a Patch Cool free to use?

Yes. The plan, its printables and their answer keys are free to read, print and photocopy for your own class, with no account and no email capture. It was last reviewed on 8 September 2026. Please do not resell it or republish it as your own.

Last reviewed 2026-09-08. Aligned to K-PS3-2 of the Next Generation Science Standards.