FIDS “I can …” statements are the short, student-owned sentences that anchor every K-8 design thinking project. Underneath each one sits a real standard your state is already asking you to document. This page turns that translation into a one-glance reference — three comparison tables, one each for CCSS English Language Arts, the Next Generation Science Standards, and the C3 Social Studies framework. Use it during unit planning, on a PLC agenda, or in front of an administrator who wants to know which line item a student’s project satisfies.
Cited the right way, this page turns “does it align?” from a yes-or-no question into a one-page evidence drop on your next unit plan, PLC agenda, or accreditation portfolio.
The FIDS Feel and Imagine stages map tightly to Speaking & Listening — the strand designed for collaborative discussion, oral reasoning, and idea generation. The Do stage engages Writing, when students draft a narrative of their project. The Share stage returns to Speaking & Listening for structured presentation.
| FIDS stage | Grade band | “I can …” outcome | Aligned CCSS ELA standard |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feel | K–2 | I can listen and respond to a classmate about a problem in our classroom. | CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.K.1 Participate in collaborative conversations with diverse partners about kindergarten topics and texts with peers and adults in small and larger groups. |
| Feel | 3–5 | I can build on a partner’s idea when we name the people affected by a problem. | CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.3.1 Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions on grade 3 topics, building on others’ ideas and expressing own ideas clearly. |
| Feel | 6–8 | I can lead a discussion about what I learned from an interview with a neighbor. | CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.6.1 Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions on grade 6 topics, building on others’ ideas and expressing own ideas clearly. |
| Imagine | 3–5 | I can recount my Crazy 8s ideas to my group with relevant detail about each. | CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.3.4 Report on a topic or text, tell a story, or recount an experience with appropriate facts and relevant, descriptive details, speaking clearly at an understandable pace. |
| Imagine | 6–8 | I can pitch my top idea with logical sequencing and pertinent supporting details. | CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.6.4 Present claims and findings, sequencing ideas logically and using pertinent descriptions, facts, and details to accentuate main ideas or themes. |
| Do | 3–5 | I can write the story of our project from problem to solution in a clear sequence. | CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.3.3 Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, descriptive details, and clear event sequences. |
| Do | 6–8 | I can draft a project narrative with well-structured event sequences and relevant detail. | CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.6.3 Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, relevant descriptive details, and well-structured event sequences. |
| Share | 3–5 | I can present our project to an audience with a clear sequence and supporting details. | CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.5.4 Report on a topic or present an opinion, sequencing ideas logically, using appropriate facts and relevant, descriptive details; speak clearly at an understandable pace. |
| Share | 6–8 | I can deliver a focused presentation of what our project changed with credible evidence. | CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.8.4 Present claims and findings, emphasizing salient points with relevant evidence, sound valid reasoning, and well-chosen details. |
FIDS is built on the same engineering design loop NGSS uses: define a problem → develop solutions → test and optimize. The Feel stage maps to defining a problem; Imagine maps to developing and comparing possible solutions; Do maps to analyzing data from tests and iterating. Across every stage, students are doing Science & Engineering Practice 1 (Asking Questions and Defining Problems) and Practice 6 (Constructing Explanations and Designing Solutions).
| FIDS stage | Grade band | “I can …” outcome | Aligned NGSS performance expectation / practice |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feel | K–2 | I can ask questions about something in our school that I want to change. | K-2-ETS1-1 · Science & Engineering Practice 1 Ask questions, make observations, and gather information about a situation people want to change to define a simple problem that can be solved through the development of a new or improved object or tool. |
| Feel | 3–5 | I can define a problem with clear criteria for success and constraints on what we can use. | 3-5-ETS1-1 · Science & Engineering Practice 1 Define a simple design problem reflecting a need or a want that includes specified criteria for success and constraints on materials, time, or cost. |
| Feel | 6–8 | I can frame a design problem with criteria and constraints precise enough to drive a real solution. | MS-ETS1-1 · Science & Engineering Practice 1 Define the criteria and constraints of a design problem with sufficient precision to ensure a successful solution, taking into account relevant scientific principles and potential impacts on people and the natural environment that may limit possible solutions. |
| Imagine | K–2 | I can sketch a model that shows how my idea could solve the problem. | K-2-ETS1-2 Develop a simple sketch, drawing, or physical model to illustrate how the shape of an object helps it function as needed to solve a given problem. |
| Imagine | 3–5 | I can compare multiple solutions by asking which best meets our criteria and constraints. | 3-5-ETS1-2 Generate and compare multiple possible solutions to a problem based on how well each is likely to meet the criteria and constraints of the problem. |
| Imagine | 6–8 | I can evaluate competing solutions using a systematic process against our criteria and constraints. | MS-ETS1-2 Evaluate competing design solutions using a systematic process to determine how well they meet the criteria and constraints of the problem. |
| Do | K–2 | I can test two prototypes and compare which solves the problem better. | K-2-ETS1-3 · Science & Engineering Practice 6 Analyze data from tests of two objects designed to solve the same problem to compare the strengths and weaknesses of how each performs. |
| Do | 3–5 | I can plan a fair test of our prototype, control the variables, and find what to improve. | 3-5-ETS1-3 · Science & Engineering Practice 6 Plan and carry out fair tests in which variables are controlled and failure points are considered to identify aspects of a model or prototype that can be improved. |
| Do | 6–8 | I can analyze test data across several prototypes and combine the best features into an improved solution. | MS-ETS1-3 · Science & Engineering Practice 6 Analyze data from tests to determine similarities and differences among several design solutions to identify the best characteristics of each that can be combined into a new solution to better meet the criteria for success. |
C3 is the framework designed for exactly what FIDS asks K-8 students to do: notice a community issue, propose a way to address it, take action, and communicate what changed. The Feel stage maps to History and Geography (observing community context). Imagine maps to Civic disposition (proposing and evaluating actions). Do maps to Civic participation (acting on community issues). Share maps to Civic communication (telling the story of what changed).
| FIDS stage | Grade band | “I can …” outcome | Aligned C3 standard |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feel | K–2 | I can describe how my family and neighbors help our community work. | D2.Civ.2.K-2 Explain how all people, not just official leaders, play important roles in a community. |
| Feel | K–2 | I can notice why things changed in our school across this year and last year. | D2.His.4.K-2 Explain why individuals and groups in the past made choices related to the present. |
| Feel | 3–5 | I can describe how our neighborhood shapes what we do, and how our habits shape the neighborhood. | D2.Geo.4.3-5 Explain how culture influences the way people use and perceive places and how the environment influences the development of cultural practices. |
| Imagine | 6–8 | I can propose and evaluate different ways our class could address a community problem. | D2.Civ.7.6-8 Describe how citizens and non-citizens use advocacy and public discourse to propose, evaluate, and act on ways to improve their communities. |
| Do | K–2 | I can help our class accomplish a task we decided matters. | D2.Civ.2.K-2 Explain how all people, not just official leaders, play important roles in a community. |
| Do | 3–5 | I can carry out a role in our project because people in a community share responsibility. | D2.Civ.6.3-5 Describe how communities work to accomplish common tasks, establish responsibilities, and fulfill roles of authority. |
| Do | 6–8 | I can act on an issue in my community because my interests and civic principles make that choice meaningful. | D2.Civ.10.6-8 Explain the relevance of personal interests and perspectives, civic virtues, and democratic principles when people address issues and problems in their community. |
| Share | 6–8 | I can communicate conclusions about what our project changed using credible sources and evidence. | D2.Civ.14.6-8 Use a range of credible sources to describe and explain how civic and political actions can address local, regional, and global problems. |
DFCOS captures grade level, student count, and project stage on every submission — the documentation an administrator wants is already in the system. Free for K-8 educators.
Register as an educator → Or read the “I can” framework → Or see how to cite it on a PLC agenda →