This activity will help students apply their knowledge about arrays to a real-world situation. Students will design buildings and create an array of windows for eah building. Students will use the array to write an addition sentence and a multiplication equation to determine how many windows each building consist of.
This is a really fun and informative lesson that I do with my high school Programming/technology class to break up the monotony of beginner programming. However; this lesson can be used and applied in essentially any class and for many purposes, and to address many areas. One of the other really nice things about this lesson is that it can be extended to hit many points including physics, math, and advanced engineering.
Throughout the building period, I would present teams with a challenge (puzzle, build, etc…) and the first team to complete it would get a prize. It could be more modification time, extra materials, etc…)
The materials (including hot glue guns) can be purchased at Wal Mart or a similar store for around $20-25, if ordering through your district isn’t an option. With those purchases, it gives you a lot more materials than needed which can be used for additional similar projects.
This is a really fun and informative lesson that I do with my high school Programming/technology class to break up the monotony of beginner programming. However; this lesson can be used and applied in essentially any class and for many purposes, and to address many areas. One of the other really nice things about this lesson is that it can be extended to hit many points including physics, math, and advanced engineering.
Throughout the building period, I would present teams with a challenge (puzzle, build, etc…) and the first team to complete it would get a prize. It could be more modification time, extra materials, etc…)
The materials (including hot glue guns) can be purchased at Wal Mart or a similar store for around $20-25, if ordering through your district isn’t an option. With those purchases, it gives you a lot more materials than needed which can be used for additional similar projects.
This project is meant to be cross-curricular, requiring students to utilize many instructional skills to complete each step. Such skills will include number sense to one million, addition and subtraction to one million, area/perimeter/scaling, 3-D design, and writing/advertising. The project could be completed in sequential order, completed as isolated projects or hand selected for which components are used in your classroom.
This project is meant to be cross-curricular, requiring students to utilize many instructional skills to complete each step. Such skills will include number sense to one million, addition and subtraction to one million, area/perimeter/scaling, 3-D design, and writing/advertising. The project could be completed in sequential order, completed as isolated projects or hand selected for which components are used in your classroom.
In this activity, students will learn about and apply the Laws of Physics to successfully launch and land a raw egg. The activity frames the problem around designing and building a bottle rocket that will protect a raw egg being launched into the air at least seven meters. Resources included in this lesson are found at the bottom of this document and include:
-Teacher guide
-Physics note sheets on motion, speed, velocity, acceleration, momentum, force, friction, Newton’s Laws of Motion, potential and kinetic energy and gravity.
-Egg Launch Instructions
-Link to Bottle Rocket Launching Instructions
-Links to videos
-Post Assessment
In this activity, students will learn about and apply the Laws of Physics to successfully launch and land a raw egg. The activity frames the problem around designing and building a bottle rocket that will protect a raw egg being launched into the air at least seven meters. Resources included in this lesson are found at the bottom of this document and include:
-Teacher guide
-Physics note sheets on motion, speed, velocity, acceleration, momentum, force, friction, Newton’s Laws of Motion, potential and kinetic energy and gravity.
-Egg Launch Instructions
-Link to Bottle Rocket Launching Instructions
-Links to videos
-Post Assessment
In this activity, students will learn about and apply the Laws of Physics to successfully launch and land a raw egg. The activity frames the problem around designing and building a bottle rocket that will protect a raw egg being launched into the air at least seven meters. Resources included in this lesson are found at the bottom of this document and include:
-Teacher guide
-Physics note sheets on motion, speed, velocity, acceleration, momentum, force, friction, Newton’s Laws of Motion, potential and kinetic energy and gravity.
-Egg Launch Instructions
-Link to Bottle Rocket Launching Instructions
-Links to videos
-Post Assessment
In this activity, students will learn about and apply the engineering design process to solve a problem. The activity frames the problem around designing, building and testing a paper bridge that maximizes the weight it holds.
Resources included in this lesson are found at the bottom of this document and include:
- Teacher guide
- Engineering Notebook Document
- Design Process Presentation
- Design Process Note Sheets
- Links to videos
- Pre/Post Assessment
In this activity, students will learn about and apply the Engineering Design Process to solve a problem. While working through the steps of the Engineering Design process they will focus on defining the criteria and constraints of a design problem, learn about scientific principles of simple machines, understand tool and machine safety, and create a prototype solution to the problem. The activity frames the problem around researching, designing, building and testing a prototype that is built with at least one simple machine that will launch a ball into a target. At end of unit students test their prototypes and present their findings of working through the process.
● Project Rubric
In this activity, students will learn about and apply the Engineering Design Process to solve a problem. While working through the steps of the Engineering Design process they will focus on defining the criteria and constraints of a design problem, learn about scientific principles of simple machines, understand tool and machine safety, and create a prototype solution to the problem. The activity frames the problem around researching, designing, building and testing a prototype that is built with at least one simple machine that will launch a ball into a target. At end of unit students test their prototypes and present their findings of working through the process.
● Project Rubric
In this activity, students will learn about and apply the Engineering Design Process to solve a problem. While working through the steps of the Engineering Design process they will focus on defining the criteria and constraints of a design problem, learn about scientific principles of simple machines, understand tool and machine safety, and create a prototype solution to the problem. The activity frames the problem around researching, designing, building and testing a prototype that is built with at least one simple machine that will launch a ball into a target. At end of unit students test their prototypes and present their findings of working through the process.
● Project Rubric
In this unit, students will use the engineering design process and their understanding of how simple machines work to help fairytale characters solve problems. Each lesson focuses on one fairytale and one simple machine.
In this unit, students will use the engineering design process and their understanding of how simple machines work to help fairytale characters solve problems. Each lesson focuses on one fairytale and one simple machine.
In this unit, students will learn about the 4Cs (communication, collaboration, creation, and critical thinking) through literature-based engineering challenges. Each lesson focuses on one "C" and one read-aloud. This unit is geared for grades 2-3 but could be adapted to any elementary grade level.
COMMUNICATION - Click Clack Moo
COLLABORATION - Iggy Peck Architect
CRITICAL THINKING - Rosie Revere Engineer
CREATION - Galimoto
In this unit, students will learn about the 4Cs (communication, collaboration, creation, and critical thinking) through literature-based engineering challenges. Each lesson focuses on one "C" and one read-aloud. This unit is geared for grades 2-3 but could be adapted to any elementary grade level.
COMMUNICATION - Click Clack Moo
COLLABORATION - Iggy Peck Architect
CRITICAL THINKING - Rosie Revere Engineer
CREATION - Galimoto
Literature Based STEM - Book List & Corresponding Activities:
Looking for grab-and-go elementary STEM lessons? Looking for a read-aloud to hook an existing STEM lesson? Trying to build a STEM library? Search the spreadsheet by titles, authors, big ideas, themes, and lessons. Whether you are a STEM specialist or a classroom teacher, these lessons will work for you.
This 5th grade unit will take about 8 weeks, 25.5 hours to complete. Students plan and carry out an original investigation in which they observe the effect of different types of matter on the growth of plants. They create their own observable question with prompting such as: “What type of matter do you think will affect plants’ growth?” or “Do you think the amount of a particular type of matter will affect how the plant grows?” They observe their experiment over a period of seven days (or longer if time allows). At the conclusion of the investigation, students use their data to explain how plants convert matter (gas and liquid) into plant matter.
This 5th grade unit will take about 8 weeks, 25.5 hours to complete. Students plan and carry out an original investigation in which they observe the effect of different types of matter on the growth of plants. They create their own observable question with prompting such as: “What type of matter do you think will affect plants’ growth?” or “Do you think the amount of a particular type of matter will affect how the plant grows?” They observe their experiment over a period of seven days (or longer if time allows). At the conclusion of the investigation, students use their data to explain how plants convert matter (gas and liquid) into plant matter.
A STEM lesson the uses pool noodles and marbles to engage students in an activity that helps students to understand different types of energy and how to calculate speed.