This first unit would be physical science. We want to teach the boys about a number of things including, mass, energy, motion, gravity, friction, etc. We also want them to learn about design techniques (like how to attach one object to another) and engineering concepts like weight distribution, strength, stability, structural integrity, etc.
First, we used a thinking routine from Harvard University Graduate School of Education's Project Zero group, Agency by Design. This particular activity asked the students to look at an object (we used a pencil) and record it's parts, purposes and complexities. By doing this, the boys had to really think about the object, how it was made, why the designer/inventor/creator might have done it a certain way. The parts and their purpose was pretty straight forward, but complexities gave the boy a little problem. However, one young man hit the nail on the head and when I shared his "complexities" with the rest of the students, it made more sense. For example, one of the ways the pencil was complex was the way the pencil and the eraser attach. There are ridges in the metal band that help hold these two objects together. But he also noticed the holes punched into the side of the band that caused he metal to bend and stick into the wood or the eraser.
The next lesson was an introduction to the design process. There are a variety of them out there, including Stanford dSchool's Design Thinking and the Museum of Science-Boston's EiE Engineering Design Process. The basic idea is that you have a project idea you want to create, improve, fix, etc. From here you ask questions. Things like; what materials can I use; what's my timeline; have others attempted anything like this; what other rules do I have to follow? Step two is to start to brainstorm ideas, coming up with as many as you can without making any type of value judgement on them. Next comes picking one idea (by coming to consensus if you are working with others) and developing a detailed plan. After that, you follow your plan and make it. Once you are done, it's time to evaluate...did it work? Yes, then how can you make it better? No, then try to figure out why? You then start the process again from this point and continue until you have something you think is the best you can make it at this time.
Lesson three was on how to attach things. The boys were shown techniques using flanges, tabs, slots, and braces. Next they were given a collection of materials (paper, cardboard, paper towel tubes) and were asked to try each technique out.
After that, the boys were given a design challenge. Create a swing that will hold 150grams, 8cm off the ground and allow it to swing a distance of 12cm. They were handed a design process worksheet and as a class we went over the "Question" stage. For this challenge, they were given materials (15 straws, 2' of string, 2' of masking tape, a paper cup, and a piece of cardboard...for the base). They also had the following tools: a pair of scissors, a hole punch, a ruler and a cup with 150grams of pennies. After all answers were given, they individually came up with 2 or more ideas for what they thought this swing might look like. Next they were put into groups and had to share their ideas, Agree on one idea, plan it out (with labels and list of materials) and come to the teacher for approval.
One of the great things about this type of "teaching" is the cooperative groups and the teamwork that happens. Students not only have to deal with the "good times" when everyone agrees, but when different ideas are presented they have to work together to find one solution they want to work on.
During the making stage, they had to follow their plan, no alterations could be made at this time. Once the swing was done, it was tested to see if it met the criteria. Some were not tall enough, some couldn't hold the required weight, some wouldn't let the swing move far enough. But "FAIL" isn't a bad word...First Attempt In Learning.
We were able to talk about our successes, failures and how we would improve the swings on the second iteration. This is also where we brought up the physical science concepts we needed to know. The boys were introduced to different terms and were put into small groups. Each member had to research a collection of terms and be able to "teach" the rest of their group about what they learned. We reviewed as a class and went into a little more detail on certain terms like distribution of weight, strength, stability, and force.
The next step was to go back to the drawing table, use the design process to again make a swing with the same constraints, but this time armed with experiences and new knowledge that should make a difference in how their swing is designed. As a point of reference, the first iteration of swings had no swings meeting all the criteria.
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