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Opening Week Activities

It's Great to Be Back!

1ST GRADE

Students will develop and use models to represent phenomena, objects, and process, or design a

prototype for a solution to a problem.

How can STEM centers help me prepare for class challenges and projects?

Students complete tasks in various stations that build stamina as they work through the engineering design process, and learn what to do when designs don’t turn out as

planned.

STEM centers expose students to a lot of different ideas, materials, and challenges. When it comes to STEM challenges, success doesn’t always look like a completed build. Success may be learning what doesn't work. Students experience productive struggles when they are building. Learning what doesn't work can be just as valuable as learning what does.

Cardboard Construction with Tape

Paper Folding Step by Step

2ND - 5TH GRADES

Students will generate and compare multiple solutions to a problem based on how well each is

likely to meet the criteria and constraints of the problem.

What is improvisation and how can limitations make STEM more challenging?

Students in 2nd-5th grades learned that improvisation is the activity of making or doing something not known beforehand, using whatever is available. Improvisation in engineering is to creatively solve a problem with the tools and materials immediately at hand.

Students created a prototype of a particular object, made of a certain material with a unique function. Students were limited to types of objects, materials and functions as well as time to plan and create/build. The 4 C's of creativity, critical thinking, collaboration, and communication were practiced as well.