Meet Your Maker Teacher Friend
Naomi Harm Twitter: @NaomiHarm Cave Creek, Arizona
The WHY for This Maker Project
Creative LEGO build challenges provide students choice learning opportunities to allow students to take educational risks, build confidence in spatial reasoning skills, and afford the opportunity for students to work in diverse collaborative learning groups. It also allows students to feel more comfortable asking questions amongst their peers, and receive more critical feedback on a design build or project in a safe and conducive learning environment.
Learning Outcomes & Big Picture Overview
Students will have the opportunity to build a game spinner made with LEGO bricks and design their own LEGO brick game board with card challenges. And... if students are up for the challenge, digitally design and create their own game board spinner challenges using Google Drawings, pie chart, Pixabay copyright free graphics (optional), and card stock paper.
Materials Needed
- Google Drawing access
- Pixabay copyright free web resource
- LEGO bricks listed below
- Construction paper Cootie Catcher template
- Cardstock and/or Construction paper
- Colored pencils, crayons, makers
- Assortment of craft supplies
- Scissors
- Clear Scotch tape
Student Groupings
Students will work in "dynamic duo" pairs to create either a LEGO holiday spinner to support creative LEGO build challenges.
Each student will have a very important team role/job to contribute to the success of the final project. Student roles/job tasks/badges could include the following for accountability:
Building Engineer, Design Architect, Graphic Designer
Step-by-Step Activity Directions
You'll need:
2 4x4 round plates with holes (party #60474)
6x6 round plate with hole (part #11213)
Connector Peg (part #3673)
2x4 plate (part #3020)
2x2 brick (part #3003)
1. First, push the connector peg through the hole of the 6x6 round plate.
2. Press one of the 4x4 round plates into place underneath the 6x6 round plate, with the connector peg through the hole.
3. To lift the spinner on the board and to keep the connector peg in place, we connected the 2x2 brick underneath the 4x4 round plate.
4. Set the connected round plates aside. Place the 2x4 plate on one end of the remaining 4x4 round plate.
5. Push the top of the connector peg through the 4x4 round plate hole, but don't connect the round plates. While holding the 2x2 brick at the bottom, tap 2x4 plate with your finger and watch it spin!
Thanks to Artsy Fartsy Mama for the free printable LEGO challenge game board that works with the step-by-step LEGO game spinner.
Additional LEGO Game Spinner
Additional LEGO spinner idea that works with LEGO game boards.
1. Attach four 2 x 3 plates to a 6 x 6 round plate. (Credit to FrugalFun4Boys for the photos). Use any four colors you like! If you don’t have enough 2 x 3 plates, you can use 2 x 2’s. The only thing about that is that you’ll have more space between colors and the spinner will land between colors more often. If that happens, you can re-spin.
The 2 x 2 round tile with a hole is not essential to the working of the spinner, but it’s nice to use if you have one.
Attach the 6 x 6 round plate to a 2 x 2 tile with a pin. It should now spin freely.
Build the “arrow” to show which color you landed on. We stacked a 1 x 2 brick, a 1 x 2 plate, and a 1 x 3 curved slope. There is a 1 x 1 black round plate under the slope brick on one end.
As an extension, have students create their own LEGO brick game board, and card challenges to use with their new LEGO spinners!
LEGO #BuildToGive Ornament
Play has a powerful effect on children and families, especially for those who find themselves in difficult circumstances during the holidays. Together we can make the season brighter for 1,000,000 children around the world. How to help?
Visit a participating store or use your LEGO® bricks at home to build a fun holiday ornament. Display it in-store or share it online with #BuildtoGive. For every ornament built and shared, we will donate a LEGO set to a child in need of play.
Are you ready to unleash your creativity for good?
Further Questions On These LEGO Build Projects???
If you have further questions on this make project, please feel feel to reach out to me time and I will respond to you within 72 hours to guide your learning.
Email: Naomi@NaomiHarm.org Twitter: @NaomiHarm