2020-2021
2020-2021
Embedded Files
Pinball Wizards - Kindergarten & High School
Driving Question: How might we create a pinball machine for our classmates to use during recess?
Students at Sheafe Road and Fishkill Plains Elementary dove into the exciting world of motion through a hands-on project-based learning (PBL) experience—designing and building their own pinball machines. Some students have continued this journey year after year, deepening their understanding of force and motion through creativity and engineering.
Students explored how pushes, pulls, and collisions affect movement. To bring their learning to life, they used everyday materials like cardboard, shoe boxes, bottle caps, marbles, and recyclables to create their own indoor recess pinball games.
This engaging PBL challenge empowered students to apply science concepts, think creatively, problem-solve collaboratively, and engineer with purpose—all while having a blast. It was more than just play—it was physics in action!
Chain Reactions and Catapults - Grade 4
Driving Question: How can we create the best prototype to launch an object?
Students at Evans Elementary School and Gayhead Elementary School explored physical science concepts through the 5E Learning Cycle, focusing on cause-and-effect relationships. They designed Rube Goldberg-inspired contraptions at home, conducted hands-on investigations, analyzed data, and communicated their findings. The unit culminated in the creation of catapult prototypes, which were passed on to Roy C. Ketcham High School’s manufacturing class to be built. This interdisciplinary project blended scientific inquiry with real-world design and collaboration.
Number Talk Podcast - Grade 4
Number Talk Podcast
Driving Question: How might we use our voices to explain and inspire mathematical thinking in others?
In this math-focused project, fourth, fifth, and sixth grade students from Evans, Kinry Road, and Sheafe Road Elementary explored the concept of Number Talks, a classroom routine designed to strengthen mental math skills by encouraging students to share and justify their strategies.
As part of their Math Workshop, students were given Voice & Choice by selecting the podcast station to express their mathematical understanding. Through podcasting, they explained their reasoning, justified their thinking, and made sense of mathematical concepts, deepening both their communication and computation skills.
Click the image to access student products.
Life is Too Short for Long Division - Grade 4
Driving Question: How can we build students blogs about long division to share our journey with our community?
In this project-based learning experience, Myers Corners Elementary students explored the question: How can we build student blogs about long division to share our journey with our community? Through this unit:
Students developed strategies to solve division problems with four-digit dividends and one-digit divisors, using place value.
They developed understandings of the properties of operations, and the relationship between multiplication and division.
They illustrated their thinking through equations, arrays, and area models.
As they strengthened their math skills, students created personal blogs to document their learning process during hybrid instruction. These blogs highlighted not only their academic growth but also the social and emotional side of learning math—emphasizing that math is a journey of effort, persistence, and progress.
Click the image to view student products.
Plant it Wild - Grade 5
Driving Question: How can we create a natural garden ecosystem for our Wappingers community?
In this life science–focused project-based learning experience, Brinkerhoff and Fishkill Elementary students explored the driving question: How can we create a natural garden ecosystem for our Wappingers community? Using the 5E Learning Cycle, students built their understanding of systems and system models by examining how components within an ecosystem interact.
They constructed food webs, engaged with virtual simulations, conducted research, and made scientific claims to support their designs. The project culminated in students developing models of natural garden ecosystems that connect to broader ecological webs.
Journey to the Red Planet - Grade 6
Driving Question: How can we identify problems related to Mars exploration and develop inventions that help to solve them?
Students at Kinry Road and Fishkill Elementary Schools explored cyclical patterns of the Sun, Earth, and Moon. They also explored the history of space travel and the science of Mars exploration.
Students used the engineering design processes, as well as their knowledge about space exploration, conditions on Mars, and the scale of the universe, to identify problems related to Mars exploration and develop inventions that help to solve those problems.
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