My students need supplies such as marbles, markers, tape, and pipe cleaners to implement STEAM activities in a room where it’s safe to fail forward! Students will get creative using these supplies for simple engineering tasks that coincide with each of our Ancient civilizations.
$392 goal
Hooray! This project is fully funded
Hooray! This project is fully funded
My Students
The generation I am teaching has a lot of strengths. They have so much going for them! They are so strong in areas of technology, compassion, acceptance, tolerance and self confidence. But what I see as a chip in this generations armor is their ability to engineer even small basic structures. Even their legos came with an instruction manual, whereas my legos came in a box with no “step by step.” My students need practice building actual (real life and not virtual) things without a manual or instructions. Just their own ideas and the ability to fail forward if needed.
So, let’s give them that chance!
My Project
My students will use these materials to complete basic engineering tasks that correlate to each of our Ancient Civilizations. Students will use the jellybeans, toothpicks and magnetic marbles to create Egyptian Pyramids during Ancient Egypt. They will use newspaper, masking tape and Invisible tape to engineer and build a shoe during our Early Man unit. Students will use the tennis balls, pipe cleaners and magnetic marbles for an Aqueduct challenge during Ancient Rome Unit. They will use the clay to create Cuneiform Tablets during the Ancient Mesopotamia Unit. Lastly, they will use the balloons, play dough, masking tape and clear invisible tape for an Architectural race challenge during our Ancient Greece Unit.
This generation needs a safe push towards real life (and not just virtual) creating.
It’s scary to not have a step by step plan. I notice many students have very little practice simply creating or engineering an actual real-life product. Let’s give them these resources so they can make something! Let’s give them challenges that require groups to implement ideas and use materials to build structures! Sure they may fail, but I will help them know it’s always ok to “fail forward”! Learn from each attempt and make it better the next time! I am passionate as their teacher to provide them with a safe place to create and TRY. They will never forget what they learn from these activities. They fail, adjust and succeed! History proves humans created amazing things from only their minds! Today these students solve engineering mimicry tasks with toothpicks and tape. Today students will use these resources to solve imaginary problems. But it’s so that tomorrow they can solve real problems!
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