PLTW Spring Learning 2024

 

Kindergartener engineers have been learning about structure and function and then they build a safe house for the three little pigs! We test it out in front of our "Big Bad Fan"! Students get a lot of experience working and communicating with a partner or small group on this task. They also have to think critically and creatively to solve the problem of how to build a strong house with the materials they have!

Testing the houses

Building the Houses

First grade has been learning about how lights and sound work through many hands on activities! Below we see them using string telephones for another example of how vibrations create sound!

First Grade exploring with flashlights

3rd grade has been learning how to program computers in our computer science unit. They have been learning about loops and conditionals in an "offline" coding game where they have to give directions to the robotic dog in the board game to get her home. They get a lot of practice with working with a group, completing their job task, and thinking critically. 

4th grade has been exploring energy with hand crank generators, solar panels, light/energy sticks, playing old fashioned marbles, and many more exploratory activities. There is a lot of looking closely and observing what we see and then recording questions or wonderings we have in order to make sense of all things energy!

5th grade classes have completed their first unit of robotics where they work with a group to build and modify a robot in order to complete a robotics challenge. In the final competition (in the pictures below), they work with another robot group to get the most points possible by moving blocks to their specific color zones and driving on the ramp by the end of the 90 second match! 

3D printed trophies to our winning teams!

Grade 3 building with construction kits!

 We are learning about forces and simple machines in grade 3. To help us understand how simple machines work and to solve a real world problem of a zoo animal being trapped in the moat in its habitat, students are using VEX construction kits to build each simple machine and conduct experiments with them. They also get plenty of practice using 21st century skills of collaboration, communication, and critical thinking as they work in groups to build them. 

Kicking off the 23-24 Schoolyear!

 First and second graders have been learning how to program a computer by playing an "offline" coding game where they have to give directions to a robotic dog to get her home without stepping in any puddles! This game encourages collaboration, communication, and critical thinking. It also helps students understand that we have to give computers directions in the exact order we want the directions followed, and we have to be specific in what we want them to do. We then moved onto programming in Scratch, Jr. which is an app developed by MIT to help young learners understand the basics of coding, (it's a free app available for Apple devices). Students have worked in partners when coding to help grow their communication and collaboration skills. 

5th graders have gotten their groups and robotics kits, and have begun building a testbed so that they can explore the electronic components that will be a part of the robots they will build later. Each student has a job role of either builder, getting needed parts for the builder, or running the video and double checking the builder's work as they complete each step. Students do a fantastic job of working together to complete the day's tasks! 

Wrapping up the school year!

Kindergarten

 Kindergarten has been learning about pushes and pulls and how these forces make objects start moving, stop moving, and change direction! We have learned we can make big and small pushes and pulls, and that they can go in any direction! Students read a story with children who wanted to put up a swing set in their backyard, but had to move many rocks out of the way before they could do that. They had to move many rocks a long distance. Students used their knowledge of pushes and pulls to design and build an invention that would move many rocks easily across the backyard. Then we tested them out by pulling or pushing these inventions full of blocks up and down a ramp and across the carpet. If some rocks fell out, they changed their design and tested again!

Grade 2

Second graders have been studying a computer science unit where they learn how to code a computer! They have learned that people give computers directions with computer programs and that the computer follows the directions exactly as they are written. Students first did an "offline" coding program where they had to get a dog to its doghouse and pick up any bones along the way. If they made a mistake it was a "bug" in the program and they had to go back and fix their code. We tested their code on a giant game board on the floor. Then students work in partners to program their characters in a coding app called Scratch, Jr. Students "pair program" to develop 21st Century skills such as critical thinking, creativity, communication, and collaboration. One student is a "driver" ( controlling the iPad) while the other is a "navigator", ( giving suggestions on what to do next, directing driver where to go, catching any potential "bugs"). We switch job roles halfway through class. Students worked together to create a simple video game that use loops and events to make their characters win the game! 

Students pair programming in Scratch, Jr. 

"Offline"coding game to learn how to give exact directions in a very specific order. Students had to work in a group of 3-4 and everyone had a specific job role.