With Easter right around the corner, our favorite STEAM challenge is the egg drop challenge. Each year, I love to clean out my closet and let the students use random building materials such as index cards, mini Dixie Cups and any other scraps we could find! I found the more obscure the item the more they would use their imagination to create a safety contraption for the confetti egg to drop safely from a 5 foot ladder.
This will be my third year to complete this with my second grade STEAM lab groups. I will have 9 groups come and protect the egg from the fall. Check back to see pictures of our successes and failures!
Protect the Egg STEAM Challenge
Building Winter Boats-Steam Challenge
Monday, January 14, 2019
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Kindergarten is back in the Steam lab this week. In the Kindergarten homerooms this week, classes are studying winter. To help tie into the winter theme, this week Kindergarten will be challenged to design and build a boat that can float in freezing water and support weight. To introduce this topic, I start with a video from Sci Show Kids on YouTube called Float a boat. Sci Show has great 4-5 minute intro videos about various science topics. I will also show students pictures of boats used to break through the Arctic ice. After explaining the challenge with the printed challenge cards students will build and test their boats in ice filled water. Once their boat can float, they will add marbles until their boats sink.
To purchase this unit please visit my TPT store! Steam Challenge: Crossing the Winter Seas-building Boats
Happy New Year!
Wednesday, January 9, 2019
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This school year is flying by! I am working on new material for 2019. Hopefully I will post more activities within the next few weeks.
I stumbled across a new website found that I am in love with! Only wish I had this while I was in the classroom. www.classroomscreen.com This is a teachers dream!
Included:
I stumbled across a new website found that I am in love with! Only wish I had this while I was in the classroom. www.classroomscreen.com This is a teachers dream!
Included:
- classroom timer
- clock
- pick a random name or roll dice (1-3 dice)
- QR Code display (you type in the website and a code is shown)
- sound level meter
- drawing screen
- text box where you can type
- work symbols (silent, ask a friend, work together)
- traffic light (you change)
- you change the background to display (image)
O' Christmas Tree Challenge
Wednesday, December 12, 2018
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This week in Steam lab, 2nd grade is learning the history of the Christmas Tree. Did you know the first tree was brought over by German Settlers in the early 1800's? My 2nd graders love learning about how the White House chooses the Blue Room tree.
After learning the history of the tree, each group forms a plan to build a Christmas tree out of newspaper, tape and weighted ornaments. I used plastic ornaments from the Dollar Tree and hot glue washers to add weight. Students are given 20 minutes to build a stable tree.
Over the course of a week, I will complete this challenge with 9 different 2nd grade classes, ranging from GT to inclusion. Below are pictures of completed projects. If you are interested in this challenge; check out my product on Teacher Pay Teacher.
After learning the history of the tree, each group forms a plan to build a Christmas tree out of newspaper, tape and weighted ornaments. I used plastic ornaments from the Dollar Tree and hot glue washers to add weight. Students are given 20 minutes to build a stable tree.
Over the course of a week, I will complete this challenge with 9 different 2nd grade classes, ranging from GT to inclusion. Below are pictures of completed projects. If you are interested in this challenge; check out my product on Teacher Pay Teacher.
Steam Lab with Kinder
Wednesday, December 5, 2018
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This week Kindergarten is working hard to build a chimney for Santa. We are reading the story Santa's Stuck by Rhonda Gowler Greene. After the story, we discuss the problem in the story, which leads to our Steam challenge. I walk the students through the Engineer design process (Yes, I even do it in Kinder!) and challenge the students to design and build a chimney for Santa.
This is kindergarten's first time using masking tape and open supplies, where previous challenges everything was given to them. I demonstrated how to tape popsicle sticks together to form a box and left an example for them. Normally I would not give students hints on how to complete a challenge, but learned my lesson the hard way and found out it's best to walk them through the first challenge. I will say for future challenges, I will not give them hints. The student were given 25 minutes to work in small groups to complete the challenge!
This is one of my student's favorite challenges, my students still ask if they can complete this challenge again!
This is kindergarten's first time using masking tape and open supplies, where previous challenges everything was given to them. I demonstrated how to tape popsicle sticks together to form a box and left an example for them. Normally I would not give students hints on how to complete a challenge, but learned my lesson the hard way and found out it's best to walk them through the first challenge. I will say for future challenges, I will not give them hints. The student were given 25 minutes to work in small groups to complete the challenge!
This is one of my student's favorite challenges, my students still ask if they can complete this challenge again!
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| Completed chimney |
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| They decided to go in a different direction. |
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| Kindergarten's designs (I love the Santa!) |
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| I found the plushies at Dollar Tree! Santa's Stuck by Rhonda Gowler Greene TPT Product December Steam Challenges |
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