See One, Make One, Teach One                              SHPE Science & Engineering Challenge

 

Background: Curriculum Development Challenge

“See one, do one, teach one:” the medical profession learned this rule centuries ago. Teaching someone a new concept requires organizing and structuring the relevant knowledge, which in turn reviews and reinforces and sometimes even sheds new light on the concept being taught. Teaching scientific principles to local grade school kids also provides an opportunity to give back to the community while simultaneously deepening our own knowledge of science and engineering.

 

Project Statement

This project will develop educational curricula and resources for elementary school grades 4-6.

 

Project #1 Objective: The Intersection of Science & Music

Working in teams, design and build a device that illustrates a scientific principle involving both science and music. The device may be a laboratory apparatus, a toy, a demonstration unit, a simple machine. Develop documentation for the device, including build instructions. The documentation will also include an age-appropriate curriculum/lesson plan that uses the device to explain a scientific principle to the target audience.

 

Project #2 Objective: The Intersection of Science & Art

Working in teams, design and build a device that illustrates a scientific principle involving both science and art. The device may be a laboratory apparatus, a toy, a demonstration unit, a simple machine. Develop documentation for the device, including build instructions. The documentation will also include an age-appropriate curriculum/lesson plan that uses the device to explain a scientific principle to the target audience.

 

Project #3 Objective: The Intersection of Science & History

Working in teams, design and build a device that illustrates a scientific principle involving both science and history. The device may be a laboratory apparatus, a toy, a demonstration unit, a simple machine. Develop documentation for the device, including build instructions. The documentation will also include an age-appropriate curriculum/lesson plan that uses the device to explain a scientific principle to the target audience.

 

Target Audience

Students in grades 4-6

 

Deliverables

There are two deliverables due Saturday, April 18th:

 

1)      A PowerPoint documenting your lesson plan and device, emailed to SHPE RLDC (email address shpe@umn.edu) on or before 7:00AM Saturday, April 18, 2015. (Note: one email per group!) Late submissions will receive a penalty.

2)      A group presentation (15-18 minutes) of the PowerPoint beginning 8:30 am Saturday.

Each of these deliverables is discussed in more detail below.

 

Deliverable #1: PowerPoint Document

 

This single PowerPoint document will have a title slide with the project name and the names of the group members. It will have three components:

1.1       Slides supporting an explanation of the lesson plan to the teacherthis portion of the PowerPoint document will develop the scientific or engineering principle for a college-level audience. The device plans, construction and bill of materials will also be reviewed. (Note: you do not have to actually build the device!) More information on the requirements for the device plans and bill of materials are provided in the “Constraints” section below.

1.2       Supporting slides for presenting the lesson plan to the target audiencethis portion of the PowerPoint document supports the presentation of a compressed version of the lesson to the intended audience of grade school students.

1.3       All references and citations, including web references: cite your sources!

 

Deliverable #2: Group Presentation

Each group will present the results of their work, as documented in their PowerPoint. The presentation will adhere to the following guidelines.

2.1       The presentation will be 15-18 minutes in length.

2.2       Each member of the group must be introduced.

2.3       Each member of the group must have a role in the presentation.

2.4       Presentation time should be split approximately 2:1 between addressing teachers and presenting to 4th graders.

2.5       Your group will use the PowerPoint submitted at 7AM Saturday.

 

Constraints

• No kits or prefab devices! The device must be of your own design. You may pattern your device from something you've seen at the University, or in stores, or on the internet, or in lectures, but some aspect of the design of your device must be unique, and it must be homebuilt. All sources must be cited. [Note: you do not have to actually build the device!]

• The device must be transportable by one person. It must weigh less than 20 lbs and have a maximum volume equal to a “standard” moving box (25” long by 20 inches wide by 15 inches tall.)

• The device must not cost more than $25. Costs must be estimated in a bill of materials, and included in a PowerPoint slide(s). The bill of materials should also include specific product names, suppliers, and costs.

 

*If presentation is submitted late, ¼ of timing grade automatically lost

 

Contact:

          Adelmo Gracia via email: grac0075@umn.edu

                         or text message: (952) 200-4673

                         I will be available until 12:00 am