Introduction
I am planning a unit centered around an egg drop challenge. In this challenge, students will use limited supplies to construct a container that can keep an egg from breaking when dropped from a third floor window.
(marionmac56, 2012)
For the unit, I chose the three standards from the Discipline Core Idea (DCI) of Engineering Design, from the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) for 5th grade. I chose this theme and these standards because our school is in our first year of implementing the NGSS, and we are busy generating units at all grade levels that fit the standards. Our new science scope and sequence aligns the NGSS with the curriculum of the Spanish teachers, and features interdisciplinary STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) projects.
My unit fits into the 5th bimester of 5th grade. When I'm finished, I plan to share the unit with the 5th grade teachers as a starting point for their own plans.
3-5-ETS1-3: Plan and carry out fair tests in which variables are controlled and failure points are considered to identify aspects of a model or prototype that can be improved.
The standards
3-5-ETS1-1: Define a simple design problem reflecting a need or a want that includes specified criteria for success and constraints on materials, time, or cost.
3-5-ETS1-2: Generate and compare multiple possible solutions to a problem based on how well each is likely to meet the criteria and constraints of the problem.
Unit proficiencies
In order to meet these standards, students will need to develop a variety of proficiencies. In this post, I'll elaborate on three.
To meet the first standard above (3-5-ETS1-1), students will need to be able to identify useful criteria. The standard calls for students to define a simple design problem, including criteria for success. Often in school, criteria are handed to students without explanation or input, so students may not understand how the criteria are generated or their usefulness. This unit will raise students' awareness of what makes criteria useful and how they can be formed.
Below is a chart showing achievement levels related to this proficiency, which will be useful when I make the assessments:
Identify useful criteria
Excelling
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Student can identify a list of five or more useful criteria for a successful design, in a variety of contexts, without teacher prompting.
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Meeting
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Student can identify a list of at least three useful criteria for a successful design, in multiple contexts, with minimal teacher prompting.
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Progressing toward
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Student can identify multiple useful criteria for a successful design, in a familiar context, with some teacher prompting.
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Emerging
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Student may be able to identify one or more useful criteria for a successful design, in a familiar context, with teacher prompting.
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A second proficiency I would like to develop in this unit is evaluating one's own and others' ideas. This proficiency relates to the second standard above (3-5-ETS1-2). This standard asks students to generate and compare multiple design solutions. The standard seems to present a perfect opportunity to develop students' feedback skills, because in comparing their designs they will naturally want to offer feedback to one another. It makes sense to teach them how to do so effectively and politely. Pointing out strengths and areas of improvement in a way that motivates rather than discourages is a valuable skill in a variety of contexts. In mastering this skill, students are well on their way to becoming self-sufficient learners.
Again, below is a chart showing achievement levels for this proficiency:
Evaluating one's own and others' ideas
Excelling
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Student can offer specific, extended feedback on the strengths and areas for improvement in a design idea, in a way that motivates rather than discourages, without teacher prompting.
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Meeting
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Student can offer specific feedback on the strengths and areas for improvement in a design idea, while showing respect for all involved, with minimal teacher prompting.
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Progressing toward
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Student can offer feedback on the strengths and areas for improvement in a design idea, while showing respect for all involved, with some teacher prompting.
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Emerging
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Student may be able to offer feedback on a design idea, while showing respect, with teacher prompting.
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A proficiency related to the third standard above (3-5-ETS1-3) is applying the results of an experiment. Part of this standard is identifying aspects of a model or prototype that can be improved. In order to accomplish this standard, students need to be able to work independently to first understand the experiment results and then use this understanding to figure out how to improve a design. These skills could be transferred to any situation in which there was a need to test the effectiveness of a system and suggest improvements. Most careers require some form of this skill.
Below is a chart showing achievement levels supporting this proficiency:
Applying the results of an experiment
Excelling
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Student can draw various insightful conclusions from experiment data and apply these conclusions to the improvement of a design, without teacher prompting.
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Meeting
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Student can draw multiple insightful conclusions from experiment data and apply these conclusions to the improvement of a design, with minimal teacher prompting.
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Progressing toward
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Student can draw meaningful conclusions from experiment data and apply these conclusions to the improvement of a design, with some teacher prompting.
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Emerging
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Student may be able to draw conclusions from experiment data and apply these conclusions to the improvement of a design, with teacher prompting.
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Assessments
This unit will include several assessments. What follows are three examples.
1) design problem graphic organizer
Students will work in pairs to identify an existing tool and define the design problem it addresses. This assessment will occur early in the unit, at the end of the first lesson, and students will be provided with a graphic organizer to guide their work. The graphic organizer will prompt them first to choose a simple tool and define the design problem that it solves. Included in this definition of the design problem will be the criteria for success, as well as constraints on materials, time, and cost. The graphic organizer will also prompt students to construct an argument for whether the design problem represents a need or a want. Assessment data will be gathered through teacher observations and a review of students' graphic organizers.
How this assessment shows whether students have met the unit standard(s):
If students can identify and define a design problem on their own, they have demonstrated competency with the unit's first standard (3-5-ETS1-1). They will then be ready to generate and compare solutions to a design problem, which will be the next step of the unit. If students struggle to complete this activity independently, the teacher will then know that he or she needs to reteach and provide more practice before moving on, because students must possess a clear understanding of a design problem before they can suggest solutions.
2) design drawing, sharing, and feedback
Students will offer feedback to team members' design solutions for the egg drop problem, and reach a consensus on which design or design(s) they will adapt for the team's final plan. Assessment data will be gathered through a rubric focusing on how well students were able to offer and receive feedback and arrive at a reasonable final solution.
How this assessment shows whether students have met the unit standard(s):
The second standard (3-5-ETS1-2) asks that students generate and compare multiple solutions to a design problem, and that is exactly what this assessment asks them to do. As part of the assessment, it will be key to find out the reasoning behind teams' final design. Why did they choose certain design elements as opposed to others?
3) egg drop experience presentation (taking the form of an in-class presentation, a video, a written report, etc., as students choose)
In preparation for their presentation, students will complete a reflection in which they discuss the experiment results ("Which design elements seemed to work the best? Why do you say that? Based on these results, how might you improve your own team's design?"). For the presentation, they will find a creative way to communicate their reflection. Assessment data will be gathered in the form of a rubric on the effectiveness of the presentation.
How this assessment shows whether students have met the unit standard(s):
The third standard (3-5-ETS1-3) asks students to identify aspects of a model or prototype that can be improved, and this assessment tests students' ability to do just that. Students' work can be judged on the extent to which they are able to draw reasonable conclusions from the experiment and apply these results in meaningful ways to their own design.
Learning experiences
The above assessments are part of larger learning experiences that will equip students to succeed. For example, the first assessment, the design problem graphic organizer, will be completed only after students have received teacher modeling and whole-class practice.
Introductory exploration of design problems
In this activity, first the teacher will show the class a simple tool (a pair of scissors, for example). He or she will talk about this tool in terms of the following questions:
-What problem does it solve?
-Does it fulfill a need or a want?
-What makes a pair of scissors good or bad?
-What constraints do scissors makers face in terms of materials, time, and cost?
Students will then work in pairs to generate a list of more examples of simple tools (by simple, we are referring to tools that are more like a pair of scissors than a computer) that meet design problems, and the teacher will guide the class through a discussion of several of these tools, addressing the above questions for each tool and recording the class's responses in a graphic organizer on the board.
Only then, after having seen the teacher modeling and collaborated as a class, will students be asked to choose a tool that hasn't been discussed so far and complete the graphic organizer with their partner, with less teacher guidance.
How will this learning activity help students to develop knowledge and skills necessary to meet the standard(s)?
Through teacher modeling and coming up with their own examples, students will understand what a design problem is, in terms of its criteria for success and constraints, as well as whether it constitutes a need or a want. Students will practice coming up with useful criteria for assessing a design solution. This knowledge and these skills directly address the components of the unit's first standard (3-5-ETS1-1).
Egg protection device drawing and group critique
For this learning experience, students will work individually to create drawings of their initial solutions to the egg drop challenge. The teacher will share an example design and invite the class to offer feedback, based on the checklist provided. The checklist will include criteria for success (developed by the students themselves in a previous activity) and constraints on materials, time, and cost. Students will meet in their teams, and each student will share his or her idea, arguing for why it will work. The group will offer feedback, again based on the checklist. The feedback will necessarily include each design's strengths and areas for improvement, and will be recorded in a graphic organizer. Lastly, teams will review their feedback and create a final design, which will actually be used to build their egg protection device. The final design could be based on one team member's initial design, or could be a synthesis of multiple students' ideas.
How will this learning activity help students to develop knowledge and skills necessary to meet the standard(s)?
Students will get practice thinking of a design solution, drawing it, and arguing for its advantages. They will compare ideas in their group, evaluate each other's ideas, come up with a final design, and argue for why the final design is the best. Their discussion will be guided by criteria for success and constraints on materials, time, and cost. Generating and comparing design solutions are skills addressed in the second standard (3-5-ETS1-2), and referencing criteria for success and constraints further solidifies students' achievement of the first standard (3-5-ETS1-1).
Reflection on the results of the egg drop
The teacher will share a summary of the experiment results, including a chart that shows which team's designs succeeded and which did not, along with photos and video of the event. Using this data, teams will discuss the questions "Which design elements seemed to work the best?"; "Why do you say that?"; and "Based on these results, how might you improve your own team's design?" After recording their responses to these questions, students will develop a presentation to share their reflections. The presentation could take the form of in-class sharing, a video, a written report, etc., depending on each group's preferences.
How will this learning activity help students to develop knowledge and skills necessary to meet the standard(s)?
This activity addresses the second half of the third standard (3-5-ETS1-3), according to which students need to identify aspects of a model that can be improved. Using the data provided and their own observations, students will identify design elements that tended to succeed and elements that tended to fail, and try to explain why. Finally, they will apply these reflections to their own team's design, offering suggestions for how it could be made better.
Conclusion
One of my goals for this unit is that students are aware of what they are learning. As the English coordinator at my school, I often visit classes and get the chance to chat with students. When I ask them, "What are you doing?" they can answer easily. "I'm making a poster." "I'm reading a story." "I'm making a presentation." But when I ask them, "What are you learning?" students often struggle to answer. As I continue working on this unit, I want to clarify exactly what I hope students will learn, and how I can make students aware of these goals.
Reference list
marionmac56. (2012, Oct. 1). Untitled image of egg drop. Retrieved Dec. 4, 2016, from https://marionmac56.wordpress.com/tag/egg-drop/
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