Site Leader Training

January 2015

CONNECTING ENGINEERING PRACTICES WITH SCIENCE CONTENT

SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING

• Complimentary but not the same

• Scientists use evidence to explain the natural world

• Engineers solve specific problems related to needs or wants

“Students should learn how science is utilized, in particular through the engineering design process, and they should come to appreciate the distinctions and relationships between engineering, technology, and applications of science.”

A Framework for K-12 Science Education

WHY TEACH ENGINEERING IN ELEMENTARY GRADES?

• Children are fascinated with building and with taking things apart to see how they work.

• Engineering projects integrate and apply science content.

• Engineering projects build problem solving skills, including problem formulation and testing alternative solutions.

• Engineering and technological literacy are necessary for the 21st century.

ENGINEERING AND DESIGN PROCESS

• Define Problem

• Develop Possible Solutions

• Analyze Solutions

• Test and Optimize Solutions

• Communication

EXAMPLE OF CONNECTION BETWEEN CONTENT AND ENGINEERING FROM FOSS UNIT

EXAMPLE OF CONNECTION BETWEEN CONTENT AND ENGINEERING FROM FOSS UNIT

Engineering Task

2-LS2-2. Develop a simple model that mimics the function of an animal in dispersing seeds or pollinating plants (NGSS)

Content Connections

LS2.A: Interdependent Relationships in EcosystemsPlants depend on animals for pollination or to move their seeds around. (2-LS2-2)

2-PS1-1. Plan and conduct an investigation to describe and classify different kinds of materials by their observableproperties.

2-PS1-2. Analyze data obtained from testing different materials to determine which materials have the properties that are best suited for an intended purpose.* [Clarification Statement: Examples of properties could include, strength, flexibility, hardness, texture, andabsorbency.]

2-PS1-3. Make observations to construct an evidence-based account of how an object made of a small set of pieces can be disassembled and made into a new object.

• Mariana lives in sunny Dominican Republic, and she’s an avid gardener. Her favorite plant is a berry bush that a friend sent her from Hawaii. But there’s a problem. The bush gave her one crop of delicious berries--and now she can’t get any more berries to grow. With the help of her Auntie Leti, an agricultural engineer, Mariana discovers the reason: none of the insects that live in her garden can pollinate the plant. Mariana needs to design a hand pollinator so she can pollinate the plants herself.

DEFINE PROBLEM CONTEXT

Through experimentation and observation, students need to identify materials that are textured in such a way that they will pick up the pollen, yet do not hold the pollen so well that it can not be dropped off elsewhere.

• Cotton Balls

• Wire

• “Pom-poms”

• Tooth Picks

• Rubber Bands

• Marbles

• Yarn

• Aluminum Foil

• Erasers

• Styrofoam Balls

• Q-tips

• Craft Sticks

• Pipe cleaners

TEST AVAILABLE MATERIALS

DESIGN YOUR HAND POLLINATOR

Bucket Orchid Dutchman’s Pipe

TEST AND OPTIMIZE YOUR DESIGNS USING MODELS

• Baking soda used to simulate pollen

• Test tube used to model the shape of the Dutchman’s Pipe

• PVC elbow joint used to model the shape of the Bucket Orchid

COMMUNICATION

DEBRIEF