Gnome Engineers was such a fun project! I purchased the lesson from Sue Cahalane at Science for Kids on TPT. Link here I love her NGSS lessons. I am probably her #1 customer.
In my three years at SPU, I have taught so many grades and subjects you probably wouldn't believe me. Last year, I had K-5 classes rotating through the science lab for 30 min. each in addition to teaching two periods of middle school science, history, and an elective called Maker Studio. I needed great resources, so I purchase some from Sue Cahalane and I was not disappointed!
So here is the story: These cute little cone shaped gnomes want to sell their vegetables in town. It takes them all day to walk around Gnome Lake to get from their village to the town. How can we help them? Bridges, flying cars, helicopters, boats... I love the great ideas these little ones came up with.
The students did a great job with their bridge plans. I would work to have their plans look like their built bridges. I had the materials organized by type. Families were very generous, so I had plenty of materials. (Sue includes a request and list of materials that is sent home.) All of the paper towel tubes were in one bin. Cut chipboard (cereal boxes etc.) in another bin, and finally small boxes in another. I only have students for 30 min. so this activities spanned multiple weeks. After we learned of the gnomes plight, I had students "shop for materials." Students worked in pairs and materials were put in a large ziploc and labeled with their names. I did this activity with 4 different classes so organization is key! For build day, I worked it out with the other teachers and kept the students for an hour. Engineering projects with set up and clean up aren't likely in 30 min.
I have set up clear guidelines for clean up. Students as young as Kindergarten know the clean up procedures and get materials ready for the next class. We look at how the table is set up before we start so we know how to leave it for the next group. We make messes but we clean them up too!
Thank you Sue for this great activity! Who doesn't love a cute gnome?
