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What are the objectives of my lesson? What do students need before coming into this lesson? What is the relationship between relevance and rigor in this lesson?

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What is my plan for instructional delivery? How am I choosing my instructional method? How do these resources fit into this plan?

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What resources in my curriculum are useful here? What is missing from my curriculum resources? Where can I find resources to support the curriculum I already have? Do I need to develop this lesson using resources outside of my curriculum guide? Where can I make connections to other subject areas and find the resources to do so?

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Using the launch-release-return model, categorize activities using the resources you have within each phase. You can take parts from the SF lesson to meet your needs, but also need to enhance the lesson. The lesson focus should be on your driving standard that you chose in the pre-curation section from the original lesson plan.

In the release phase of the lesson, make sure students are mainly working on this standard. Begin thinking about how you will assess them? How will you know if they are mastering the standard? What will you use? What will you look for?

Questions to ask:

What do I have? What is missing? How am I supporting diverse student needs? Are their multiple access points for engagement?

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I will be a facilitator for this activity. I will only act as a resource, circulating around the room and observing, answering questions as they are asked and offering insight only when called for.
-The students will be conducting their own research and constructing their structures in groups. I should not be too involved in that process.
-I will be the one administering all of the tests and judging all of the contests. I will be modeling how to measure and using the inspection test as a gauge of how well they understand the need for preparation of buildings prior to natural disasters (ie: why we have codes in place).

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ELA.2.C.4.1: Participate in research to gather information to answer a question about a single topic using multiple sources.

ELA.2.C.2.1: Present information orally using complete sentences, appropriate volume, and clear pronunciation.
Clarification 1: Clear pronunciation shows an understanding and application of phonics rules and sight words as well as care taken in delivery. A student’s speech impediment should not be considered as impeding clear pronunciation.

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Read the NOAA article about hurricanes.

Next, inform the students of the dangers of natural disasters to life when structures are not able to withstand them.

Then watch the video outlining an example structure made of spaghetti noodles and marshmallows.

Students want to create a structure that will win the three available contests and be strong against the hurricane.

Students will review the ways to build/ various materials article and conduct research of their own.

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c-1fd7NaQBw

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Building Spaghetti and Marshmallows Tower | The Tallest Tower Challenge

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1. What are students doing?
Students will be watching the videos and reviewing the provided research articles with the teacher.
2. What teacher moves are you making?
The teacher will be modeling how to can a text when researching to pull out only the information that applies to the task using the NOAA article.
3. How are you exciting students?
They have a hands-on task to prepare for and will be able to conceptualize their ideas and move around the classroom freely. Their project also has real-world applications because it acknowledges the purpose of building codes and preparation for natural disasters.
4. How do students know what they are doing?
The students will have the task explained to them by the teacher and will be given the observations worksheet so they are able to keep track of their design process.
5. What resources are you using?
I am using all of the included resources in this stage because the rest of the stages will only use the observations worksheet, since the bulk of the resources will come from the students as they research their design.

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SC.2.E.7.4: Investigate that air is all around us and that moving air is wind.
SC.2.E.7.5: State the importance of preparing for severe weather, lightning, and other weather related events.

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https://inventorsoftomorrow.com/2021/01/12/building-strong-structures/

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At the beginning of our Engineering Unit, we studied Towers - where the goal is to build a structure as tall as possible. In this session, we work to build a structure that's as strong as possible. You can read the full Structures Lesson Plan here. In this post, I'll just share some samples of materials we use in our buildings.

Toothpick Structures

For this method, you can use toothpicks with marshmallows or gum drops, grapes or cheese cubes. (We use "spicy gum drops" because the kids don't eat more than one of those!) Kids can build as simple or complex as they like.

One way I scaffold this activity is shown in the diagram below. If they only have vertical and horizontal bars, the structure tends to be wibbly-wobbly. If you put in a diagonal truss, it makes it much more stable. But the toothpicks aren't long enough to stretch from one corner to another, so you need to use 1.5 toothpicks with a gum drop joint in the middle, or extra long toothpicks. After they've learned this ideas, you can extend it to ideas like building a series of triangles - like a truss bridge or a geodesic dome.

Interlocking Cardboard

By cutting slits in cardboard, you can create interlocking pieces that make much sturdier buildings than if you just stacked the cardboard. I recommend the first method shown below - the round TP tubes are hard for kids to assemble. (You can also help your child notice how many building toys lock together in some way: Legos, Lincoln Logs....)

I'm also intrigued by this project from Fairy Dust - punching holes in TP tubes and using straws (or pencils or dowels or tinker toys) to hold them together.

Fasteners

If you've built towers with cups, boxes, tubes, or blocks (as shown in our Towers post), you could demonstrate to the child how much sturdier their tower can be if they use fasteners such as tape, glue, binder clips, or string to attach items to each other. (You'll want to remind them that they're not allowed to glue things together without asking your permission first.)

Different shapes

Explore the idea that different shapes are sturdier. Try building some square columns and some round columns - which can hold more weight? Try adding an accordion folded layer into a building. Can it now hold more weight?

Strength Testing

You can test strength in a couple different ways. One is to return to the method from the Towers week of trying different methods to knock the building down. And every time you knock it down, you try re-building it stronger. The other is the "how much weight can it hold" challenge. Try the index card bridge method or the binder clip and popsicle stick method.

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At the beginning of our Engineering Unit, we studied Towers - where the goal is to build a structure as tall as possible. In this session, we work to build a structure that's as strong as possible. You can read the full Structures Lesson Plan here.

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1. What are students doing?
Students are working collaboratively to create a structure that has a good chance of winning one or more of the contests.
2. What teacher moves are you making?
I am circulating around the room to ask and answer questions as needed.
3. What resources are you using?
I am allowing the students to conduct their own research.
4. How are you exciting students?
The students are conducting research and building structures for a purpose- real world activities.
5. How do you know if students understand what they are doing?
I will know that students understand the task once I have judged their projects in their preferred contests. I will also be collecting their observational worksheets at the end of the activity.
6. How are you monitoring/assessing them as they work?
I am observing them working collaboratively and collecting their papers after judging their structures based on the contests they have selected.

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https://docs.google.com/document/d/1jIa1tUbZKu5TcXDG4DBRuwTdQKvLVj221eiR42G6pB8/edit?usp=sharing

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1. What are students doing?
Students are watching other groups present their structures and thinking about how they would have changed their own.
2. What teacher moves are you making?
I am judging the contests, modeling the grading and inspection process for my students. I am allowing them to reason as I judge, but relying strictly on the structure's performance against each criteria.
3. What resources are you using?
I am using a tape measure for the tallest tower contest, a bowl and a pitcher ("rain"), and a hair dryer ("wind")
4. How do you know if students understand and are progressing within/mastering the standard?
They are answering the questions on their observations worksheet and paying attention to other designs. I will collect their papers at the end of the activity and pull them for small group discussions about their structures while they are in their independent reading time.

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https://www.noaa.gov/education/resource-collections/weather-atmosphere/hurricanes

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The students will be designing a structure "to code" that will need to withstand a "hurricane."

The hurricane includes:
-winds
-erosion
-flooding
Students will identify floors/levels of their building prior to the "hurricane" so that we will be able to tell what areas survived.

Materials the students may choose to build with:
-spaghetti noodles
-cardboard rolls (toilet paper rolls)
-marshmallows
-gumdrops (Dots)
-toothpicks

The students may choose any of the materials listed above to construct their structure, but they may only use scissors apart from this list. They will not use any outside materials.

The project is fairly simple:
-choose your building materials
-build a tower
-enter a contest

Students may choose to enter three contests:
-tallest tower (the tallest tower wins)
-inspection (the tower that can withstand the hurricane best with the least amount of damage wins)
-design (the most out-of-the-box design wins)

Students must enter at least one contest, but they may choose to enter all three. The structure that performs in all categories will also be considered a winner.

Each student will need to research hurricanes and building ideas prior to creating their structure.

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Students will use the ways to build/ various materials article as a starting point for their research. They will be researching positive building practices, materials, and natural disasters. Their research will help them choose their preferred materials as a group, as well as come up with individual sketches to portray their thinking prior to talking about the design with their groups.

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Students will work independently to sketch their preferred design on their papers, then collaborate with their peers to decide which materials they will be using.

They will then begin building their structure as a group.

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Students will create a structure as a group to enter one or all of the three contests available. They may choose a combination of materials or just one, but they must enter one of the contests.

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Students will present their structures to the class and then their structures will be judged in the contests they have chosen.

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Students will observe other structures in the contests as they are being judged and write down what they liked about those structures. They will also come up with ways their structure could have been made better. After they have all been judged based on their structure and selected contest, they will be able to go back and revise their designs, entering them into contests for a second round of judging.

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The gaps in the resources that I have collected and categorized are highlighted in yellow.

The example video provided a good reference/ jumping point for possible structure designs.  Missing from the video is the use of other materials aside from marshmallows and spaghetti noodles.

The NOAA article provides the history and background knowledge necessary when discussing hurricanes. While this text is a great resource, it does not use very kid-friendly language and needs to be skimmed with the teacher rather than read verbatim.

The various materials article outlines how the various materials may be used to create a solid structure; however it provides too many different ways to build a tower and does not focus on the integral support system within the structure or on the fact that the structure will have to pass tests/ enter contests.

I think the Observations worksheet is a great resource because I created it; however, I would go back and add more space for student reflection as the students are working instead of focusing on before and after.

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What am I going to use/not use? What do I need to adjust? What is my plan for implementation with the materials? Are these materials and my instructional design meeting all students' needs?

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I plan to use all of the resources I have included because they will aid my students in their researching and design phase.

I have created a template for a worksheet that will accompany this activity and it is listed in the collection stage for observations.

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Text to speech & speech to text will be accessible to all students

I will be delivering directions in Spanish for any Spanish-speaking ELLs and translating the observations worksheet into any language necessary.

Students will be working in groups so they will be able to help one another.

The majority of this project is centered around sketches and construction, which do not have language barriers.

Students will be grouped according to who they work best with.

All design ideas will be discussed in the post-conference during independent reading time.

Students who do not work well in specific groups will have the option to complete this activity individually or in pairs rather than in their group of three.

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Am I prepared for my students?

The teacher will be knowledgeable and conduct her own research on natural disasters and building strategies and materials prior to this lesson.

Do I have all the knowledge that is required for this lesson?

Yes. I will have conducted my own research. I may even model the entire process by researching and projecting it on the board for the students to see, creating my own structure to enter into the contests. This would have to be done with a very specific group of students who could handle it, though.

What can go wrong in the lesson?

The students can easily get off task if I am not circulating and prompting them with questions. I need to be a resource.

How can I prevent these moments from happening?

I will act as a resource and use good classroom management strategies like Dojo.

Are all my materials gathered?

Yes. The materials necessary are mostly easy to find.

Is my plan B ready?

Yes- if the students are unable to handle this activity in groups, I will model the entire process for them and we will build one structure as a collective group, testing it against all three contests.

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MA.2.M.1.1: Estimate and measure the length of an object to the nearest inch, foot, yard, centimeter, or meter by selecting and using an appropriate tool.

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VA.2.C.2: Assessing our own and others' artistic work, using critical-thinking, problem-solving, and decision-making skills, is central to artistic growth

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Students have been interacting with material regarding measurement in math and natural disasters in science. This lesson ties in both of these concepts, as well as ELA through a research and design project. In this STEM lesson, the students will be grouped in threes. They will conduct research on hurricanes and other natural disasters and how we have altered building codes and practices to ensure that our structures are as safe as possible in the event of a natural disaster. The students will take individual notes on their research that will serve as guides as they create structures out of unconventional materials. They will have the opportunity to test their structures against multiple natural disaster elements, identifying damage done to their own projects and those of their peers. They will have the opportunity to enter their structures into various contests, in which we will measure their qualities in relation to one another. We will touch on math standards through measurement, ELA through presentations of design and research, and science as we learn why we have codes in place for natural disasters.

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I will have an example structure on my table for the students to reference. I will also walk around to help as help is needed, though I will not lay a hand on any of the structures.
I will ask leading questions as I circulate around the room, prompting students to reconsider their designs and alter them for the best product.

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Students will work collaboratively with peers to create their structures. They will have time prior to working with peers to conceptualize their thinking, as well as time after seeing all projects to review and alter their own.

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The primary way I will extend student thinking is through the final phase of the activity- adjusting their structures based on the designs they have seen and how those designs have performed in the contests.
I will also be extending student thinking in my conferences with the groups of students during independent reading time, asking questions like:
- Did all of you agree on the materials used?
- How do you feel you could have made your structure better?
- Do you think your structure was prepared for the contest?

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Why do we have building codes?

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https://docs.google.com/document/d/1jhnZqOTcKlmd-zyR19GqoF3A3-Gw7OjGlHISUfQgfNM/edit?usp=sharing

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Copy of  TL2_Su22_REVISED_TEMPLATE_Integrated STEM Lesson Template