STEM: Structures in context - Roller Coaster Building, Lesson Plans, Handy Hints Sheets, Certificate

When you purchase and download this resource, you will receive a 13 page booklet. It includes all you need to achieve success in teaching your children about structures using recycled materials and minimal resources.

This project is aimed at developing both skills in STEM learning alongside team work skills, problem solving, cooperation and communication skills, within a meaningful scenario.

The booklet includes:

• Cover Page
• Contents and resources
• Aims of the project
• Lesson Plans for teaching the project and hints as to when to let the children "fail" before intervening with support and "Handy Hints"
• Scenario to read to make the learning purposeful (to research, design and make a working Roller Coaster with a marble)
• Research and Planning sheet along with 6 targeted questions to support research and preparation before making
• Handy Hints Sheet 1 (Making strong and rigid support poles from newspaper)
• Handy Hints Sheet 2 (Making stronger joints using struts)
• Handy Hints Sheet 3 (Laying the track)
• Certificate to mark success, the end of the project and celebrating taking part.

The aims of the project have been identified as:

Social skills

• Develop the skills of co-operation
• Improve communication skills
• To support one another to reach a shared goal
• To delegate tasks
• Discuss issues and solve problems as they arise
• Have fun in achieving the outcome and support the development of new friendships

STEM skills

• Research roller coaster design and construction
• Use research to influence achievable design
• Use limited resources creatively to reach agreed outcome
• Use class based equipment to complete the project
• Strengthen joints using techniques – provided a sturdy structure
• Use measuring skills
• Produce a working structure which can allow a marble to travel safely along the roller coaster

However, these are not exhaustive skills and the project is flexible and open enough for other skills to be developed.

The 7 Lesson Plans are detailed with session numbers, clear purpose to the lesson, detailed activity plans and outcome of the session. The plans clearly tell the teacher when to let the children experiment, when to allow them to fail in order to learn and problem solve, when to use the Handy Hints sheets and when to intervene with further skills teaching to move them onto the next stage of the project.

Resources are limited and inexpensive. To complete the project, each group will need:

1 copy per group of…

• Copies of Roller Coaster Design Sheet
• Copies of Handy Hints Sheet 1
• Copies of Handy Hints Sheet 2
• Copies of Handy Hints Sheet 3
• 1 piece of rounded dowelling rod (5 mm diameter)
• Newspaper – as much as possible to allow for errors
• Sticky tape – 1 roll per group
• Piece of thick paper or card
• General classroom resources: Scissors, measuring stick, pens, pencils etc.

Our children enjoyed this project, especially the fact that it used limited resources, as well as recycling resources that would normally be thrown away, making it a very inexpensive project to complete.

Thank you for visiting our store and viewing our resources.

Best wishes

INSPIReducation