Exploring Ramps! STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math)

Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire.

William Butler Yeats

Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/w/williambut101244.html#kTdhGSgtYcJZUUzW.99

 "Education is not the filling of the pail, but the lighting of the fire."-Yeats

Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire.

William Butler Yeats

Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/w/williambut101244.html#kTdhGSgtYcJZUUzW.99

Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire.

William Butler Yeats

Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/w/williambut101244.html#kTdhGSgtYcJZUUzW.99

Explore, Engage, Reflect!

We started our unit by exploring during circle time.  I put a ball and a piece of cove molding on the carpet and asked the question, "What can we do with these two objects?"   The students gave me several answers such as..we can make this ball bounce over the stick..... I can hit the ball and use the stick like a baseball bat.... we can hold this stick up and let the ball roll down.

 

After exploring our two objects, the students realized that of all the possibilities , they really enjoyed letting the ball roll down the molding.   The students were not familiar with the word ramp, so we discussed the definition of a ramp.    A ramp, or inclined plane, is a surface with one end higher than the other.
On the first day, I put several pieces of wood and balls in our block area.  I did not give any directions.    I wanted to spend the first few days allowing the students "play" with the materials.   I was amazed at what they did during their time in the block area.   I stepped back and just observed. In the following videos, you can see the students in action during the exploration days. 

In the first video, the students are exploring the materials.  Look at how quickly they become little engineers!!  

 

 In the second video, you will see the same group construct a more complex ramp. 

In the third video, you will see more exploration with the ramps during our first week!

  

--TECHNOLOGY--

I encouraged the students to take their Ipads to the block center.   They took photos of their creations.

The photos will later be used when they create a digital story using a storytelling app.

Comparing, Categorizing and Predicting

I asked each student to bring in an object to use in our experiment.   Would our objects roll, slide or stay put?  Each child came forward and placed the object on the chart and made a prediction.   I loved to see their brains at work.   Many of the students pointed out that the shape and smoothness of the objects would affect whether it would roll, slide or stay put.    One student had a marker and predicted that the marker would both slide and roll!   Brilliant!!   He was absolutely correct!   We made conclusions after testing our objects.  I posed the question, "Why do these objects roll and others do not?"  The class concluded that round, smooth objects will most likely roll and flat objects will most often slide.  We did have a few exceptions.  The marker will roll when placed horizontally and slide when placed vertically.    During center time, I put the chart in the area with our ramps and let them continue making predictions.     I do believe I see the scientific method being put into action!

Great job Pre-K!

 

I am looking forward in anticipation at what next week will hold for our Ramp unit.  I am sure we will see students begin creating more sophisticated ramps.  We will look at motion and speed and measure the distance that the objects will roll.   We have so much more to learn!