Survivor:LEGOIsland

SubjectArea(s) physicalscience,geometry,problemsolvingAssociatedUnit density

AssociatedLesson none

ActivityTitle Survivor:LEGOIsland

GradeLevel 5(4‐5)

ActivityDependency none

TimeRequired 60minutes

GroupSize dividetheclassintoteamsoffourstudentseachExpendableCost/Group~US$0.72(assumingsevengroupsoffourstudents)

Summary Workinginteams,studentsdesignandbuildaliferaftusingmarshmallows,uncookedpasta,

andWasacrackerbread.Thegoalisforstudentstocreatethestrongestmodeltoholdthe

Image1

ADADescription:Pictureshows

alogofortheactivity,including

LEGOblocksandfigurine.

Caption:Figure1:Logofor

activity

Imagefilename:

survivor_logo.jpg

Source/Rights:Copyright©

2009AshlieDelloiacono

maximumnumberofLEGOpeople.Studentswillexperimentwithdifferentmodelsand

strategiestocreatethemostsubstantivestructure.Bydifferentiatingmodelsofrafts,students

gainanunderstandingoftheprinciplesofdensity.

EngineeringConnection

Manyoftoday’smostmoderncruisevesselshavelifeboatstosavepassengersfromdangers

thatmightariseonboardtheship.Priortolifeboats,liferaftswereanessentialpartofaship’s

emergencyplans.Engineersmustkeepdensityinmindwhendesigningtheseboatsandrafts.

Theymustdesigntheselifeboatsandliferaftstomaximizetheamountofpassengersorpeople

theywillsavebykeepingtheraftbuoyant,butalsoconservingthelargestamountofresources

possible,soastominimizecosts.

EngineeringCategory

(3)providesengineeringanalysisorpartialdesign

Keywords

density,design,designandbuild,float,liferaft,marshmallow,model,pasta,raft,sink

EducationalStandards

NewJerseyscience(2002)

• 5.2.8A.2:Knowthatscientistsaremenandwomenofmanycultureswhooftenwork

togethertosolvescientificandtechnologicalproblems.

• 5.2.8A.3:Describehowdifferentcultureshavemadeandcontinuetomake

contributionstoscienceandtechnology.

NewJerseymath(2002)

• 4.2.5B.2:Recognize,identify,anddescribegeometricrelationshipsandpropertiesas

theyexistinnature,art,andotherreal‐worldsettings.

NewJerseytechnology(2002)

• 8.2.8B.2:Usehandsonactivitiestoanalyzeproductsandsystemstodeterminehowthe

designprocesswasappliedtocreatethesolution.

Pre­RequisiteKnowledge

None

LearningObjectives

Afterthisactivity,studentsshouldbeableto:

• Givenavarietyofsupplies,studentswillbeabletoeffectivelydesignandcreateand

lifeboatwhichwillbeabletosustainanumberofLEGOfigurines.

• Whilebuildingaliferaft,identifyshapesandobjectswhichincreaseordecreasethe

buoyancyofanobject.

• Understandthedensityofobjectsandhowitrelatestoanobject’sfloatabilitybydesigning

aliferaftfromsupplies.

MaterialsList

Eachgroupneeds:

• 8largemarshmallows

• 10piecesofuncut,uncookedspaghetti

• 3piecesofWasaCrisp’nLightcrackerbread

Tosharewiththeentireclass:

• Atleast30LEGOfigurines

• Largebowlortubfilledwithwater

• Paper

Image2

ADADescription:Photoshowsspaghetti

boxandspaghettigiventoeachteam.

Caption:Figure2:Spaghetti

Imagefilename:spaghetti.jpg

Source/Rights:Copyright©2009Ashlie

Delloiacono

Image3

ADADescription:Photoshows

marshmallowsgiventoeachteam.

Caption:Figure3:Marshmallows

Imagefilename:marshmallow.jpg

Source/Rights:Copyright©2009Ashlie

Delloiacono

Image4

ADADescription:PhotoshowsWasa

crackerbreadgiventoeachteam.

Caption:Figure4:Wasacrackerbread

Imagefilename:wasa.jpg

Source/Rights:Copyright©2009Ashlie

Delloiacono

Introduction/Motivation

Oneofthemostpopularvacationsthataretakentodayarecruises.Imaginefora

minutethatyouandyourfamilyaretakingacruisetobeautifulBermuda.Beforeyousetsail,

thereisamandatorylifeboatdrill.Doesanyoneknowwhytheymakethisdrillmandatory?

(Answer:(1)sopassengersarefamiliarwiththeareatheymustgotoinanemergency,(2)how

tousethelifevests.)Lifeboatsareimportant;iftherewasacatastropheordisasteronboard,

passengerswouldbeabletoevacuatetheshipandbesafe.

Lifeboatsoriginallywerenotstandardizedoncruiseships.OntheTitanic,therewere

onlyenoughlifeboatsandliferaftsforabouteleven‐hundredpeopleeventhoughtherewere

overthree‐thousandpeopleonboardtheship.DoesanyoneknowanythingabouttheTitanic

anditsstory?AftertheTitanicdisaster,cruiselinesandcruiseshipsbecamemoreawareof

safetyandhadmanymoresafetyconcerns;theTitanicdisasterclaimedthelivesofover

seventeen‐hundredpeopleandtheydidnotwanttohaveanotherdisasterlikethisagain.Asa

result,lifeboatsbecameanimportantpartofeachcruisevessel.Eachengineermadesurethat

eachshiphadenoughaccommodationsinthelifeboatstoservethatofthepassengersand

crewmembersaboardtheship.

Engineersareextremelyimportantinthedesigningofcruiseships.Firstofall,shipsare

notalwaysassembledinthesameplace.Thoughtheyareputtogetherinoneplace,eachpart

istypicallymanufacturedanddesignedinaseparateplace.Inthisway,engineersfrommany

differentcountriesmanufacturepartsoftheship.Doesanyoneknowanypartsofacruiseship

whichmightbemadeoverseas?Whatcountriesdoyouknowofthatmightmaketheseparts?

Today,wearegoingtobeengineersanddesignaliferafttosavesurvivorsoftheMS

Fiesta.Doesanyoneknowwhat“fiesta”means?Doesanyoneknowwhatlanguageitis?

(Answer:partyinSpanish).Wearegoingtobesplitupintobuildteamsoffourmemberseach.

Iamgoingtogiveyouavarietyofsuppliestousetobuildthisliferaft.Attheend,wearegoing

toseehowmanysurvivors,orLEGOpeople,yourraftwillsave.

Keepinmindsomeoftheconceptswehavelearnedinourmathematicsandscience

classes.Makesurethatyourraftisgoingtobelessdensethanwatersothatitfloats.In

addition,beawareofspecificshapeswhichmightbestrongerandholdmoreweightthanother

shapes.Thesetwokeysandtoolswillallowyoutocreatearaftthatwillmaximizetheamount

ofpeopleyouwillsavewithyourliferaft.

Aswithmostengineers,wearestrivingtobuildthestrongestraftwiththeleastamount

ofmaterials.Eachofyouwillreceivetenpiecesofuncookedspaghetti,eightmarshmallows,

andthreepiecesofthisWasacrackerbread.Besuretocreateyourdesignonpaperfirst,likea

realengineerwould,thenattempttocreateyourliferaft.Goodluck.

Vocabulary/Definitions

Word Definition matter Anythingthattakesupspaceandhasmass.density Themeasureoftheamountofmatterinanythingthattakesupspace.volume Theamountofspaceoccupiedbyanobject.mass Theamountofmatteranobjectcontains.

Procedure

BeforetheActivity

• Forthetestingofthebuoyancyandstrengthoftherafts,preparealargetuborbowlandfill

itwithwater.

• Dividetheclassinto“buildteams”offourstudentseach.(Donebeforetheactivitysothat

specializedstudentswillbeplacedwithcounterpartswhichwillmaximizetheirefficiency

duringtheactivity.)

• Foreach“buildteam”,setaside10piecesofspaghetti,8marshmallows,and3piecesof

crackerbread.

WiththeStudents

1. Discussliferaftsandliferaftdesignwiththestudents.Askstudentswhichshapewouldbe

thestrongesttokeeptheraftafloatwithLEGOfigurinesonit.Askstudentstovoteon

shapesbyashowofhandsandrecordtheirresponsesontheboard.Studentsshouldvote

thattrianglesarethestrongestshape.Ifnot,explainhowsquareswouldeasilyfallapartif

torquewereappliedtoanycornerofthesquare,causingittocollapse.

Image5

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water.

Caption:Figure5:Tubofwater

Imagefilename:watertub.jpg

Source/Rights:Copyright©2009Ashlie

Delloiacono

2. Giveeachteamasetoftheirbuildmaterials:10piecesofspaghetti,8marshmallows,and3

piecesofcrackerbread,aswellassheetsofpaper.Remindtheteamtothinkcarefully

aboutwhattheirdesignwillbebeforeactuallycreatingtheirdesign.Askthemtodrawout

theirdesignonpaper.Oneeffectivewaytocreateadesignthatalltheteammemberscan

agreeonistosuggesttoeachgroupthateveryonedrawtheirowndesign.Theteam

memberscanthentakeideasfromeachdesignandcreatetheirteamdesignasa

combinationofindividualdesignideas.Explaintoeachteamthattheirraftwillbetestedby

placingLEGOfigurinesonthemuntiltheraftcollapsesortherearenomoreLEGOfigurines

left.Telltheteamthattheyhavealimitedamountofresourcesandthatconservingthe

mostresourcesisimportantinthecaseofatie;whicheverteamconservesthemost

resourceswouldwinatie‐breaker.

3. Giveallstudentbuildteamstimetobrainstorm,design,andbuildtheirmodelliferafts.

Makesurestudentshaveenoughtimetodrawsketches,comparewithteammates,and

compromiseondesignsbeforeactuallybuildingtheraft.

Image6

ADADescription:Photoshowsexampleof

build’sinside.

Caption:Figure6:Insideofbuild1

Imagefilename:build1inside.jpg

Source/Rights:Copyright©2009Ashlie

Delloiacono

Image7

ADADescription:Photoshowsexampleof

build’soutside.

Caption:Figure7:Outsideofbuild1

Imagefilename:build1outside.jpg

Source/Rights:Copyright©2009Ashlie

Delloiacono

4. Afterstudentscompletetheirfinalbuilds,askeachteamtopredicthowmanyLEGO

figurinestheirraftwillhold.Askthemtorecordtheirpredictionsontheboard.Askthem

whytheythinktheirbuildwillholdthatmanyfigurines.Next,placeeachteam’sraftinthe

tuborbowlofwater.MakesureitfloatsfirstbeforeaddingandLEGOfigurines.Next,add

one‐by‐onethefigurinesuntiltherearenomorefigurines,thereisnomoreroomonthe

raft,ortheraftsinks.Repeatthistestforeachgroup’sraft.Recordforeachgrouphow

manyfigurinesitcanholdontheraft,nexttotheirprediction.

5. Concludetheactivitybyhavingaclassdiscussionabouttheresultsofthetesting.Which

raftworkedthebestandwhy?Whatfactorsaideditsabilitytosustainthemaximum

amountofLEGOfigurines?Whatcouldbedonetoimprovethedesigns?Havestudents

describehowtheymightmaketheirraftsstrongerandmoreresilient.Havestudentsdesign

Image8

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secondbuild’sinside.

Caption:Figure8:Insideofbuild2

Imagefilename:build2inside.jpg

Source/Rights:Copyright©2009Ashlie

Delloiacono

Image9

ADADescription:Photoshowsexampleof

secondbuild’soutside.

Caption:Figure9:Outsideofbuild2

Imagefilename:build2outside.jpg

Source/Rights:Copyright©2009Ashlie

Delloiacono

Image10

ADADescription:Photoshowsbuild2

floatingintubofwater.

Caption:Figure10:Build2intub

Imagefilename:float.jpg

Source/Rights:Copyright©2009Ashlie

Delloiacono

athomeabetterraftandbringitinthenextdayforextracredit,ifitcanholdmoreLEGO

figurinesthantheirteam’scounterpart.

SafetyIssues

• Remindstudentsnottoeatthefood.

• Remindstudentstopickupobjectstheymaydrop.

Assessment

Pre‐ActivityAssessment

Voting:AskstudentswhichshapewouldbethestrongesttokeeptheraftafloatwithLEGO

figurinesonit.Askstudentstovoteonshapesbyashowofhandsandrecordtheirresponses

ontheboard.

• Whichtypeofshapewouldbelikelytobethestrongestandholdthemaximumamount

ofweightrelativetoothershapes?(Explainhowsquaresarelessstablethanatriangle,

duetotheirabilitytofalleasilyapartifweightortorqueisappliedtoacorner.)

ActivityEmbeddedAssessment

Prediction:AskeachteamtopredicthowmanyLEGOfigurinestheirraftwillhold.Askthemto

recordtheirpredictionsontheboard.Askthemwhytheythinktheirbuildwillholdthatmany

figurines.

Post‐ActivityAssessment

RethinkingandRebuilding:Whichraftworkedthebestandwhy?Whatfactorsaideditsability

tosustainthemaximumamountofLEGOfigurines?Whatcouldbedonetoimprovethe

designs?Howmightyoumakeyourraftsstrongerandmoreresilient?Whatadditional

suppliescouldhelp?

ActivityExtensions

Explaintostudentshowtheyjustutilizedtheengineeringdesignprocess.Askthestudentsif

anyofthemhaveheardofthisprocessbefore.Comparethisprocesstothescientificmethod

asyouexplaintheprocesstothem:1)Definetheproblem,2)Brainstormideas,3)Selectthe

mostpromising/bestdesign,4)Communicatethedesigntoothers,5)Createandtestthe

design,and6)Evaluateandrevisethedesign.Askthestudentstothinkabouthowtheyused

eachstepintheirdesignprocess.

Havestudentsnotetheuseoftrianglesasoneofthestrongestgeometricshapes.Askstudents

toidentifywheretheyhaveseentriangulargeometricshapesonsometypeofdeviceor

structure.Havethestudentexplainhowtheybelievethatthistrianglehelpedthestructureor

devicekeepitsshape.Havestudentsexploreinthenextlessonthesetriangles.Thiscould

includeanactivityinvolvingstudentstakinga“fieldtrip”aroundtheschooltofindsupporting

shapeswhichhelptokeepthebuildingorsurroundingbuildingsfromfallingdown.Have

studentswritetheirfindingsdownandleadadiscussionattheendoftheactivityabouttheir

findings.

ActivityScaling

• Forlowergrades,givestudentsasheetwhichshowssomeexampledesignsonit.This

sheetwillalsoserveastheirareatobrainstormandsketchtheirideas.Also,consider

providingmoremarshmallowsormorespaghetti,asyoungerstudentstendtohavetore‐do

designsorbuilds.Studentswillnotre‐designtheirmodelsthenextday.

• Foruppergrades,considerusingsmallermarshmallowsinsteadofthelargerones.These

willprovidelessbuoyancy.Inaddition,givespecificationsaboutthesizeorshapethatthe

buildmusttake,whichwillrestricttheiroptions.Studentswillalsomakeare‐buildoftheir

modelinthesamedayfortesting.

References

"EngineeringDesignProcess|SallyRideScience."SallyRideScience|SallyRideScience.23Apr.

2009<http://www.sallyridescience.com/toychallenge/design>.

"Lifeboat(shipboard)‐."Wikipedia,thefreeencyclopedia.23Apr.2009

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lifeboat_(shipboard)>.

"TitanicLifeboats."Titanic‐Titanic.com.23Apr.2009<http://www.titanic‐

titanic.com/lifeboats.shtml>.

Owner

AshlieDelloiacono,TheCollegeofNewJersey,SchoolofEducation,DepartmentofMath,

ScienceandTechnology

Version:January2009