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PictureSTEM: Designing Hamster Habitats

Lesson 4 STEM: The Importance of Testing

Lesson Summary: After reading the story about Leo Cockroach and setting up the idea of why it is important to test toys or other designs before they are sold or sent for production, students will build upon this idea by testing the shapes that they will use in their final designs. In this lesson, students will perform the “stackability” and “flickability” tests to build background knowledge about three-dimensional shapes that they will use in their designs for their hamster trails. Students will also start working on their engineering design challenge of making a hamster trail by completing the individual brainstorming and group planning steps of an engineering design process.

Lesson Objectives: Explain the importance of testing and evaluation in the design process Discuss the results of the “stackability” test, which tests which shapes can be

stacked Discuss the results of the “flickability” test, which tests what happens when shapes

are pushed

Time Required: 30 - 45 minutes

Standards Addressed: National Minnesota

ITEEA Educational Standard(s):Standard 2: Students will develop an understanding of the core concepts of technology. K-2 A. Some systems are found in nature, and

some are made by humans. K-2 E. People plan in order to get things done. Standard 8. Students will develop an

understanding of the attributes of design. K-2 A. Everyone can design solutions to a

problem. K-2 B. Design is a creative process.Standard 9: Students will develop an understanding of engineering design. K-2 A. The engineering design process

includes identifying a problem, looking for ideas, developing solutions, and sharing solutions with others.

K-2 B. Expressing ideas to others verbally and through sketches and models is an important

Science Standards: 1.1.3.1: Designed and natural systems exist in

the world. These systems are made up of components that act within a system and interact with other systems.

1.4.1.1: Living things are diverse with many different observable characteristics.

1.4.2.1: Natural systems have many components that interact to maintain the system.

Mathematics Standards: Number & Operations: Count, compare, and

represent whole numbers up to 120, with an emphasis on groups of tens and ones.

Geometry & Measurement: Describe characteristics of basic shapes. Use basic shapes to compose and decompose other objects in various contexts.

PictureSTEM© 2013 University of Minnesota-STEM Education Center

Materials: Copies of ‘flickability’

and ‘stackability’ placemats (per group)

Set of 3D shapes (per group)

Copies of the Draw your Habitat and Plan your Design Sheets


part of the design process.

National Science Educational Standards:Content Standard C: Life Science, organisms, and environmentsContent Standard D: Science and Technology

National Mathematics Standards (Principles and Standards for School Mathematics, NCTM) –In the Geometry strand, pre-K through grade 2 all students should–•recognize, name, build, draw, compare, and sort two- and three-dimensional shapes;•describe attributes and parts of two- and three-dimensional shapes; investigate and predict the results of putting together and taking apart two- and three-dimensional shapes.

Common Core Standards for Mathematics1.OA - Add and subtract within 20.1.G –Reason with shapes and their attributes

Vocabulary: Word Definition

Flick (‘flickability’)A shape which does not turn suddenly or roll over easily when tipped with the pointer finger.

Stack (‘stackability’A shape on which we can place other shapes on without the shapes tipping over.

engineerA person who designs product or processes to solve problems or meet a need

Engineering design process

A series of steps used by engineers to help them solve a problem or meet a need.

Background:This activity builds off the story that they read as part of the literacy component, where Leo the cockroach was in change or testing the toys to make sure that they were safe to sell. In this case, students will be testing their shapes to see if they stack or roll before using these same shapes to build their hamster habitats in the challenge. This “testing” is actually getting at the idea of the attributes of 3D shapes, like faces and edges.

When thinking about developing students spatial reasoning and their final design challenge. Students learn about which shapes support other shapes without tipping them over using the ‘stackability’ test. How well a shape allows for other shapes to be placed on it without falling over helps students to see that a shape which does not stack well will not be good to use as the base of their habitat. How well a shape rolls, or doesn’t roll,



determines if it could be place it next to or underneath another shape in their design. For example, if a shape rolls too much, like the sphere, then it isn’t a good choice for their trail. This will be done with the flickibility test, where students will place the shape on top of the place mat and then gently push at the shape with their pointer finger.

Before the Activity Each group should be given 5-10 of each type of 3D shape. Some rules will need to be established for the ‘flickability’ and ‘stackability’ test, so

that shapes are not flying everywhere.

Introduction:1. To introduce the lesson, say: “Let’s think back to the story

that we read with Leo the Cockroach. Who can remember what Leo’s job was? (to test the toys before they were sold). What did we learn about testing toys from Leo? (it is a very important job – he got employee of the year when he was finally recognized by his boss). We talked about this a little bit in the last lesson, but who can remember why it is important to test toys or products before you sell them? (so they are safe and don’t break)”

2. “Today we are going to act like engineers as we design a habitat for our hamsters. As engineers, it is important that we test the materials that we are going to use so that that you know about the materials you will be using so the habitat is safe for our hamster. We also need to make sure that there are no gaps for our hamster to escape so the shapes you use should be able to stack together and not roll or fall apart. So before we can design our habitat trails, we need to test the different shapes that we will be using for their ‘flickability’ and ‘stackability.’

Comments:

Activity:1. Introduce the design challenge. Before students start

testing their shapes for how well they can stack or how easily they roll, you will want to introduce the design challenge so that students know why they are testing their materials. “Let’s remind ourselves of the engineering design challenge that are trying to solve.”

Design Challenge: Students will be using their knowledge of animals, animal habitats and shapes to design a home or habitat that their pet hamster could live in and that would provide all of the basic needs to keep your hamster happy and healthy. Hamsters like to dig tunnels and that is the part of that design that you have been asked to help design. Everyone will receive the same rectangular base or “den”, but your job will be to

Comments:

Tip: If students have not had much experience working with the shapes, it will be important to review the three dimensional shapes. This is also a great place to make the connections from the two dimensional shapes that they identified and used during the tangram activity. There are



design the trail portion of the habitat. However, because these shapes are expensive and we can only afford for each group to use 20 shapes, and no more than 10 of one shape. That means that you will need to carefully test the shapes to help you choose the best ones for your design.

Part 1: Testing Shapes for “Stackability ” and “Flickability”.2. “Stackability “. Each group will receive 5-10 of each of 3D

shape to test on their placemat for well the shapes stack on top of each other. They will place the shape over the square that they are testing and then try and stack as many of that same shape on top of each other in different configurations. This starts to build on the idea that the flat sides(faces) are best for stacking because they are flat sides, where as the shapes with curved sides or edges do not stack as well.

3. When students have finished their tests, complete a large version of the “stackability” chart together(SMART board/overhead/chart paper) as a way summarize their findings about the shapes and what they have learned about how it is easier to stack shapes when they have a flat face on the top and bottom.

4. “Flickability” After testing the shapes for stackability, each group will then test the shapes for how well they roll, or slide, or fall over, and therefore if it would work next to another shape in their design. If a shape doesn’t roll on its own then it would make a good base shape, but if it rolls too much, like the sphere then it isn’t a good choice for building. This will be done by the flickibility test, where students will place the shape on top of the place mat and then gently push at the shape with their pointer finger.

5. When students have finished their tests, complete the “flickability” chart together as a class (SMART board/overhead/chart paper) as a way summarize their findings about the shapes and what they have learned about how those shapes with rounded sides roll, where as the shapes with flat sides tended to slide along.

6. Ask students to think about the questions below to help relate what they have learned to their habitat design.

a. What happens during the stackability test? (you test how many of the same shape can be placed on top of each other)

b. Which are shapes that did well in the “stackability” test? (rectangular prism, cube) Which shapes did not do so well in the stackability test? (cone, sphere, triangular prism)

pictures on their testing sheets, so it is not as important that they have memorized the names, but it will be important to introduce and identify the three-dimensional shapes.

Tip: It is helpful to do these tests in the lid of a copy paper box to help contain the shapes and keep them from going everywhere.



c. What happens during the flickability test? ( you test what happens when you push a shape – does it roll, slide or fall over)

d. Which shapes rolled in the “flickability” test? (sphere, cone). Which shapes slid in the flickability test? ( cube, rectangular prism flat or on its side), Which shapes fell over (triangular prism, rectangular prism lying on its tall side)

e. Thinking about what we did today, why should engineers test materials before using them in engineering design?

7. After talking through the results, finish by asking which shapes might be good shapes to use in their hamster trails and why they think those are good shapes? cubes, rectangular prism). What about those shapes are better for building their trails? (they have a lot of flat sides or faces where as the sphere, cylinder have more curved sides and edges which makes them harder to build with those shapes.)

Part 2: Planning their Habitat Trail Designs8. Tell students – “ Before we plan, we need to think about our

challenge/problem a little bit more. You just told me that we are going to make a habitat for our pet hamster and we remember that good habitats provide an animal with a habitat that is similar to its natural habitat. We learned (point/refer to animal topic map) that hamsters are excellent diggers and like to make burrows with multiple entrances and tunnels used for nesting, food storage and connecting them to their dens. So in order to make this habitat similar to what they live like in the wild, we are going to be making tunnels for our hamster with the shapes that we tested earlier in this lesson."

9. Scaffolding. Before letting students start on their designs, it is important to present some examples of the options that they can use with their tunnels. This helps students to see that there are a number of different options and ideas that can work Some of the examples that we recommend are:

i. Bridges – this is where you might have two shapes that are connected by a shape on top of the two shapes and would require the hamster to crawl up and over in their trail.

ii. Towers – This allows for the hamster to crawl up vertically in the tunnel

iii. Caps – This allows for the hamster to have a lookout and is a place often found at the top of a tower.

10. Planning for their habitat. Before they can build and test

Tip: Planning is an important step in the engineering design cycle because it allows engineers to determine what materials they might need and think through their designs before building them.

Tip: These drawing are not expected to be scale



their hamster habitat they will need to make sure that they have a good plan. Tell students that “Engineers always have a plan before they create/build and now that we know a little more about our materials, we are ready to get started on our plans.

11. . Individually, students will draw a picture of what they want their habitat trail to look like to brainstorm different ideas of trails that could be used.

12.Next, students will need to look at their designs and work with their partner to fill out the Plan your Habitat – Shapes Store sheet together to determine which shapes and how many of each shape they want to use, within the constraint of 20 shapes total and no more then 10 of each shape. They will also need this data before they can go to the “shapes store” to get their building material.

drawings of 3D shapes, but more to give students the chance to brainstorm different ideas of trails.

Closure:13.Closure: After students have had a chance to work with

their partners to come up with a design, have students gather on the floor for a final discussion to bring it all together using some of the questions below to help guide the discussion back to the attributes of the shapes and why they chose specific shapes.

a. “Today, we had a chance to test some of the materials that we are going to use in our trail designs. Who can tell us why it is important to test your materials before you design?”

b. “ Who can share part of their design by telling us one shapes that you are using and why you chose that shape”

Comments:

Assessment:Pre-Activity Assessment Informal assessment looking at student’s understanding of the first steps of an engineering design challenge and identifying the importance of testing materials.

Activity Embedded AssessmentStudents will complete the shapes testing worksheets for stackability and flickability.

Post-Activity AssessmentPart 1: Looking at what students have learned about the characteristics/attributes of three-dimensional shapes through a class discussion of their testing results.Part 2: Looking at what students have learned about the characteristics/attributes of three-dimensional shapes through a class discussion of which shapes they are planning to use.

Test your materials : “Stackability”How How How



many? many? many?

How many?

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1. How many can you put on top of each other before it falls?



Record how many in the box next to the shapeTest your materials: “Flickability”

slides

falls over

rolls

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falls over

rolls

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rolls

1. How much does your shape move when you gently tap it with your finger?Circle the answer that matches what you find out



Draw a habitat below



Part 1: Plan your Design - Circle the shapes that you want

Part 2: How many of each will you need? ( You can only use 20)How many? How many?

RectangularPrism

Cone

Cube TriangularPrism

Cylinder Triangular Pyramid

Sphere Square Pyramid


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