Submitted by: Caroline Hutton
Summary
This lesson was conducted at the end of a unit on plant life. Students were given the “Parts of a Plant design brief” and charged with the challenge of designing and creating a flower using recycled materials.
TIPC Ratings
Entry
The teacher provided the recycled materials needed to construct the plant and the students were guided through their use of digital resources.
Developing
The students individually brainstormed their ideas of how to build their flowers and are assigned to groups of two for the creation process. They discussed their brainstorming ideas and decided on a final solution of how they were going to build their flower. Students worked together to come up with what they think would be the best solution to meet all the criteria in the design brief. Using the program Pixie, students created and labeled their flower. The picture was printed out and turned in along with their flowers and brainstorming. Students shared their designs with the class, along with the pictures of the labeled parts.
Developing
Students must use problem solving and teamwork skills to fix problems and make decisions. During the class presentations, each student group had to justify their decisions and prove that their project met the criteria by measuring their flower with unifix cubes and pointing out each required element to the audience.
Approaching
Students were given the opportunity to work in groups and demonstrate their collaboration, communication, and critical thinking skills. The lesson required students to apply their existing knowledge and make predictions in order to create a unique product.
Student Artifact
