This lesson is for : Grade 7:
Summary
You are a team that has been hired by an amusement park called Roller Coaster Island. Roller Coaster Island is in need of new and exciting roller coasters. Your job is to design, and build a model of a working roller coaster. You will also need to take an engineer’s test to prove that you have the qualifications to build the actual coaster. In order to design and build a roller coaster you need to learn about roller coasters and how they work, successfully design a coaster and create a promotional product to entice park goers to ride your coaster.
TIPC Ratings
Research & Information Fluency
Rating: Approaching – Explanation: Students had access to information from many different sources including simulations, hands-on activities, and articles. Students reflected on each source through the use of a journal entry. The project required students to then synthesize that information and incorporate that learning into their unique design.
Communication & Collaboration
Rating: Approaching – Explanation: Students worked in groups to build their coasters and complete their advertisement. Students were responsible for setting tasks and using collaboration and communication skills to get the project completed in the allotted time. Students then reflected on the project and their roles in their groups.
Critical Thinking & Problem Solving
Rating: Ideal – Explanation: Students worked through many experiences to build their knowledge about roller coasters and the part science plays in their creation. Students then applied that knowledge to a design of their own and had to justify why their design operates in such a way from a science standpoint. Students continuously reflected on their problem solving as they built their designs. Use of digital tools such as online simulators and other apps that the students found, helped them test their theories before attempting the actual build. An additional component to the design was that students had to make the coaster appeal to one of the characters in Paul Flieschman’s book Seed Folks, which students were reading in their English class.
Creativity & Innovation
Rating: Ideal – Explanation: During the course of the project, students gathered information from various sources and activities, thought critically about how the information affects their coaster design, and work collaboratively to create an ad to promote their coaster. They also had to keep in mind their chosen character from Seed Folks and what would appeal to that character.
Student Artifact
Lesson Materials
