Grade Level: K-3rd
Suggested Time: 60-90 minutes
Overview
After watching a scene from the 1966 movie "How the Grinch Stole Christmas," students will use skills in engineering and measurement to "Grinch-proof" dollhouses with an array of materials. The students who design the most successful "Grinch-proof" trap will win a prize of candy canes!
Vocabulary
- Design
- Analyze
- Measure
- Ruler
- Force
Objectives
- Students will experiment with the strength of various materials.
- Students will consider various forces when designing structures.
- Students will learn how to plan a design.
- Students will work together to create a machine or that protects or catches a certain item.
- Students will use measurement tools to create appropriate-sized machines or traps.
- Students will observe the end result of their machines or traps to determine the functionality of it
- Students will analyze ways to improve their machines or traps.
Next Generation Science Standards
- 2-PS1-2 Matter and Its Interactions
Analyze data obtained from testing different materials to determine which materials have the properties that are best suited for an intended purpose.*
- K-2-ETS1-1 Engineering Design
Ask questions, make observations, and gather information about a situation people want to change to define a simple problem that can be solved through the development of a new or improved object or tool.
- K-2-ETS1-2 Engineering Design
Develop a simple sketch, drawing, or physical model to illustrate how the shape of an object helps it function as needed to solve a given problem.
- 3-5-ETS1-1 Engineering Design
Define a simple design problem reflecting a need or a want that includes specified criteria for success and constraints on materials, time, or cost.
- 3-5-ETS1-3 Engineering Design
Plan and carry out fair tests in which variables are controlled and failure points are considered to identify aspects of a model or prototype that can be improved