| On October 5th, we were able to offer a second round of Engineering with Legos Day1. Though the group was small, they were very eager to learn about modeling mathematics in their classrooms through engineering concepts. | | | |
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 | We began the day creating vocabulary books to introduce four key vocabulary words - Engineering, Simple Machines, Wheels, and Gears. Most of our day was spent on investigating the math applications from gears and gear ratios. |
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Before beginning the first Lego activity we briefly went through a math lesson using fraction strips. The conceptual idea emphasized was to understand the idea of multiplication and division of fractions. One of the key focus questions was " How many 1/3's are in 3?"
Participants then worked through an activity called "Reel Changes" in which they discovered the effects of different size gears and their placement as either a driven or driver.
We checked for understanding of the gear ratio activity by having groups create "Mystery Machines." They used any combination of gears and then created a cardboard box cover. We set up various stations and had other groups figure out what driver and driven gears were used by looking at the rotation of the indicator on the machine in either degrees, fractions, or decimals.
To further the experience in the classroom. We modeled a "Number Talk" with origami. Through the folding of the project we talked about shapes, shape attributes, symmetry, rotation, and fractions. Origami is a great method of teaching and reviewing mathematical concepts with students. For this origami project we created wheels that turned into gears.
We ended the day with a catapult activity. Participants worked in groups through an activity in which they first made predictions of the effects of a catapult by changing the position of the fulcrum. They then built two varieties of catapults and tested the distance of the projectiles.
We ended the day by informing everyone of a Day 2 coming in the Spring that will continue to discover the rich potential of making mathematics real through engineering.
