Blog Archives

Balloon Rockets

9/22/2016

Today as part of my STEAM effort with the girls' home we designed and launched balloon rockets. It was a 'BLAST'!

With the older group, I reinforced through drawing and discussion force, motion, thrust, and friction. We reviewed the scientific method and filled out a worksheet that encouraged asking questions and making predictions about what they thought would happen.

Using this framework as a guide, we wondered aloud:

Will changing the shape of the balloon make the rocket travel faster?
Will adding more air affect how far the rocket travels?
What will happen if we raise the incline of the string?

We practiced calculating velocity based on how far the rocket traveled and how long it took.

I especially liked when we added cargo on top (a rupee coin inside half a ping pong ball) and predicted at what point along the way it would fall out. It actually made it all the way to the end of the line.

In the end we found that the more air in the balloon, the faster it goes. It also matters if the straw is straight and if it's going with or against the breeze coming through the window.

And everyone enjoyed the leftover balloons...

0 Comments

STEAM manipulatives

9/14/2016

0 Comments

Today is a major holiday in India, Ganesh Chaturthi, where millions take Ganesha to the beach to be immersed. There's a lot of music, dancing, drums, processions, and celebrations. The girls had the day off school so I had a few join in that I don't normally get to work with.

Pouring monsoon rain, a holiday, and a bunch of eager girls meant: manipulatives.

I plan to incorporate a STEAM-related activity each month, and fortunately so many fun things fall under the STEAM umbrella: including manipulatives.

The older girls have been studying force, motion, and velocity and need a bit of hands on reinforcement. We started with a warm-up on the iPads using the Meet Science app. They watched some instructional force and motion videos and demos of related experiments, and then they played a couple of catchy games that reinforced the concepts. These girls are super bright and are doing high school level physics. While this app is geared for younger kids, it worked fine as a lead-in activity or extra practice to reinforce the concepts.

iPads are awesome but the ideal plan is 1:1 instead of sharing. I'm going to do better cycling girls through and giving them the space to explore on their own for maximum benefit.

Next, I followed this framework for working with Keva planks. I first discovered these blocks at the USA Science and Engineering Festival while in Washington, D.C. several years ago. I was immediately impressed with how simple they were and yet required critical thinking skills to produce complex outcomes. Most importantly, they are fun and kids of various ages love how open-ended and versatile they are. Today we stayed pretty basic.

I gave them 10 planks and challenged them to build as high as they could. Then they did the same with 20 planks. They rotated spots and added another person's structure. I gave them 4 small cubes and asked them to build a structure starting with only the 4 cubes on the bottom. I asked them to design a ramp that would carry a ball down and we filmed it in slow motion and talked about the force of hitting the dominoes at the bottom.

I found it fascinating how individual each girl's approach was. Some instinctively dove in and seemed to know just what they wanted to build and how to make it come together. Others struggled and kept looking at the instruction booklet for some ideas. Some got restless after a few attempts and some could have built for hours.

I asked them questions as we went along about how a ball might fall through their structure, what would happen, how high would it bounce, or similar attempts to get them predicting. Nothing was too formal but I think they had fun and saw a bit of force in action.

Next up, the younger and middle crew. For them, I set up several different stations and we rotated through. Again, it was fun to see different approaches, creative thinking, and problem-solving skills. Some organized by color. Some prefers to work with a partner and others alone. They enjoyed showing off their creations and trying some new tools.

Plus Plus (she made the Indian flag)

These girls are sharp, creative, and open to new experiences. I look forward to what we'll try next.

0 Comments

Literacy Grant Begins with Coding

9/8/2016

0 Comments

Literacy is far more than the ability to read and write. It's also understanding, communicating, and thinking.

I was awarded a literacy grant from Phi Kappa Phi to do some STEAM outreach with a group of girls here in Mumbai.

These girls come from underprivileged backgrounds and a variety of circumstances. There is a small army of volunteers and others who look after their daily care and welfare. Some help tutor academics and English language, others participate in cultural celebrations and wellness efforts. I am honored to join those who reach out with their time and love to support these girls.

For the purpose of this grant, I've expanded the definition of literacy. I have three main goals:

Girls will improve English language skills
Girls will learn digital literacy skills
Girls will strengthen their innovative spirits.

I will rotate through Coding, Digital Literacy, STEAM, and English language activities. My goal is to expand their thinking and expose them to tools and resources they don't already have.

Today was my first day and like all first days it was a bit rough but also wonderful.

Coding 101

I like the computational and critical thinking that coding requires. Using the Move It, Move It lesson plan from Code.org, I introduced some offline coding activities.

We defined "instructions" and practiced giving each other instructions. We played the Move It game where a person gives simple hand signals one at a time to another player in order to find the hidden smiley face. They caught on really quickly and I had to keep adding papers to make it harder.

To test their understanding, they completed Meet the Flurbs worksheet, pasting in arrow commands. They aced it.

Having built a foundation, they were ready for something more challenging. On the iPad we practiced with Daisy the Dinosaur, Move the Turtle, and Cargo-Bot. It was a little tricky sharing iPads, as it always is (even with only 2 kids on a device), and they each wanted sufficient opportunity to try.

Perhaps the most rewarding part for me was watching them try, get frustrated, try again, feel proud of themselves for succeeding, and then reach over to help the other person figure it out.

That alone is a valuable journey for Day 1.

0 Comments

Balloon Rockets

STEAM manipulatives

Literacy Grant Begins with Coding

Coding 101

EdTechDidi

Archives

Categories

Balloon Rockets

STEAM manipulatives

Literacy Grant Begins with Coding﻿

Coding 101

EdTechDidi

Archives

Categories

Literacy Grant Begins with Coding