Fifth-graders are budding engineers
CHESTERTON, Ind. (AP) - There are budding scientists, designers and engineers in Sue Gore's fifth-grade class at Liberty Intermediate School in Chesterton.
The youngsters, with the help of their parents, were able to work on a project at home where they made a prosthetic hand.
Gore said the project was made possible by a science grant from the Duneland Education Foundation for fifth- and sixth-grade students at the school. All science teachers collaborated on the proposal so that all Liberty Intermediate students would benefit.
"We've been studying engineering and the design process," Gore said. "There's always a problem. When engineers design something, it's because there is a need. The first thing they do is to identify the problem, then brainstorm ideas."
The first project students embarked on was to design a prosthetic hand. "The creativity and functionality of each arm was impressive," she said.
Gore said some students worked with a Phillips screwdriver for the first time, learning the difference between it and a slotted screwdriver.
She said students worked with parents. One student's mother is a nurse who explained the bones in the hand.
"We were trying to reach out to the community to tie in more knowledge," Gore said.
Gore and other teachers have developed a "maker space," and intend to buy tools and equipment for students, in addition to technology like laptops. The maker space will give students the opportunity to design and develop projects that display an understanding of solving real-life problems.
Giovanni DePasquale and his father used a 3-D printer to make a prosthetic hand.
"Once I get my grade, I'm going to donate it to someone who needs it," Giovanni said. "It took 17 hours for the printer to print it out and a couple of hours to put it together."
Some of the simple tools Giovanni learned to use were a drill, a slotted screwdriver and Velcro. The prosthetic hand will be donated to an organization called enablethefuture.org.
The youngsters were excited about the projects.
Evan Cowsert said he had an opportunity to "bond with his mother" when he worked on his prosthetic hand where he used straws, string and silicone to make it soft and easy to move.
Rebecca Carpentier and Peyton Moore worked on their hands with the help of their prosthetics. Moore pointed out the wires and how she pulls them to move the fingers.
Next, students worked on a Rube Goldberg project. Gore told students Rube Goldberg was a cartoonist who created elaborate ways to complete simple tasks. The students watched competitions as part of an introduction to the lesson.
They learned about simple and complex machines. The objective was to build a complex machine that could complete a simple task of popping a balloon using at least five steps and three different simple machines.
Aubree Wallen and her group used her Barbie doll, armed with a pin, to slide down the ramp and stick the balloon to bust it.
Liberty Intermediate School Principal Greg Guernsey said Gore initiated a more hands-on approach to teaching both science and math by introducing key projects like her engineering unit and creating maker spaces.
"Her obvious passion and persistence has helped rejuvenate and lead other teachers in our school," Guernsey said.
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Source: The (Munster) Times, http://bit.ly/1m8Lept
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Information from: The Times, http://www.thetimesonline.com