Week 5 Reflection

This week marked the start of the first Engineering Design Challenge I've done with my students (The Balloon Powered Race Car). I've had my students design things before, but never in this same structured way.

One of my challenges going in was that a number of my students are also in STEAM and they do a similar Balloon Powered Race Car in that class. This is good and bad because it means there are a number of students who have already problem solved some of the issues, but it also means that there are more students who might be over powering in the decision making process.

To get around some of the concerns I spread these students around in the seating chart so only one STEAM student was in each group and I emphasized that I was grading far more on whether they were working as a team and listening to everyone's ideas, than if their car went the furthest. While there have been groups that have overly relied on the student who was familiar with the task or where a student was controlling because of their previous experience, ultimately most groups have been working well at respecting everyone's ideas.

 Day 1 Construction

In orchestrating this task I debated a lot over what to provide the groups (I am having my students work on teacher assigned groups of 4). Glue guns and tape were a given, as were balloons (if for nothing else than making sure no groups brought in a giant balloons). I also provided some craft sticks and an assortment of straws to give them a start in constructing. Next year I am debating on giving each group a set number of each of those at the start and letting them bring in extra materials or trade with other groups if they need more. This would save me a bit from having to monitor things. I also bought some wooden skewers that could be used as axles (just in cause some group is nearing the end of the allocated time without wheels that move at all).

 Day 2 Construction

My students will be competing next Thursday, which should be plenty of time for most groups. So far most are making good progress, but I have some that still need to get almost everything done next week as they are not close to having a functioning car. But, the challenge is going well and a nice change of pace for them from the research paper.