The process of this lesson was much more than I had initially expected and I don’t mean that in a bad way. My beginning plan was to create one unit that incorporated the Engineering Design Process and tied into National Engineering Week, but what happened was much more. Once I felt that my rough draft of the plan was taking shape I realized I needed to test my lesson structure and the process as a whole.
My first attempt included some work in class and assignments at home that pulled in family support and we made contraptions to save Humpty Dumpty. It was AMAZING. From this lesson I decided to attempt a smaller scale unit of my Kenan Project and make a Mayflower project. By doing this I was able to see what areas of my future project would need modifications and how my students would handle a multi-step and multiple day project. It truly was an amazing project and I know my students and their families will always remember the day they launched their Mayflower.
Now I sit here reviewing my big project and reflect on how it went versus my expectations. Our project was to create rubber band helicopters and launch them at our local airport. Quickly I discovered a couple of alterations that needed to be made in terms of what the teacher should prepare in advance, but luckily I had some amazing volunteers thanks to my mentors and they took care of it immediately. I also found that I had not allotted enough time but again thanks to volunteers we got it taken care of perfectly. Our field trip day had finally arrived and we were off to the airport. We had some great speakers at the airport and they let us look inside at the aircraft on their facility. Students also were able to see what a refueler was (happy moment to me because that was part of my previous job before teaching), watch an airplane take off and land, and meet some very special people. They were so excited to show their helicopters (or other flying devices since they could choose the aesthetic piece) to their family and the members of the airport. I couldn’t have asked for a better day, a better project, or a better group of kids to experience this project with . . . EVER!
My kids are anxiously awaiting our next project to show off their engineering skills and many of my students have gone home explaining engineering jobs to their families. I have had parents email, call and write me about how they had no idea their children would learn these things in kindergarten and they are so grateful for the experiences they had in my room. In turn, I am thankful I have had the opportunity this program has given me to make me a better teacher for the students I am teaching and will teach for years to come.
What I would love to see is more lower elementary grades implementing projects like this. I have had a few schools contact me about getting copies of the lesson plans and obtaining some guidance in implementing this next year. I think this is how it is supposed to be. Teachers forming networks with other teachers and spreading their ideas. This is how we truly reach every child and provide them with purposeful and meaningful lessons that provide hands-on opportunities to explore the world and learn their curriculum. My dream would be to present on a state-wide platform and then move to a national level. I would also like to see more opportunities for STEM fellowships for K-2 teachers. It appears that many companies who offer grants or fellowships don’t touch teachers below grade 3 and even most don’t go into elementary schools at all. I think this is a huge disservice to teachers and students because if they don’t ignite the spark at this age, their interest will be dull or diminished by the time they reach middle school.