DIXIE STATE UNIVERSITY DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

ELEMENTARY 3
rd
SEMESTER ELED 4300 SCIENCE LESSON PLAN TEMPLATE
(8/23/14)

Teacher Candidate: Leslie Payne Grade Level: 5
th
Title: Engineering: The Marshmallow Challenge

CONTEXTUAL FACTORS (classroom factors)
Contextual Factors:
There are 25 students in the class 14 boys and 11 girls.

ELL Students:
None
Students with IEP:
Josh- ADHD, autism spectrum disorder; is pulled into Special Ed; he only joins the class at the very beginning of
the day, and right before lunch, he has a full time aide.
Sydnie- ADD

Health Concerns:
Kaden- anaphylaxis, epipen, NO PEANUTS
Logan West-seizures

Behavior Concerns:
None

Struggling Students:
Mollie- struggles with reading, and math.
Sydnie- hard time staying focus and understanding common principles in math and reading.
Emma- hard time staying focused, and finishing tasks. 1 on 1 when available is very helpful!

High Level Learners:
Dacoda
Kaden
Kamren
Elijah
Tanner

Classroom environment: This lesson will take place in the Engineering Lab.
The Engineering Lab has large tables with 6 seats to a table. There is a white board at the front of the table, which is also
where the projector displays. There are computers located to the front left side of the classroom. There are 3 tables for
Legos on the furthest right side of the classroom.


WALK-AWAY (As a result of this lesson, what do I want the students to know, understand, and be able to do?)
State Standard/Objective: Next Generation Science Standard 3-5 ETS1-3 (SIOP 3)

Plan and carry out fair tests in which variables are controlled and failure points are considered to identify aspects of a
model or prototype that can be improved.

Content Walk-Away: I will plan and carry out a test to identify parts of a prototype that can be improved. (SIOP 1)


Language Walk-Away: I will write a compare and contrast of a model and prototype. (SIOP 2)


Vocabulary: Prototype, Engineer, Structure (freestanding structure)

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http://steps.ie/StepsToEngineering/media/StepsToEngineering-
medialibrary/Volunteers/Activities/Everyday-structures-and-systems.pdf

http://marshmallowchallenge.com/TED_Talk.html

Morrow, H., & Kokernak, R. (2011). Statics and strength of materials (7th ed., pp. 6-17). Upper
Saddle River, N.J.: Prentice Hall.

ASSESSMENT EVIDENCE (What evidence do I need to show the students have
learned the Walk-Away?) 5E-Evaluate
Modifications/Accomoda-
tions (ELL, IEP, GATE, etc.)
Formative Evidence (checking for understanding throughout the lesson): Check
students models, watch as they work together and collaborate, look at their notes
from the resources and videos they watch.


Content Walk-Away Evidence (Summative): Students will turn in their prototype
model that they draw on paper, and compare and contrast that to their first model.


Language Walk-Away Evidence (Summative): Students will turn in their prototype
model that they draw on paper, and write a compare and contrast to their first model.



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ACTIVE LEARNING PLAN
Approximate length of entire lesson:50 minutes. Teaching time: from 10:50 to 11:40
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Activate/Building Background Knowledge
As a class we will review the term engineer, a person who designs and builds a machine or structure. We are
going to be engineers for the activity we are doing today. We will be building structures. Remember when you
built your chairs for Mr. Potato Head Darth Vader. What strategies did you use while building those? Wait
time After building those, what would you have done differently? Wait Time (SIOP 7,8,15, 18)

Formative assessment:
Learning Goal Success Criteria Assessment Strategy
To recap the last engineering
lesson when they built chairs for
Mr. Potato Head to sit on.
List success and failures of
previous designs.
Understand what improvements
could have been made.
We will discuss as a class the
successes of their structures, and
their failures, and what they could
have improved.

Modification/accommodations: (ELL, IEP, GATE, etc.) Have high-level learners share their experiences and
what they would have changed had they had the opportunity to do it again. Call on Mollie, Emma, and
Sydnie so they can recall their models and what needed to be changed as well.

Focus Lesson (I do it) 5E-Engage
Lets talk about structures.
Structures are a building or other object constructed of several parts. An example of a structure would be a
building, a skyscraper, a car.( Share an example of a structure with a neighbor) These are buildings, or objects
that are constructed of several parts. Lets use structure in a sentence. Today we will be building freestanding
structures made of uncooked noodles. Have 2 students share the word structure in a sentence. (SIOP 5, 10,
16)

Freestanding means that it is not supported by anything else. Whats an example of a freestanding structure?
Prototype is our next vocab word. Prototype means the origin or model on which something is based or
formed. Every design has a prototype. The chairs you are sitting on has a prototype, the iPads you use have a
prototype, or an original model. (SIOP 5,10) In this activity we will be planning out and testing the prototypes
you make, so that by the end of this activity you will be able to make a successful model and structure.
(SIOP 9,)
PowerPoint will be used throughout the lesson including pictures and definitions for vocabulary words.(SIOP
4)

Formative Assessment:
Learning Goal Success Criteria Assessment Strategy
Students will understand
vocabulary words, (freestanding)
structure, and prototype

Understanding of new vocabulary
words (freestanding) structure
and prototype.
Ask students the definitions and
have them use the words in a
sentence.

Modification/accommodations: Have pictures of freestanding structures for Emma, Sydnie, and Mollie. Ask
HLL to share any examples of freestanding structures they can think of.

Collaborative/Cooperative (You do it together) 5E-Explain

Explain the rules of the project, and leave them on the whiteboard for students to look at.
The Challenge
Build the tallest freestanding structure in just 18 minutes using no more than 20 sticks of spaghetti,
one yard of tape, one yard of string, and one marshmallow. The marshmallow must be on top and
cannot be deformed to hold it in place. The structure has to stand firmly on its own; it cannot be
propped up, held, or suspended from the ceiling.
The RULES
1. !Build the Tallest Freestanding Structure: The winning team is the one that has the tallest structure
measured from the tabletop surface to the top of the marshmallow. That means the structure cannot
be suspended from a higher structure, like a chair, ceiling, or chandelier.






















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2. !The Entire Marshmallow Must Be On Top: The entire marshmallow needs to be on the top of the
structure. Cutting or eating part of the marshmallow disqualifies the team.
3. !Use as Much or as Little of the Kit: Team can use as many or as few of the 20 spaghetti sticks, as
much or as little of the string or tape. The team cannot use the paper bag as part of its structure.
4. !Break up the Spaghetti, String or Tape: Teams are free to break the spaghetti and to cut up the tape
and string to create new structures.
5. !The Challenge Lasts 18 minutes: Teams cannot hold on to the structure when the time runs out.
Those touching or supporting the structure at the end of the exercise will be disqualified.
(SIOP 11, 12, 15, 20,21,22,23,24,25)
THIS IS STUDENTS PRE TEST. IMAGES WERE TAKEN OF EACH GROUPS
STRUCTURE.

Students will have 18 minutes to complete The Marshmallow Challenge. Observe students as they work.
(SIOP 6, 16, 17,25,26)

Formative Assessment:
Learning Goal Success Criteria Assessment Strategy
Students will have collaborated
with each other, changed and
altered their prototypes, and
created a freestanding structure
that holds the marshmallow.

Students have successfully
created a freestanding structure
holding a marshmallow.
Looking at students models to
see who has successfully
completed the challenge.

Modification/accommodations: Students have been pre-arranged in their groups with other classmates
that can help support their learning and bring each other to a higher understanding. (Particularly Mollie,
Emma, and Sydnie,)

Guided Instruction (We do it) 5E-Explore
Have students open the engineering lab file on schoology,(using ipads) and watch the videos and
explore the building big labs web quest linked on schoology. Have them view the videos and explore the
webquest in their groups. Show the crane video as a whole class, and discuss which shapes we see being
used in the structure of the crane. Continue with PowerPoint and share the images of skyscrapers, houses,
roller coasters, and cranes, and discuss as a whole class what shapes they see being used within these
structures.

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After discussion. Ask, what shapes, can you add to your prototype to help it become more stable so that it is
freestanding and can support the marshmallow it needs to hold. SIOP (3, 4, 6, 12, 13, 14, 15, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25)

Formative Assessment:
Learning Goal Success Criteria Assessment Strategy
Students will have learned that
there are geometric structures
that best support certain
structures, and are now able to
create a new model applying this
new information.

Students will understand that
geometric structures can be used
to support their structure, and
they will transfer this knowledge
into their drawing of their
models/prototype.
Discuss as a class the different
geometric patterns that could be
used to build the tallest
freestanding structure out of the
materials we have. What did they
notice in the pictures, and videos
that they can apply to their
prototype?

Modification/accommodations: Images and videos are being used to help provide a visual to struggling
learners.

Independent (You do it alone) 5E-Elaborate

Students will now create their own prototype using the information they gained from the challenge, and from
the new information gathered from the web sites, and class discussion. (SIOP 15)

Summative Assessment: Students will turn in their prototype model that they draw on paper, and compare
and contrast that to their first model. (SIOP 6, 29, 30)

Modification/accommodations: High-level learners will compare and contrast in writing between their first
prototype and their second prototype. Struggling students will draw and verbally compare and contrast.


Closure/Review of walk-aways, vocabulary, and essential questions
(Note: Closure includes student interactions, reflection, and/or demonstrations.)
Lets review our vocabulary words, prototype, structure, engineer, and freestanding structure. What is an
engineer? What is a structure? What are prototypes, and what is an example of a prototype from our activity?
(SIOP 27)Which shapes did we find in the structures we looked at? These shapes provide more stability and
support, without using more supplies. This is why these shapes are used. Did you have any shapes in your first
prototype? What improvements did you make to your prototypes? (SIOP 28)

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TEACHING NOTES
What do I need to remember to do? What materials do I need to have ready? What is the approximate time needed for
this lesson?
1 meter tape, 1 meter string, 20 spaghetti noodles, 1 marshmallow/ group
Powerpoint presentation should be ready!
Students should have their iPads
45-50 minutes

REFLECTION AFTER LESSON
How can I use the assessment data to reflect on & evaluate the outcomes of teaching and learning? How can I transfer
what I learned from teaching this lesson to future teaching? What was effective and not effective? What goals can I set
to improve my practice and student learning?

This lesson was a bit frustrating for me to teach. I had envisioned this lesson being an extremely fun, hands on
lesson, and it just did not turn out that way. The beginning of this lesson went well, although I had forgotten to
ask students to share definitions, which would have been more engaging for them as we discussed vocabulary
words. I included great links and background knowledge for the students to build off of, which was one of the
strengths of the lesson. Once the investigation portion of the lesson started, some students did not work well
together, many didnt use their time wisely to build their structures, while other groups did work very well
together, and still did not use their time very wisely. This could have been scaffolded better and maybe is more
of a management issue than it was with the lesson, but either way needed to be improved. Once students
completed their structures they needed to use their ipads to access a web quest on structures and shapes. These
websites and videos worked for students, but yet they still did not work very well in their groups. One link, the
main link, did not work on their ipads, and would not work on my computer either. We had some major
technology issues, which were extremely frustrating. A link to pbs, which was interactive and allowed students
to see shapes, add weight to the shapes, and then see which shapes best supported the weight, and which ones
would collapse, was the link that did not work, and I feel if this would have worked students would have gained
much more from the lesson. Their posttest models would have been better, and the lesson would have made
more sense to them having that great visual to refer to.