WeDO and Science Education

Theme
Curriculum
Strand
Strand Unit

Learning
Outcomes

Recycling
Design and make

Exploring
Planning
Making
Evaluating
To explain the term recycling
To connect recycling to their own lives
To explain how recycling takes place
To build a recycling truck using Lego
To develop the truck and adapt it to make it

more efficient
Skill
Fine motor skills
Communication skills
Development
Problem solving
Resources
Lego WeDo 2.0 kit
Ipods
Required
Surfaces
Desktop
Card Sort Game
Teacher Background Information
The definition of recycling
How a recycling plant and truck operate
A working knowledge of the WeDo2.0 kit
Familiarity with the computer/iPad/tablet
Connect Set a context for the lesson
Set Context: Card sort game, the NatGeo Recycle round up video
followed by the Recycle sort game.
(link to resources: ttp://kids.nationalgeographic.com/games/action/recycleroundup/)
Questions to promote discussion: what do you imagine when you hear
the word Recycling? How do we recycle? Why do we recycle?

Construct
Pupils follow instructions after the video on the WeDo 2.0 app to create
their model.
Exploration: Questioning; how could we improve this model? How does it
work? Could it be enhanced? How? Why would these enhancements be a
benefit or advantage?
Contemplate
Contemplate
Inquiry Based Starter Question:

How can we make the truck more efficient?

Sample Questions of Inquiry:
Based on the enquiry question, children will come up with some questions
regarding ways they can make their truck more efficient. Some sample
questions might include:

How can we get the truck to move from A to B?

What other features might a recycling truck need?

How could we adapt the truck to hold and sort larger shapes?
Children will then decide on a question that they would like to investigate
in their groups.
Planning the investigation:
In order to plan their investigation children will
o
Draw/ Sketch adaptations or
o
More Challenging: Draw and write what they plan to do using the
writing frame attached.
Children will be asked to ensure that they are making a fair test. Ask the
children: What will you change? What will you keep the same?
Recording Results:
In order to record their results we will encourage children to take pictures
and videos so they can compare them.
Analysing Results:
Ask the children: What happened? Why do you think this happened? What

does your results show? What are your conclusions?

Communicating Findings:
There are a number of ways that the children could communicate their
results to the class. They could use bar charts, posters, a presentation etc.
One way which would be a particularly engaging way for the children to
present their results using a SWAY. This way children can include their
pictures, videos and any visual graphs theyve created.

Continue
Further questions of inquiry that could be investigated:
How would you change the truck so that it separates the different
materials?
What do these smaller tyres work better than the bigger ones?
What would happen if we used the bigger tyres instead?
Is recycling good for the environment?
Where does all the recycled waste go?
Drawing Conclusions:
If you were to do this again what would you do differently? Why?
What other changes could you make to your truck?
What would happen if we took off this part of the truck? Would it still
work?
Possible Minecraft project on recycling. Build a recycling plant.
Integration
Science: Environmental awareness and care
English: Oral language development
Geography: Caring for the environment
Maths: Shape and space
SPHE: Myself and the wider world

Assessment
Formative Assessment

Questioning the children about recycling

Observing as they build their project
Discussion on what they built and how they can modify it
Summative Assessment
Examine how well they build a recycling plant in the Minecraft project
Evaluation sheet on what they thought about the project and what they
would do differently if they had to do it again.