Investigating Forces and Motion
After reading Sheep in a Jeep, first graders explored forces and motion by first testing how far the jeep would travel at different heights. Using the data collected from measuring the distance the jeep traveled at different brick heights, students designed a way to get the jeep to come to a complete stop in a target area. First graders explored materials such as felt, wax paper, and foil to determine which ones created just the right amount of friction to stop the jeep in the target area. The first graders met failure along the way but through good questioning and testing they were able to find successful solutions.
Design Challenge: Create a Balanced Mobile
This was a truly integrated lesson! Students created a working mobile using symbols of different cultures and communities. After reading aloud Balancing Act by Ellen Stohl Walsh, we discussed how the animals were able to balance on the teeter totter. Then, students experimented with the seesaw (a paint stick and half of cardboard tube) using connecting cubes as the animals that we needed to balance. Next, we created a bubble map that illustrated how to create a balanced force. Finally, the first graders created a mobile using a hanger and five symbols they created out of recycled materials that represented their assigned country. Students were careful to arrange the symbols to create a balanced mobile.