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Summer Lesson Plans

STEM Aluminum Boats

Lesson Plan:

​Activity:

STEM Aluminum Boats

Lesson plan developed by Ms. Erika Geelhoed, BA Ed

Age Group:

School-Age

* Lesson plan objective and assessment can be adapted to use this activity with preschoolers.

Objectives:  

Children will:

• design a boat that can hold several pennies.
• develop problem-solving skills.

Washington State K-12 Science Learning Standards

EALR 3

EALR 3: Application
Big Idea: Application (APP)
Core Content: Solving Problems

• 2-3 APPB Scientific ideas and discoveries can be applied to solving problems.

STEM Aluminum Boats

Materials: 

• aluminum foil
• coins
• large plastic bin
• water

Procedure: 

• Lay out the materials in an appropriate area for creating
• Invite the children to make a boat.
  
• Challenge them to make it strong enough to hold several pennies.
• When they are finished, test the boats in the water.
• Allow them to reconstruct their boats to be stronger and test again.
• When finished, you can have a conversation about what makes a boat able to withstand more weight. 

Assessment: 

• Observe and record how the children created their design. Did they have any special/unique approaches?

**Do not assess the children on how many coins their boat was able to hold.** The purpose of the lesson is to encourage creative thinking and engineering skills.

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