Past projects 1
Real Life and Hands on Learning
Funded Jan 30, 2022This classroom project was brought to life by Utah State Board of Education.
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When you look back at the time you spent in school, you might remember the best lessons involved in doing things. It might have been creating a poster, conducting an experiment, or building a new toy. These hands-on activities are becoming less of the norm. Instead, students are sitting at desks, taking notes, and filling out handouts. I hope to bring back the kinesthetic part of lessons. These STEM activities will help my students become problem solvers and critical thinkers. On a weekly basis, I provide a STEM Challenge to my class. After discussing the background of each event, the problem is stated, and then time is given for students to plan, develop, and test their solutions. Materials like the Balloon Car and the Rocket Car will help us be better able to design a faster car. The STEM Bins will help us to see how we can use materials in a different way. Math Task Cards and Mathological Liar will help us develop our communication skills as we learn how to critique the reasoning of others and then use our own critical thinking skills to solve real-world problems. The idea of being hands-on is important in the classroom because it allows students to engage in kinesthetically. Recent research and other studies have shown that when a student carries out physical activities rather than sitting and listening they learn more. It also allows students to experiment through the trial and error method, learning from mistakes, and understanding between what is written to what is done. Most importantly, as a teacher, it gives me the unique opportunity to enrich my students in new and engaging ways.