Most intrinsically motivating for students is working to solve a real-life challenge. Working to solve a real-life challenge, students gain a sense of agency – they can impact life in a positive way. Quality project based learning can be for any subject, grade level, or ability level. Especially motivating is when learners know how working to solve the challenge helps people or animals.
– A detailed project, including scaffolds, with Challenge Question: “How can we conserve energy at our school?” Challenge Question later was adjusted to: “How can we conserve energy at our school to address both environmental and economic costs?”
More STEM Challenge Questions:
– How can we plan a sustainable practices garden within a budget?
Carbon and oxygen for compost
Physics and engineering for getting water to garden that is far from a
water source.
Soil composition
– How can we create a productive compost bin?
– What tips can we give our school principal to help her garden grow?
– How can we plan a menu, the quality and kinds of foods, to be included in school’s cafeteria?
What is the difference in chemical make-up of organic and non-organic foods?
– How can we design an effective solar oven?
Students would create their own designs but below are some background resources for you:
https://www.wikihow.com/Make-and-Use-a-Solar-Ove
– What is a good design for a solar chocolate melter?
– What can be provided to ensure our classroom plants will thrive?
– Role-playing environmental leaders what is a beneficial way to interact with resources revealed in the Arctic as the earth warms?
– Role-playing fossil fuel and other company executives what is a beneficial way to interact with resources revealed in the Arctic as the earth warms?
What resources will be revealed? Why will they be revealed?
– Role-playing scientists how can we plan for an expedition to the North Pole?
– How can our school’s energy consumption and related costs be reduced?
– How and to whom can we best present whether or not nearby land should be developed by a company that is proposing development?
What will be the impact to the environment?
– Role-playing NASA scientists and aero engineers how can we explore Mars?
Mission to Mars: Physics students assume the role of aerospace engineers to explore the real-world problem of how to land a rover on Mars. VIDEO: https://www.edutopia.org/video/projects-work-mission-mars
NASA’s mock Mars mission training puts psychological limits to the test: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MVwGunbbNkI
500 Days to Mars: Mock expedition gets space fans locked up: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vK2JG88CyzQ
NASA Eyes Space Station for Mock Mars Missions https://spacenews.com/nasa-eyes-space-station-mock-mars-missions/
– How can we help a local renewal energy business or non-profit market their service?
– How can a truck be designed to maximize its load capacity?
– Role-playing medical interns what treatment do we recommend for this patient who has these symptoms? What body system is causing this patient’s illness? VIDEO: https://youtu.be/ZrEaC4JI_nI
– How can we help our town/region stay healthy?
– How can we help our school community prevent communicable diseases?– How can we help our school community stay healthy?
– How can we help our town’s/region’s community prevent communicable diseases?
– How can we promote our nature trail so it is used more?
– How can we develop a guidebook for visitors to a nature preserve?
– How can we plan for a possible weather emergency?
– What can we do to help alleviate pollution in our region?
– How can we influence our community to take best care of animals?
– How can problems with stray animals be reduced?
– How can we design bags/backpacks that meet our customers’ needs?
– How can we help combat climate change?
– How can we help save the Golden Eagle or another endangered or threatened animal or species?
Should steps be taken to protect endangered and threatened species?
What will be the results of a species ending?
(If you are in Maine here is a list of many endangered and threatened animals in Maine: https://www.maine.gov/ifw/fish-wildlife/wildlife/endangered-threatened-species/listed-species.html)
– How can we help save bees?
– How can we help save monarch butterflies
– How can we help save the Yellow-Legged frog? Substitute an endangered, threatened or special status animal or plant in your area or state. VIDEO with young children: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LAcpPj4oezs&t=15s
– How can we design low cost boats? Relates to salinity and other science content, in addition to engineering.
– What is a good way to deal with the growing coyote population?
Role playing:
Environmentalists
Farmers
Nearby residents
Hunters
– How can Maine/your state be made a good home for wolves? Or should it be?
Role play:
Environmentalists
Farmers
Nearby residents
Hunters
– How can we create guidebooks for the botanical garden?
– How can we create a weather station?
– What can we do to prepare in case a significant earthquake
occurs in our region?
– Role playing scientists and engineers brought in to consult with West Coast civic leaders how can we predict when and where the next earthquake will occur and how it can be best managed?
Mercalli intensity and Richter scales
Patterns associated with volcanoes and earthquakes
Plotting activity through use of geographic coordinates
– How can we prepare for possible flooding in our region?
– How can we prepare for high winds in our region?
– How can we lessen or replace reliance on fossil fuels such as coal, oil, and natural gas?
Could any of these biofuels be made to be a substitute for fossil fuels:
Corn, soy, sugarcane, agricultural waste, and algae.
Could we uncover a more efficient and beneficial choice?
Earth Science
Sustainability
(Fueling the Future: Evaluating the Sustainability of Biofuels project-based learning plan, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Education)
– How can yards be landscaped without having a negative impact on the local watershed? (Eco-Friendly Yards)
https://www.portlandschools.org/cms/one.aspx?portalId=1094237&pageId=7730196
– How can we create an energy saving device that improves people’s lives? Teachers brainstormed issues that needed to be improved in the world and discussed with students e.g. purified water, lights at night, charge for cell phones. Using computer applications students created technical drawings. One student drew a model of an energy self-generated light source, another student created drawing of a UVB flashlight that would repel insects from people.
– What is the best State insect for our state or if we already have one, what is the best runner-up? http://www.edutopia.org/blog/turn-traditional-units-study-deeper-learning-experiences-suzie-boss
Bonus Subject – Computer Science
– Role-playing a computer company, what needs to go into our proposal to a local company to provide their new computer system? How can our proposal best be presented?
– How can artificial intelligence be positive for people’s lives?
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