STEM is a big deal with for the third graders at HHE. They are preparing for their futures by participating in activities that focus on science, technology, engineering, and math. All of these things together added up to some spooky STEM fun on Halloween!
Ms. Charloff's class joined us for our project. We looked at some amazing architectural examples of towers that have been built around the world. We noticed one thing: the bases of the towers were always wider than the tops. Sometimes, the tops of the towers were simply rods or poles. So, it got us to thinking about the engineering that goes into building a tower that will stand firm under any condition. Working in small groups, we discussed our thoughts and made some notes in our Spooky STEM journals. Then, we were charged with building a tower using toothpicks, candy corn, and candy corn pumpkins. Seems easy enough, right? Well, the tower had to stand. Ugh. Does it count if it stands for 2 seconds?
We made a plan which consisted of many of our groups using the pumpkins to form the base. After hard work (and many failures), we had a better of understanding and appreciation for engineers and builders. And, unlike them, we got to eat our building materials. :)
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