Teachers aren't supposed to have favorites, but I must admit that this group assignment is one of my favorites this year. Although the premise seems somewhat silly, there are many scientific principles imbedded in the lesson. (shhhh... don't tell the kids :) ) Students were given the challenge to work together in groups to save Walter, the gummy worm. Poor Walter was vacationing when suddenly his boat (a plastic cup) capsized, leaving him on top of the vessel, and his life preserver (a gummy life-saver candy) under the boat. Groups had to somehow retrieve the life preserver and get it around Walter's middle before he drowned. Only caveats? He couldn't fall into the "water" (tray or table) and you couldn't touch the boat, preserver, or worm with anything but four paper clips.
The initial trials were all over the place. Groups that had multiple type A personalities struggled with whose method to follow first. Other groups that had students used to being told what to do were unsure of how to get members to participate. Many trials ensued, and each time, the group figured out something new to try. Eventually each team realized that in order to get the life preserver around Walter, they had to work together to stretch out the middle of the life saver, while someone else fed Walter through. Watching the kids reach this "aha" moment was so fun!
After a group saved Walter together, I challenged them to see if any one person from their group could use the same materials to save Walter on their own. A few kids were successful, but they did decide that a group effort was a better way to do it. We also talked about how this process related to conducting a serious science experiment. Some of the answers included things like "working together. coming up with ideas. testing predictions. being wrong and trying again. drawing conclusions" Yes! They got the underlying message and had fun doing it!
The initial trials were all over the place. Groups that had multiple type A personalities struggled with whose method to follow first. Other groups that had students used to being told what to do were unsure of how to get members to participate. Many trials ensued, and each time, the group figured out something new to try. Eventually each team realized that in order to get the life preserver around Walter, they had to work together to stretch out the middle of the life saver, while someone else fed Walter through. Watching the kids reach this "aha" moment was so fun!
After a group saved Walter together, I challenged them to see if any one person from their group could use the same materials to save Walter on their own. A few kids were successful, but they did decide that a group effort was a better way to do it. We also talked about how this process related to conducting a serious science experiment. Some of the answers included things like "working together. coming up with ideas. testing predictions. being wrong and trying again. drawing conclusions" Yes! They got the underlying message and had fun doing it!