Planning Design Challenges
The key entry point for integrating engineering in your science lessons is real world context. Students are more engaged and are more likely to remember what they’ve learned when they see the real-world connections in classroom projects. As you plan your lessons, consider the following:
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Focus on the context of your lessons. Explore engineering challenges that relate to that context. The water filter challenge featured in the first module of this series was part of a unit focusing on the water cycle and human impact on the watershed.
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Focus on the problem solving aspect. This is particularly helpful in life sciences. Think about the problems the plants or animals you are studying confront and design a challenge to address those problems. For example, if you are studying life cycles, include birds as one of the sample life cycles. Then you can create a challenge in which students have to design a nest to protect birds' eggs.
- Make sure to first try any challenge yourself before attempting it with your class. Not every challenge works as expected.
- Time yourself while testing the challenge! Timing is always a challenge and while you may be able to work faster than your students, monitoring time will help you develop techniques to support their time management.
Looking for ideas/inspiration? We can help! Check out these PBS LearningMedia collections that include engineering design challenges:
- Design Squad
- Engineering For Good (This is for Middle School, but it can be adapted for younger students.)
- Structures
- Teaching NGSS Engineering Design Through Media
- Zoom
- Teaching Engineering in New York
Many of the websites you currently use for inspiration—like Pinterest and Instagram—have great engineering resources. Check them out for ideas. Websites that focus on engineering include Engineering is Elementary, Teach Engineering, and Try Engineering.
