Based on the PBS series, Design Squad introduces students to hands-on challenges that brings engineering to life. Students are using the design process -- brainstorming, designing, building, testing, evaluating, revising, and sharing solutions -- to work through each challenge.
Here are some the challenges our student engineers have tackled:
- design and build a boat that can hold 25 pennies for at least ten seconds before sinking
- use tubes of newspaper to make a table that's at least eight inches tall and strong enough to hold a heavy book
- design and build something to carry a Ping-Pong ball from the top of a zip line to the bottom in four seconds (or less!)
- build a boat that paddles itself using a rubber band as its powers source
Next week's challenge: balloon powered vehicles
"Design Squad is fun because we create our own designs for the challenges. One thing I've learned is that if I mess up, I can keep trying to make my design work." - Jayana B., grade 4
"At Design Squad, we've learned the design process. You start by identifying a problem and then you think about the materials you have to help you solve the problem (brainstorming). We draw our ideas and then we build them. We try it and they usually don't work. Something sinks or something gets stuck. So, we redesign until we get it to work. Sometimes, it's frustrating, but if you think about the different things that can go wrong, and you fix them, then it's satisfying. It feels good and you're proud when you're successful." -- Clara M., grade 4