Chinese New Year STEM 2019!
Pig-Themed STEM Challenge Ideas
February 16th, 2018 celebrates the Year of the Pig!
Here are some fun facts about the pig zodiac sign to share with your students!
- Lucky numbers: 2, 5, 8
- Lucky days: the 17th and 24th of every Chinese lunar month
- Lucky colors: brown, gold, gray
- Lucky flowers: hydrangea and daisy
- Lucky directions: southeast, east
- Lucky months: 2nd, 7th, 10th, and 11th Chinese lunar months
The Pig’s Personality: Generous and Compassionate!
Pigs are diligent, compassionate, and generous. They have great concentration: once they set a goal, they will devote all their energy to achieving it. Though Pigs rarely seek help from others, they will not refuse to give others a hand. Pigs never suspect trickery, so they are easily fooled.
Website Source: https://www.chinahighlights.com/travelguide/chinese-zodiac/pig.htm
Chinese New Year is just around the corner and with it comes opportunities to incorporate STEM activities into the classroom that can directly tie in to the season. This resource explores fun science, technology, engineering, and math activities to do with your upper elementary kids that will really get their brains going during this exciting holiday!
Challenge #1: Pig Pen Challenge!
STEM groups must design a pig pen using simple machines. The groups must decide on a simple machine using the a planning page and incorporate it into their design. Their pig pen must contain the following elements: trough for food and water, a fenced area, partial shelter with shade, and an area designated for a mud wallow. They must create a pen area for a pig which is at least 4 inches tall and 12 inches wide. Students have two days to finalize the design of their pig pen. **Scroll down to the end of the post for materials and more challenge information!
Challenge #2: Mud Slime Challenge!
Students must use a list of materials to create the perfect recipe for mud slime. The slime should be stretchy, not too thick, or not too sticky. Students should play around with the quantities of the ingredients listed below to create slimes with different viscosities. They have three trials to test their mud slime recipe. After each STEM group has created their final mud slime, they should compare with other groups. Students have 3 attempts and 2 hours to complete this challenge! **Scroll down to the end of the post for materials and more challenge information!
Challenge #3: Water Trough Challenge!
In groups of 3-5, students must construct a water trough, making sure to add 3-4 dividers to make compartments for the water to be held in. The goal of this challenge is to use gravity to allow the water to evenly fill each compartment without overflow, leaks, or lack of water in any section. The water source needs to come from one side of the trough and flow over the dividers (different heights) and settle into each compartment. Students have two days to complete this challenge.***For materials and more challenge information, scroll down to the end of the post!
I have a huge question. I have all the materials for the dog obstacle course, but what do you do afterwards? Usually there is a “test” run, but what do you do with it to link it to a standard.
Αѡesome article.