Monday, February 3, 2020

Middle School Algebra Students Design and 3D Print Bubble Wands

 

About five years ago I heard George Couros mention the “Twitter Factor” when referencing how you could walk into a classroom and determine whether or not the teacher was active on Twitter. If s/he was, then observers would likely see innovative ideas and best practices that were being shared online. I was reminded of this recently when I was in one of our middle schools and saw students highly engaged at work on an amazing project. I learned that one of our math teachers, Jon Westmeyer at Minnetonka Middle School West, had first seen the idea for this lesson on Twitter and then worked with Cindy McGlasson, math teacher at East Middle School, and three other colleagues to adapt it for their students.

The teachers wanted students to “recognize and represent linear functions in real-world and mathematical situations.” To accomplish this, the seventh and eighth grade Algebra I students at both of our middle schools work with a partner to design bubble wands using linear equations which they print out on 3D printers and give to patients at a hospital or foundation of their choice. They put their wand in a small gift bag along with a bottle of bubble solution and a letter they write to cheer up the patient/recipient and explain what they learned in this process.

When I was in Cindy’s math class a few weeks ago I was able to see firsthand just how excited the students were with this project. She explained to me that the students in the 8th grade Algebra classes (4 of the 5 teachers) are grade level math students and, in the hour I visited, 1/3 of the students are also in her Algebra support class. “So the project is a great opportunity to add rigor and engagement for classes which might have defaulted to more rote learning in the past.”

To design their bubble wands, the students first figure out linear equations to create the lines and curves needed to make the shapes in their bubble wand design. They use the Desmos app to do this. Then they use Selva3D to transform their 2D image to 3D. Afterwards, they import this design to Tinkercad to finalize it for the MakerBot printer. Their full instructions can be found here.

Below are a few student comments that came from an open ended survey question asking, “What else you might want to share from your experience?"
I really enjoyed the creativeness [sic] of this project, and the idea that we could be doing something for other people. It was a great break from normal solve equations, check work, solve equations, check work, while still being educational, and helpful.
I had lots of fun working on this, and going through all the challenges me and my partner faced.
It was sooooooo much fun and it really helped me with my lines. You guys should do it every year. It was cool to do something different that still helps you learn lines in a better/unique way.
I think this was a great project, not only to expand our understanding of lines and graphs, but also because we were doing this for a good cause.
This work is done as part of our School Board’s Goal #2: To continue to work to expand experiential learning and inquiry-based learning opportunities for E-12, including infrastructure and resources required. To help with this, last spring “Framework Grants” were awarded in which Minnetonka teachers could apply for funding to support such projects. (Learn more about the Minnetonka Framework for Teaching and Learning.) 

According to a report to the Board on January 20, “these grants encouraged those with ideas and initiative to create compelling student experiences with District support. Grants provided teachers paid planning time, a process to request funds for supplemental materials, training, and the support of a coach. 27 teacher teams chose to attend training and engage fully in the process. To date, 15 projects have been planned and have either been implemented with students or are waiting for the proper time in the curriculum sequence to do so. Remaining grants are in varying stages of planning and implementation.” 

Another example of a Framework grant is  Grade 2 Chinese Immersion students learning the cultural background of Chinese shadow puppetry--they learn and apply Chinese language arts skills by writing original scripts and performing shadow puppet plays for an audience. Students create their own shadow puppets and props in the Chinese tradition. 

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