The Chocolate Touch thechocolatetouchsimplemachinesstemsteamproject.docx This is a wonderful book and a fun literature unit to do with students. Why not take it up a notch and bring STEAM into it! Here is a link to a Simple Machines STEAM idea you could complete after reading the book as a novel study or as a read aloud. Students build a machine to move chocolate!
Social Studies
The Boston Tea Party Students work in teams to design a crate that will protect their tea bag. Using craft sticks, glue, tape, wax paper, string, students build a crate that will keep their tea bag dry as it is placed into a tub of cold water. Time is limited and material size and amounts are predetermined so all students have exactly the same amount. Who will succeed?
Science
Sound Exploring the concepts of sound, students use everyday materials to design and build a musical instrument. This takes A LOT of recyclable materials, craft sticks, hot glue, and time. Student also decorate the finished instrument to make it look appealing.You can extend by having them use musical concepts ( whole notes, half notes, etc) to write a composition piece to play. The instrument must create a specific set of tones and loudness must be controlled.
Sun and Shadows Using simple opaque materials, students build sundial-like devices to measure the changes in shadows over a period of time. The gnomon (the part of a sundial that casts a shadow) must be placed at 23.5 degrees. On a sunny day, the students take the catcher outside and place it facing north. They record the shadow's length, time of day, and the position of the sun on a chart. The data is used to generate a graph and students write a reflective essay on what they learned about the position of the sun and the effect on shadows. Use supplemental videos and reading material to learn about sundials before/after the activity.
Balanced and Unbalanced Forces Start by investigating what balanced and unbalanced forces are and what it means to be balanced and unbalanced. Set up stations where students can explore these concepts. Click this link to see one activity you can do for balanced and unbalanced forces: http://www.morethanaworksheet.com/2015/06/20/teaching-balanced-and-unbalanced-forces/ A great extension activity that brings in the Art component of STEAM is to investigate the sculptures of Alexander Calder. Then, students can work in teams or individually to create a kinetic sculpture.