Challenge Cards
Providing challenges like these challenge cards helps to push and inspire students to use the tools and supplies in different ways.
Engineering Design Challenges
Engineering design challenges use the engineering design process and can be directly aligned to the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). To learn more about NGSS alignment, click here.
Often, teachers facilitate a group of students as they participate in an engineering design challenge at the same time. Engineering notebooks can be used to document the steps of the engineering design process as shown below. Notice that the arrows show that the process is not linear. The engineering design process is iterative meaning that some of the steps are repeated over and over again. Often, engineers will cycle in the build, test and improve steps for a very long time before communicating the results of their design. Sometimes, they might need to go back and do more brainstorming and research to come up with new ideas when the original ideas did not work out as expected. It is important that students also follow the engineering design process to not only structure the use of the NGSS Science and Engineering Practices, but to help them find success during the engineering design process.
Often, teachers facilitate a group of students as they participate in an engineering design challenge at the same time. Engineering notebooks can be used to document the steps of the engineering design process as shown below. Notice that the arrows show that the process is not linear. The engineering design process is iterative meaning that some of the steps are repeated over and over again. Often, engineers will cycle in the build, test and improve steps for a very long time before communicating the results of their design. Sometimes, they might need to go back and do more brainstorming and research to come up with new ideas when the original ideas did not work out as expected. It is important that students also follow the engineering design process to not only structure the use of the NGSS Science and Engineering Practices, but to help them find success during the engineering design process.
Wind Powered Vehicles (Kinder - 2nd grade)
Students design a vehicle that uses the wind to make it move.
3D Components Emphasized: SEP- Planning and Carrying Out Investigations DCI- ESS3.C Human Impacts on Earth Systems CCC- Structure and Function
3D Components Emphasized: SEP- Planning and Carrying Out Investigations DCI- ESS3.C Human Impacts on Earth Systems CCC- Structure and Function
Marble Maze(Kinder- 2nd grade)
Students design a maze for a marble to be pushed through without touching the marble with your hands.
3D Components Emphasized: SEP- Constructing Explanations and Designing Solutions DCI- PS2.B Types of Interactions CCC- Cause and Effect
3D Components Emphasized: SEP- Constructing Explanations and Designing Solutions DCI- PS2.B Types of Interactions CCC- Cause and Effect
Matchbox Car Ramps (3rd-5th grade)
Students design a ramp that makes a matchbox car travel the furthest distance.
3D Components Emphasized: SEP- Planning and Carrying Out Investigations DCI- PS2.A Forces and Motion CCC- Patterns
3D Components Emphasized: SEP- Planning and Carrying Out Investigations DCI- PS2.A Forces and Motion CCC- Patterns
Tennis Ball Towers (3rd-5th grade)
Students design a structure that will hold a tennis ball the highest off the ground.
3D Components Emphasized: SEP- Developing and Using Models DCI- PS2.A Forces and Motion CCC- Structure and Function / Cause and Effect
3D Components Emphasized: SEP- Developing and Using Models DCI- PS2.A Forces and Motion CCC- Structure and Function / Cause and Effect
Buidling Bridges(3rd-5th grade)
Students design a bridge that will hold at least one pound of weight.
3D Components Emphasized: SEP- Developing and Using Models / Planning and Carrying Out Investigations DCI- PS2.A Forces and Motion CCC- Structure and Function / Cause and Effect
3D Components Emphasized: SEP- Developing and Using Models / Planning and Carrying Out Investigations DCI- PS2.A Forces and Motion CCC- Structure and Function / Cause and Effect
Zip Lines(3rd-5th grade)
Students design a contraption to carry a ping pong ball down to the botttom of a zip line in under three seconds.
3D Components Emphasized: SEP- Developing and Using Models / Planning and Carrying Out Investigations DCI- PS2.A Forces and Motion CCC- Structure and Function
3D Components Emphasized: SEP- Developing and Using Models / Planning and Carrying Out Investigations DCI- PS2.A Forces and Motion CCC- Structure and Function
Catapults (6th-8th grade)
Students will design a catapult that results in an object traveling the greatest distance.
3D Components Emphasized: SEP- Developing and Using Models DCI- PS2.A Forces and Motion CCC- Cause and Effect
3D Components Emphasized: SEP- Developing and Using Models DCI- PS2.A Forces and Motion CCC- Cause and Effect
Sky City(6th-8th grade)
Students will design and build the tallest freestanding structure to model Sky City.
3D Components Emphasized: SEP- Developing and Using Models DCI- PS2.A Forces and Motion CCC- Structure and Function
3D Components Emphasized: SEP- Developing and Using Models DCI- PS2.A Forces and Motion CCC- Structure and Function