Grade 3 - Brainstorm of Possible Ideas

How would you design an activity that uses modeling as a way to experience science in an authentic way?

Basically anything that incorporates a table or data set could be graphed via ViMap.

Potential Ideas:

Science Units: Building with a variety of materials, testing materials and designs, life cycles, hearing and sound, rocks and minerals

-       catapults and measuring distance of marshmallow traveled

-       recording size of butterfly chrysalis, discover average growth rate over time

-       Relate bridge strength to weight supported

-       Record distance sound travels at various volumes or pitch

Social Studies: India, Tunisia, Peru, Ukraine

- move robot between countries (LEGO Mindstorms), calculate distance using a floor map, scale and cardinal directions, relate to flight travel time – discover shortest flight route to hit all 4 countries and return to Calgary?

Direct math activities

- Translations rotations reflections

- perimeter – possibly area?

- input/output tables and rules

- graphing