Engineering Class Tests Students’ Creativity

“I have an idea!”

 

“I see what the problem is!”

 

“We did it!”

 

Those were among the enthusiastic proclamations of the middle school students as they designed, built and tested Rube Goldberg-style contraptions to transport a plastic bottle into a recycling bin across the room.

 

Working cooperatively in small teams, the students—who are all participating in the Summer at Crossroads engineering class—came up with many different methods using cardboard tubes, string, tennis balls and other household materials.

 

“You’re making parts and seeing how they affect the next part and then adjusting from there,” says rising Crossroads eighth-grader Max Ratner. “It was really fun to do.”

 

The enriching challenge on July 10 was the result of a collaboration with Trash for Teaching, an organization within the Two Bit Circus Foundation that aims to provide educational opportunities in STEAM while diverting materials from landfills.

 

Through the workshop, students improve their grasp of the design thinking process while developing their teamwork and creative problem-solving skills, says Glen Inokuchi, materials procurement manager at Trash for Teaching.

 

The project with Trash for Teaching was one of several challenges in Gigi Castello’s class, where student have put their engineering abilities to work this summer. They have constructed towers with index cards, built egg-drop contraptions and made miniature cars with rubber bands, wheels and balloons.

 

“The most wonderful thing is they’re engaged,” Gigi says. “My students always tell me that they don’t want to leave my class.”