Engineering Design Process: Ask

Students define the problem, identify the requirements for the design (criteria) and how their choices may be limited (constraints). This includes considering the needs of users and implications of the solution. They explore materials and consider which are best suited to the challenge.

Watch & Reflect: “This Property Is Important Because”

An upper elementary teacher reads a student’s written response and discusses how knowing the properties of magnets can help them create their design.

Related Practices: Communicate Effectively, Explore Properties and Uses of Materials, Apply Science Knowledge to Problem Solving
Featured Unit: Designing Maglev Systems

Reflection Questions

The Ask phase is about more than just identifying or asking questions about the problem; it includes finding information that will help create solutions to the problem.

Students may ask questions such as - How much weight will the train need to carry? - How big is the track? - How strong is the force of repulsion for the different magnets?

- Students could draw a picture or diagram that shows how the forces are acting within the maglev train system. - Students could discuss their ideas in pairs. - You could provide students with images to scaffold their model-making of the concepts shown here, such as images of magnets, trains, and arrows. - Data collected in the activity could be organized into a table with simple responses such as check boxes, color-coding, or images to circle.

Watch & Reflect: “What Does a Good Pollinator Do?”

While setting up a unit on designing an artificial hand pollinator, a teacher demonstrates how to test materials.

 

Related Engineering Practices: Explore Properties and Uses of Materials, Use a Structured Problem-Solving Process
Featured Unit: Engineering Pumpkin Pollinators

Reflection Questions

To be able to use their findings to make evidence-based decisions, students need to have a “fair test” of the materials. They need to test each material the same way so that they can compare the material’s ability to move pollen. It is also important to have the same testing procedure from group to group, allowing for whole-class conversations about the materials and supporting students’ reflection on the activity.

- Which material do you think moved the most pollen? Why do you think that one was the best? - What properties do the materials that moved a lot of pollen have in common? How are they different from the ones that didn’t move a lot of pollen? - Are any of these materials similar to the pollinators in the story we read?