Little Engineers: Kindergartners Build Structures To Protect Ice Cubes From Melting

Press release from the Briarcliff Manor Union Free School District:

2023-10-11

Our kindergartners have been learning about solar heat, as part of their BOCES science curriculum at Todd School.

The summer-like temperatures last week provided the perfect opportunity to help them make the connection both in the classroom and in the STEAM room with Todd’s in-house STEAM teacher Amirah Lahlouh.

The hands-on lesson was part of Science 21, a science curriculum developed locally and regionally at Putnam Northern Westchester BOCES.

Recently, students in Bonnie Seligson’s class participated in a hands-on engineering activity, designing and building a structure that must protect an ice cube and prevent it from melting quickly in the sun.

Students worked in pairs and in groups of threes, and discussed how they planned to build their structures.

Next, they used popsicle sticks, model clay, foil and pipe cleaners to build them.

Ms. Lahlouh also showed students examples of similar structures using the same materials, to give them inspiration.

Students discovered that building a sturdy structure can be a challenge and several teams had to re-build their structures in different ways to make them sturdier.

Students also had to come up with strategies to prevent the sun’s heat from melting the ice cube too fast.

“We added a piece of paper to make a wall, it’s going to help so that the sun doesn’t go there,” said Clare, who was working together with Lucas and Roland.

When students were done, they placed a small plastic cup with an ice cube inside their shelters and left it out in the sun outside of Ms. Seligson’s classroom.

They will check on it periodically to see which team’s ice cube takes the longest to melt.

This press release was produced by the Briarcliff Manor Union Free School District. The views expressed here are the author’s own.