Unit Overview

Students discover the steps of the Design Thinking process by working together to construct the tallest tower. They then apply this process to analyze historical engineering successes and failures. Finally, they apply the Design Thinking process to design and build a device to rescue a stranded sloth.

  • Lesson 1
    Lesson 1: Lesson 1: Discover the design process through a building challenge.

    Lesson 1: Discover the design process through a building challenge.

    In The Solve, students will: Examine the Jeddah Tower, an engineering accomplishment and the first man-made structure to reach 1 km in height. Students will then be challenged to construct the tallest free-standing tower capable of supporting a given mass. They will compare tower designs and reflect on the design process to determine which steps of the Design Thinking process were utilized.

  • Lesson 2
    Lesson 2: Lesson 2: Analyze famous engineering successes and failures.

    Lesson 2: Analyze famous engineering successes and failures.

    In The Make, students will: Analyze a variety of historical engineering successes and failures. They will then evaluate the steps of the Design Thinking process utilized by engineers in order to pinpoint where the engineering and design process succeeed or failed.

  • Lesson 3
    Lesson 3: Lesson 3: Engineering Challenge! What will you build to save a sloth from a pit of hungry gators?

    Lesson 3: Engineering Challenge! What will you build to save a sloth from a pit of hungry gators?

    In The Engineer, students will: Design a plan to save Dullis by returning him safely to shore using Design Thinking to create and test a prototype. They then use their unique design solution to create the final page of the comic viewed at the start of the challenge.

  • Science TEKS
  • Inquiry Scale
    • Each lesson in the unit has an Inquiry Scale that provides directions on how to implement the lesson at the level that works best for you and your students.
    • “Level 1” is the most teacher-driven, and recommended for students in 4th-5th grades. “Level 4” is the most student-driven, and recommended for students in 7th-8th grades.
    • For differentiation within the same grade or class, use different inquiry levels for different groups of students who may require additional support or an extra challenge.
  • Common Misconceptions
    • Students may believe that Design Thinking is only used by engineers, but in fact this process is used in many areas and across many industries.
    • Learners may believe that since the steps of Design Thinking are presented in a specific order they must always follow them exactly as shown. Reinforce to students that Design Thinking is a creative process that may take different paths.
    • Students may initially think that a prototype should only be tested once. Emphasize to students that prototypes typically need to be tested and the design needs to be refined and retested a number of times before a final engineered product is produced. Through multiple tests, multiple variables can be identified and tested to make a more successful product.
    • Learners may be inclined to go with the first idea they come up with. Reinforce that brainstorming is a very important component to the process, and encourage students to be open to many ideas.
    • Students may not realize that prototypes need to use proper proportions and should be designed from similar materials to that of the actual engineered product to test efficiency of materials.
  • Vocabulary
      • Design Thinking
      • Ideate
      • Brainstorm
      • Prototype
      • Test
      • Refine
      • Retest
  • Content Expert
    • Susie Wise
      Director of K12 Lab Stanford d.school
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