In this lesson, students engage in an engineering challenge by designing and building prototype dams to solve the problem of protecting a town from a river’s flood water.
Prepared hands-on materials, full year grade-specific curriculum, and personalized live professional development designed to support mastery of current state science standards.
Engineers Mimic Beavers
Engineers can mimic how beavers build dams. Engineers sometimes design dams to go across big rivers. A dam has to be strong. It has to hold back moving water.
People cannot use their teeth like beavers do. Instead, people use tools and machines. Drills are tools that can make holes in hard materials like rock. Cranes are machines that make it easier to lift heavy objects.
There are different kinds of dams. Some dams are straight across the river. Other dams are curved. Dams are made of different materials. Some are made of clay or rock. Others are made of concrete.
Engineers build dams to protect people. Dams can keep rivers from flooding.
Dams also create reservoirs. A reservoir is the large supply of water that builds up behind the dam. Sometimes people use the water in a reservoir to drink. Sometimes they also use the water for electricity and to supply crops.
KnowAtom incorporates formative and summative assessments designed to make students thinking visible for deeper student-centered learning.
Discover hands-on screens-off core science curriculum for student centered K-8 classrooms. KnowAtom supports classrooms with all hands-on materials, curriculum, and professional development to support mastery of the standards.
