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Student Instructions
🦺 Your mission is to become an engineer!
🤔Choose ONE (or more!) simple machines from the video to build:
Inclined Plane (Ramp)
Lever (like a catapult or seesaw)
Pulley (to lift something)
Wheel and Axle (like a crank or winch)
Go to the page to document your build.
The Build Process - Photo Diary 📸
On this page, show your engineering process!
Use the 📸 Photo tool to take 4 pictures of your construction steps.
Show the materials you used and how you put your machine together.
Use the Label tool 🏷️ to point out the most important parts of your machine (like the fulcrum, axle, or ramp).
The Demonstration - Video Proof! 📹
On this page, show your machine in action!
Use the 📹 Video tool to record your machine.
FIRST: Show the "Hard Way." Try to move your load without your machine (e.g., lifting a heavy book straight up).
NEXT: Show the "Easy Way." Record your simple machine moving the same load.
WHILE RECORDING, use the 🎙️ Microphone to EXPLAIN:
"My simple machine is a..." (Name it!)
"It makes work easier by..." (How does it help? Does it reduce the force? Change the direction you pull? Let you move it over a longer, easier distance?)
Teacher Notes (not visible to students)
Here is a complete lesson plan and a ready-to-use format for your Seesaw activity, based on your requirements. Lesson Plan: Simple Machines Engineering Challenge Subject: Science / STEM / Design & Technology Grade Level: 2-5 Learning Objective: Identify: Students will be able to identify several simple machines (Lever, Pulley, Inclined Plane, Wheel and Axle) after watching an introductory video. Construct: Students will be able to use everyday materials to construct a working model of at least one simple machine. Articulate: Students will be able to record a video explanation of their machine, demonstrating and articulating how it "makes work easier" by reducing effort, changing direction, or increasing distance. Key Concepts: Simple Machine: A device that changes the direction or magnitude of a force. Work: Using force to move an object over a distance. Effort: The force applied to the machine. Load: The object being moved. Materials: Student devices with Seesaw. Teaching Reference: Simple Machine Projects Video Construction Materials (Examples): Cardboard (boxes, tubes) Tape & Glue String, Yarn, or Ribbon Popsicle Sticks, Pencils, or Skewers (for axles/fulcrums) Recycled items (bottle caps, spools) LEGOs or building blocks A small object to act as the "Load" (e.g., a toy car, a small book, a cup of coins).
