STEM Stories for Students in the Third Grade
Students design a home along the coast of Florida that can withstand the extreme weather that occurs.
Lesson 1: If I Built a House
STEM CAREER CONNECTIONS
- Architecture, Construction and Civil Engineering
STEM DISCIPLINES
- Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics
NON-STEM DISCIPLINES
- English Language Arts
Students imagine having earned enough money to build the house of their dreams near a Florida beach. There are many hurricanes and tropical storms often along the Florida beaches and many other coastal cities along the eastern and southern shore lines in the United States. Therefore, students are needed to ensure their structure is built to withstand the elements a Florida beach property may experience.
The student's challenge is to build the house of their dreams that can also withstand the destructive forces of a hurricane's wind, rain, and hail.
PROJECT FILES
- Engineering Design Process Graphic Organizer (PDF)
- Lesson Plan (PDF)
- Student Handout (PDF)
- Parent Letters (PDF)
- Sentence Stems (PDF)
- Ohio's Learning Content Standards: Science (PDF)
- Make a Connection (PDF)
- Vocabulary Handout (PDF)
- Presentation (PPTX)
Inventors
Luis Walter Alvarez
American physicist, inventor and professor. Awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1968.
Mary Anderson
Invented the first successful windshield wiper.
Mark E. Dean
Computer scientist and engineer. Developed groundbreaking technology including color PC monitor.
Ellen Ochoa
First Hispanic woman to go to space. Received NASA's highest award, the Distinguished Service Medal.
Madam C.J. Walker
Invented African-American hair product and established Madam C.J. Walker Laboratories.
The Wright Brothers
Achieved first powered and controlled airplane flight.
Lesson 2: Two Bobbies
STEM CAREER CONNECTIONS
- Transportation, Distribution, Logistics, Human Services, Civil Engineering and Mechanical Engineering
STEM DISCIPLINES
- Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics
NON-STEM DISCIPLINES
- English Language Arts
Students are told a recent hurricane has collapsed a bridge, which was the only way out of an island. The island's inhabitants are running out of resources quickly, and need help. An engineering team has concluded that the best and safest option is to transport people off the island. The water's current is currently too strong, thus making it an unsafe means of transportation. The only means of transportation remaining is the island's famous zip line, which includes a section leading from the island to a neighboring city.
The student's challenge is to design and build a cradle that will safely transport one islander at a time across the zip line from the island to the neighboring city.
PROJECT FILES
Lesson 3: All the Water in the World
STEM CAREER CONNECTIONS
- Mechanical Engineering and Environmental Scientist
STEM DISCIPLINES
- Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics
NON-STEM DISCIPLINES
- English Language Arts
In Africa, two out of five people do not have clean water. With much of Africa’s water contaminated, many people struggle to stay healthy, go to school/work, grow food and build houses. The villagers do not have a lot of money or materials available to them, so it is a challenge for them to find a low-cost, simple way to clean their water. Your students know that a source for clean water would help solve these problems and improve the lives of thousands of people. The students decide to plan a trip to an African village and help.
The student's challenge before leaving for Africa is to design, build and test a filtration system that could be used to remove harmful pollutants/contaminants from water. It is important in this task to conserve the clean water.
PROJECT FILES
Lesson 4: The Airport Book
STEM CAREER CONNECTIONS
- Civil Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Architecture and Construction
STEM DISCIPLINES
- Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics
NON-STEM DISCIPLINES
- English Language Arts
Students imagine working as a line crewmember (a person that loads and unloads luggage) for an airline company. Because unloading luggage from an airplane by hand is time consuming and inefficient, you decide to try and come up with a better luggage transport system.
The student's challenge is to to design a more efficient system for transporting luggage straight from the airplane to the conveyor belt where passengers pick up their belongings. Their design must transfer marbles from an elevated cup (symbolizing the airplane) to a cup on a lower level (symbolizing the baggage claim area), while only using the provided materials.
PROJECT FILES
Lesson 5: Emmanuel's Dream
STEM CAREER CONNECTIONS
- Mechanical Engineering and Health Sciences
STEM DISCIPLINES
- Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics
NON-STEM DISCIPLINES
- English Language Arts
Students imagine having a friend with limited hand and wrist muscle strength and control, making the simple daily task of putting on socks difficult. They know there has to be a way to help your friend solve this problem.
Pulling on a sock is difficult for people with limited hand and wrist muscle strength and control. It is a struggle for their muscles to overcome the sock’s elastic potential energy when stretched, and gravitational potential energy when lifted. The student's challenge is to use only the materials available to design and build a device prototype that can help people pull on their socks independently.
PROJECT FILES
Lesson 6: Stanley at Sea
STEM CAREER CONNECTIONS
- Health Sciences and Mechanical Engineering
STEM DISCIPLINES
- Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics
NON-STEM DISCIPLINES
- English Language Arts
Students imagine being on vacation at a friend’s lake house. The family decides to take Max, the family dog, out on the lake for a boat trip. While out on the boat, the water becomes rough, and Max falls overboard into the water. Since Max is still a puppy, he does not know how to swim yet.
The student's challenge is to use supplies that are on the boat to create a flotation device that will keep Max afloat. Max has already fallen overboard, so the flotation device must be able to be put on and taken off Max quickly and easily.
PROJECT FILES
Lesson 7: The Knights Before Christmas
STEM CAREER CONNECTIONS
- Civil Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Architecture and Construction
STEM DISCIPLINES
- Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics
NON-STEM DISCIPLINES
- English Language Arts
Students imagine arriving at a castle with a load of presents for the people inside, but the Knights in the castle won’t open the door! In order to get the presents to the people inside, the students will need to build a catapult and fling the presents over the walls! A great amount of force is being applied to the presents in order to transfer enough kinetic energy to them and give them enough speed to make it over the castle walls. Many presents are being damaged when they hit the ground at high speed. You will need to solve this problem by designing a way to protect the presents from being damaged as they are sent into the castle.
The student's challenge is to design a way to safely transfer the potential energy in the catapult into kinetic energy in the cracker without the cracker breaking upon impact. Your design can include only the materials provided.
PROJECT FILES
- Engineering Design Process Graphic Organizer (PDF)
- Lesson Plan (PDF)
- Student Handout (PDF)
- Parent Letters (PDF)
- Vocabulary Chart (PDF)
- Vocabulary Images and Videos (PDF)
- Vocabulary Signs (PDF)
- Word Sort (PDF)
- Ohio's Learning Content Standards: Science (PDF)
- Make a Connection (PDF)
- Vocabulary Handout (PDF)
- Presentation (PPTX)
Lesson 8: Tiny Stitches
STEM CAREER CONNECTIONS
- Health Sciences and Biomedical Engineering
STEM DISCIPLINES
- Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics
NON-STEM DISCIPLINES
- English Language Arts
Students imagine having a friend that has a farm with pet goats, and one of the goats has eaten something that they should not have eaten. Goats eat the weirdest things! The goat cannot digest the funny thing it ate, so it must be removed from its stomach.
The student's challenge is to build a surgical instrument that can safely remove an unwanted object from a goat’s stomach. You cannot hurt the goat or damage the object. The dominoes will represent the goat’s stomach, so be careful not to hurt the goat by knocking over the dominoes.
PROJECT FILES
Lesson 9: Volcano Rising
STEM CAREER CONNECTIONS
- Civil Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Architecture and Construction
STEM DISCIPLINES
- Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics
NON-STEM DISCIPLINES
- English Language Arts
Mount St. Helens is about to erupt. The student's task is to create a structure that will save the surrounding buildings before the flowing lava puts the civilians in danger. The students have around 15 minutes to complete the task and save the buildings from the lava flow.
The student's challenge is to build a structure that will change the flow of foam (lava) so that the flow does not touch the buildings.
PROJECT FILES
Lesson 10: 21 Elephants and Still Standing
STEM CAREER CONNECTIONS
- Civil Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Architecture and Construction
STEM DISCIPLINES
- Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics
NON-STEM DISCIPLINES
- English Language Arts
Phineas T. Barnum marched his elephants across the Brooklyn Bridge to prove the bridge was safe. Since the bridge held for 21 elephants, now everyone wants to take the bridge. The city needs to build another bridge to hold all the people who want to cross the river. The river is wider where the new bridge will go, so it needs to be longer than the first bridge.
The student's challenge is to design and build a bridge according to directions and then make the bridge longer to cross the wide river.