Grade 6 STEM Project

General

MiddleSchool

12/19/2018

Grade 6 students participate in a STEM project in place of their first semester exams.

In an effort to help 6th graders develop strong critical thinking, problem-solving, communication, and collaboration skills, Westminster has created an integrated STEM project that takes the place of first semester exams. In small groups, students choose to study one country in which the persecution of Christians is extreme, and they design a box of supplies that could be air-dropped to a group of Christians in that country. Then, students design a vessel that can withstand a 30-foot drop to simulate the process of dropping their boxes from an airplane. To test the design of their vessel, the local fire department assisted students by dropping each vessel with an egg inside of it from a height of 30 feet. Students learned about kinetic and potential energy, drag, and Newton's laws of motion as they worked to design their vessels. The designing of their vessels also required students to apply math concepts that are well beyond the 6th-grade level. As a way to encourage persecuted Christians around the world, students wrote a letter to imprisoned Christians in other countries. Students shared what they learned by creating a presentation which parents were invited to attend.

View more pictures from this project here!