Year 2 MIT STEAM Challenge: Wearable Technology

06 June 2019

At BIS HCMC we are planning opportunities for our students to persevere and apply a Growth Mindset to their learning by using the Engineering Design Process and popular children’s literature. With these elements, teachers are creating meaningful and engaging STEAM activities in the classroom.

Last week, nearly 200 students in Year 2 tackled a fun and engaging MIT Collaboration STEAM Challenge. The students undertook the Epic Identity Challenge where they had to test or develop wearable technologies. The Engineering Design Process was used as a framework for the children to follow. The children were required to draw upon the variety of skills and knowledge they have developed in all subject areas to solve the particular problem that was posed. The students had to design parachutes that would assist the characters from their Talk for Writing text ‘The Magic Finger’ by Roald Dahl. Collaboratively, the students worked through the cyclical design process to solve the problem.

The Engineering Design Process:

Define the Problem

Plan Solutions

Make a model

Test the Model

Reflect & Redesign

The students created impressive parachutes using a plethora of design and technology skills, science investigative skills and measurement skills, then documented their progress using Ipads. The emphasis throughout was placed on the process as much as the product. The Challenge both began and finished with a discussion around Growth Mindset. We want the students to “Love challenges, be intrigued by mistakes, enjoy effort and keep on learning” (Carol Dweck). This is certainly what they achieved. Well done Year 2!

Ms Lauren Ryan, Year 2 Teacher