Groundhog Day STREAM

The fifth grade Explore Class and the sixth grade Journey Gifted Class teamed together to provide a high interest and engaging “Groundhog Day” S.T.R.E.A.M. (science, technology, reading, engineering, art, and math) engineering challenge.  On Friday, from 12:45 to 2:00, every grade level and classroom at Pass Christian Elementary school participated in the engineering challenge that was facilitated by the 5th and 6th grade gifted classes!  Every student had an active role in the engineering design process to successfully design and build a pulley to lift the groundhog away from his shadow (from the ground to the top of their desks).  Students learned about the history and significance of Groundhog Day and discussed the different types of pulleys around the school.  After the challenge, the teams presented their pulleys to the other groups in their classroom.  The groups were given the opportunity to reflect on their prototype and were given extra time to make improvements! This is the second school-wide S.T.R.E.A.M. challenge for PCES students this year.  This is the fourth year that the 5th and 6th grade Explore and Journey students have spearheaded this opportunity for students to learn while doing.