Engage in Iteration
As you watch the video:
- Think about a systematic engineering design process. How does iteration fit into the process?
- Notice how the activity is set up to so that youth must revise and improve their solutions.
- Listen to how the facilitators encourage youth to explain their thinking as they revise their solution.
Now that you’ve watched the video, reflect on what you saw.
- What strategies would you like to use to encourage youth to test and revise their solutions?
- How can you set up engineering activities so youth are able to improve their ideas?
- How can you support critical thinking skills through engineering experiences?
Explore Engineering Practices
Education Item
Learning To Fail
See how staff help youth learn from their failed attempts to build a grape smasher and help them revise and improve the designs.
Education Item
Balance Criteria and Constraints that Require Trade-offs
Engineers make trade-offs to balance competing factors as they solve problems. As youth create enrichment toys for zoo animals, they balance the animals’ safety with keeping them engaged.
Education Item
Design a Grape Smasher
Staff support active learning as learners devise a plan to smash a grape using simple machines and explore the different materials available.