
General Information
How Things Around My House, children create models of familiar household mechanisms to understand how they are put together. For example, in the “Washing Machine” activity they build a washing machine to show how the drum inside moves.
In Machines in the World, children build models that operate in the wider world. For example, in the “Crane” activity children build a crane to lift a load using a pulley system. In another activity, they build a drawbridge using a “worm gear” system to raise the bridge and lock it in place as the boats travel underneath.
In In My Imaginative Inventions, children invent models to solve design challenges. The activities they have completed earlier provide them with the knowledge they need. Children use their creative thinking and problem solving abilities to design and build models to satisfy a specific purpose. For example, they are challenged to build a locking treasure box, a launcher for tops, and a “bionic” arm attachment.
Sample Curricula
Lesson 1-8: Machines Around me
Lesson 9-16: Machines in the World
Lessons 17-24: My Inventions