A neat handout immerses learners in the history of canoe making. After reading, small groups of mini engineers work to craft a canoe that will not be immersed! This is an ideal exercise in engineering design for your STEM curriculum or as an addition to a physical science lesson on buoyancy.

Additional Tags

construction, Engineering, stem, science

Show More Show Less

Pros

• Covers the history of canoes in addition to providing an engineering challenge
• Encourages teamwork and problem-solving
• Helps to meet both Common Core literacy and Next Generation Science Standards

Cons

• Fails to teach about the concepts of buoyancy and density; cover these concepts with middle schoolers for fuller understanding

Common Core

RST.6-8.1 RST.6-8.2 RST.6-8.4 RST.6-8.5 RST.6-8.6 RST.6-8.8 RST.6-8.10