Tuesday, December 9, 2014

3 Little Pigs Project-Based Learning: Tried it!



I am linking up with Fourth Grade Flipper today for Tried it Tuesday! This happens on the second "Twosday" of each month!



Ever had a good idea that just kind of sparked your imagination?

That's what happened here! My friend and fellow 3rd grade teacher, Lora, and I were planning a simple STEM activity to go with a story in our reading series about a house. Lora suggested we do the 3 Little Pigs- houses blown down and all that jazz.  This "little" idea turned into a humongous project that included Project-Based learning, Problem-Based Learning, STEM, literacy comprehension activities, and persuasive writing! All rolled into one! Covering tons of our standards! Not to mention loads of learning fun!

The Launch: Reading The 3 Little Pigs to the students.  We read a slew of different versions!

The Problem: How do you build a house the Big Bad Wolf cannot blow down?  Engineering Design Process to the rescue!



The Solutions: Wow, our kiddos came up with some inventive houses!  Give kids some tape and paper and you are good to go! Obviously a few more materials were provided...


The test: Turning our hairdryers into the Big Bad Wolf!  Can your house withstand 1 wolf or how about 2 wolves (hairdryer on high)?



Not done yet! Students then had to persuade other "pigs" to buy their house with persuasive ads and posters!

They had to answer questions such as: Why would a pig buy my house over another one?  What would it cost to build my house?  What words and images can I use to entice buyers?  Can you all say rubrics?!



We continued the project by reading different versions of The 3 Little Pigs. We discussed sequencing, main idea and theme, cause and effect, fact and opinion, and characterization to name a few!

Tons of fun- oh, and learning- was had by all...well, maybe all except the Big Bad Wolf!

Check out the products I developed for this project! I divided the activities into a Literacy and Project Based products, and of course, a discounted BUNDLE!

          




Have you done anything exciting in your classrooms lately? We love to hear what you all are doing!





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