Tape. String. Putty. What do they have in common? They can hold things together. They were also off limits to Summit Trail Middle School students who were tasked with engineering unique designs exclusively out of cardboard and glue.
The results? Wow!
After learning about building materials, recyclable materials and making good use of those materials, students were assigned groups of two or more with the goal of designing an “item.” With the restraints in place, some students created stunning artwork with detailed textures, while other groups opted for more functional designs.
Terra Solkey, the Summit Trail teacher who presented the challenge, was blown away not only by the finished products, but the buy-in that the students had.
Solkey is a longtime science teacher, but took on additional training last year so she could expand her teaching to STEM. She said that STEM allows students to broaden their thinking from the “what” of science, technology, engineering and math, to the “how” and “why.”
After the students completed their projects, it would be up to a vote to determine the winner, and recipient of a well-deserved pizza party. Although she didn’t think the students would agree, Solkey asked if they should open up the voting to the ENTIRE student body at Summit Trail. To her surprise, she was met with a resounding “YES!”
So, the projects were displayed in the library, and photos were posted in the school’s daily student newsletter. The votes came pouring in, and at the end of the week, Ms. Solkey’s class had a winner: an intricate flower vase with handmade cardboard flowers blooming from the top.
Ms. Solkey gave a second award, the “Rubric Award,” to the group who created a cardboard shopping cart fastened well enough to support some light groceries.
Not only was she extremely proud of her creative students, Solkey was also grateful that every single project received at least one student vote.
