Hawthorne Elementary fourth and fifth grade students from the gifted program participated in Engineering is Elementary as part of the Governor’s STEM Advisory Council Scale-Up program to design water filters. The Keokuk Municipal WaterWorks hosted the students at the water treatment facility and provided expertise after the tour to help students with the project.
“We enjoyed participating in the project and it was fun to see the students apply what they are learning,” Dave Bogner, Keokuk Municipal WaterWorks plant manager, said.
After the tour, the students then studied pollution, tested materials and drew diagrams of the plans they designed for the water filters. The WaterWorks experts also visited the classroom to observe students as they tested their designs, discussed the results, and considered improvements based on the data that was collected. Students also had to price out the cost of their designs and score their designs using specified criteria. Students continue to work on design improvements of their designs.
“We had real experts,” Preston Varner, Hawthorne student, said. “Many thanks to Dave Bogner, Jim Maddox and Bill Seabold for sharing their time and expertise with our students,” Diane Berner, TAG program Coordinator and Hawthorne teacher of the course, said.
This Engineering Is Elementary course was funded by a Governor’s STEM Advisory Council Scale-Up Award. It utilizes the Engineering Design Process, meets Next Generation Science Standards, and puts Science and Engineering Practices to work. Gifted education is a state mandated and state funded categorical program to provide appropriate, challenging instruction to students with exceptional abilities.
