Entry #36 - May 31, 1999
"The inventions and presentations acted as a real window into
the minds and abilities of a great number of our students. Kids who usually
opt out decided to buy in and participate. Despite a limited time frame
and little classroom support, almost everyone got involved."
The "Relaxa-Pillow," the "Collapsable Trash Can," and
the "Gel-Brush" were featured at our 2nd Annual Invention Convention,
along with hundreds of boats and a handful of catapults. Our convention
was held outdoors yesterday and it was a big success.
Last year, I attended a Saturday workshop about the "IDEPPEI"
Problem Solving Method with two colleagues and nine students. We spent
the day at the University of the Arts where we met inventors, watched an
animated short about IDEPPEI and worked in teams to design boats that would
travel down a 4-meter long channel.
It was an exciting day and the teachers involved were pleased that we'd
found a way to tap into our students' creative problem solving abilities.
We had been discussing gaps in our science curriculum, and we all agreed
that our kids rarely got to design models in the course of our daily instruction.
We returned to school armed with a copy of the IDEPPEI animated tape and
lots of enthusiasm. We formed a subcommittee of teachers and students and
organized our first invention convention.
We gave students the option of building boats or designing inventions of
their own choice. Since we had never asked our kids to invent something
before, we were concerned about striking the right balance between too much
or too little support or direction.
We posted student-made signs all over both of our buildings to build interest
in the event. Some of us shared books with our classes about inventors and
inventions, books like "Mistakes
That Worked" which tended to demystify the whole notion of who
invents and how you go about it.
Individual teachers decided whether participation was optional or required,
and whether students worked as individuals or in groups. My husband built
a channel for the boats by capping a rain gutter, and we were all set to
go.
When the big day arrived last year, it was pouring out and the event was
moved indoors to my classroom. Since it was our first time planning such
an event, we overlooked small details like the weather....
This year we had a rain date, but we didn't need it. In fact, I have a fairly
painful sunburn this morning, but other than that, the day was great!
Most of my students really got into the spirit of inventing. I told them
to think about real problems they've either had or observed and then brainstorm
ways to solve them. They were required to submit a form with each invention
which explained the purpose and process of their work. I also asked them
to sketch their models as they developed them. I stressed that their grade
would be based primarily on their documented thinking and working processes
and not on whether their inventions actually worked as planned.
On Thursday, we spent the day presenting work in class. Next year I hope
to expand this aspect so that my students can develop and use a rubric to
evaluate their work and the work of their peers.
Some of the highlights of my students' hard work were:
-- John, who thought about being too tired to get up and turn his music
on and off when he was going to sleep. He invented the "Relaxa-Pillow".
He connected his Walkman and headphones to his pillow...he's still working
on the issue of wasting batteries if it stays on all night.
-- Marc, who noticed that his brother had trouble carrying trash cans around
or holding bags open while he did construction work. His observation led
him to create a collapsable trash can frame and he had a great time demonstrating
it all day yesterday!
-- And Jen and Mandy, who created the "Napkin Picker Upper," a
device which separates napkins so that you only get one at a time, instead
of a whole pile. The other students were unimpressed with their effort until
I talked about my many years as a waitress and the number of napkins that
are wasted in restaurants.
If they can come up with a way to refine their idea, it could be a winner.
Restaurants could save a good deal of money with a device like theirs.
This year, in addition to the boat option, we offered kids the possibility
of building catapults. I got the idea from a Science Scope article, and
the other science teachers liked it, so we added it to our list of potential
challenges.
A whole group of my girls and a few boys made catapults. We had contests
measuring which ones could launch balls of clay the farthest against the
school wall. Next year, I think more kids will try this device. They really
liked the contests and the different models my kids had made.
Finally, one of the funniest sagas of youthful invention was the "Gel-Brush"
and its inception. The other day, one of my girls came to school with a
huge container of hair gel in her bookbag. The container came open and gel
went everywhere! I was none too pleased when she wasted half my class and
my paper towels cleaning up the mess.
Another girl just observed the problem and went home to design a little
container which she attached to the end of a hairbrush. The container resmbled
a contact lens case. She explained in her presentation that you could carry
just enough gel for touch ups with her invention and avoid accidents like
the one we'd had recently in class.
The inventions and presentations acted as a real window into the minds and
abilities of a great number of our students. Kids who usually opt out decided
to buy in and participate. Despite a limited time frame and little classroom
support, almost everyone got involved.
This activity works really well, although we don't offer prizes or external
rewards. It makes me think about questions I've been raising over and over
again this year. Questions about student motivation and authentic learning
vs. teaching more and more content which is prescribed from on high and
not well received by our kids.
I'm anxious to tease out the lessons from this experience next week with
my kids and colleagues. I hope to incorporate a great deal of tech design
into my new class next year. If we can tap even a little of the enthusiasm
that I witnessed yesterday, it will be an exciting year.
On another note, our School Council elections were held this week. I'm looking
forward to co-chairing the body with a parent representative next year.
We never really looked at student work with parents on Council this past
year. Too much of our time was spent interviewing and selecting a new principal
and two vice-principals. Our staff seems set in place now, but in a district
with many vacancies, you never can tell....
However, we did begin to have some really substantive discussions toward
the end of this year, and I feel confident that we can set a real plan of
work in motion next fall. My goal, as co-chair, is to introduce the use
of protocols to examine student work. I'll meet with Ann, my parent co-chair,
this summer to see if she's interested.
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IDEPPEI Creative Problem Solving Through
Design
[This method takes its name from the first letter of each step below. While
the process may not always go step by step in order, it is important when
designing to use all seven steps or activities!]
Intending to do something: feeling motivated, becoming
involved,
recognizing a need, accepting responsibility and committing to a goal.
Defining the problem or subject: identifying, describing,
and specifying
what is involved and the resources available.
Exploring the problem or subject:investigating what is
involved; comparing
ideas and generating alternative possibilities.
Planning what to do: making and communicating decisions;
anticipating how
to implement them, and projecting their consequences.
Producing what has been planned; doing what is required;
making what is
anticipated.
Evaluating the experience: testing what has been produced
and assessing
what has been done to determine if the problem has been solved and if the
goals have been met.
Integrating what is learned with knowledge from prior experience
to improve
an outcome or anticipate the future.
-- from Design to
Learn. Learn more about design-based education here.