Year 5s Designing Aliens
In Year 5 Technology classes, our students embarked on an exciting journey that combined creativity, collaboration, and critical thinking. Their mission? To design an alien that could inhabit one of the planets in our solar system.
Through the design thinking process, students researched different planets, ideated unique concepts, planned their designs, created their aliens, evaluated their work, and finally, shared their creations with peers. This hands-on project not only linked various areas of the curriculum but also allowed students to work together in an imaginative and fun environment.
Connecting Learning Across the Curriculum
Taylor shared how the project allowed her to blend artistic skills with scientific knowledge:
“I used my artistic skills when creating the alien. I also used the knowledge of planets that I learned about in science to learn how to get aliens to survive.”
This integration of art and science highlights how students can apply their learning in diverse ways, deepening their understanding and making connections across subjects.
Understanding the Design Process
As Arianne points out, “We used the same inquiry model when we did Fearless5. Doing it again reminds us that during ideation we can come up with lots of different ideas.”
The project reinforced the importance of the design process and demonstrated how it can be applied to various challenges, encouraging students to think creatively and critically.
Overcoming Challenges
Challenges were also part of the process, but students found creative solutions. Isla demonstrated resourcefulness when she said:
“When I was cutting materials, and I needed fur but only had paper scraps. I cut them and created a fur-type covering, which I liked using.”
Hannah and Laila echoed this sentiment, noting the problem-solving aspect of the project:
“Coming up with solutions when a problem occurs,” said Hannah. Laila added, “I discovered that you could learn about Science in a fun and creative way.”
This project was not just about designing aliens; it was about learning to think creatively, work collaboratively, and solve problems in innovative ways. By engaging in this process, our Year 5 students have gained skills and insights that will serve them well in all areas of their education.
- Collaboration, Creativity, DesignThinkingProcess, Feautured, InquiryBasedLearning, ProblemSolving, Year5
Author: Santa Maria College
Santa Maria College is a vibrant girls school with a growing local presence and reputation. Our Mission is to educate young Mercy women who act with courage and compassion to enrich our world. Santa Maria College is located in Attadale in Western Australia, 16 km from the Perth CBD. We offer a Catholic education for girls in Years 5 – 12 and have 1300 students, including 152 boarders.
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