Technology Classroom at Park Middle School
KSD Citizens is featuring classes in Kennewick schools exemplifying the broader range of curricular opportunities we believe benefit students. For whole child development these types of classes ought to be available to all Kennewick students. This article describes one of those classes.
Monday, January 31, I visited Tom Mileson’s technology classroom at Park Middle School. Sixth graders were excitedly preparing to test the egg drop projects which they had completed last Friday. The teams of two were photographed with their devices then we all went outdoors for testing.
Using a ladder, Tom took each egg drop device to the roof of the lab and dropped the single egg-holding container suspended under a parachute. Each team’s entry quickly drifted to the ground with the egg left intact or cracked on impact. Several made hard landings with an audible cracking sound.
This class of sixth graders had started their projects last week after beginning this class as their third quarter exploratory. Each team learned the purpose of the project, viewed a Bill Nye video about gravity, received a collection of materials then went to work designing and building their solution to the problem of protecting a fragile payload during a descent to earth. There was eager participation in this activity.
Teams utilized different sized newspaper parachutes, varied styles of containers, shock absorbing systems and other creative features on their projects. The degree of success was scored by the outcome for the egg passenger.
Students’ next project will be designing a restraint system for a car crash project. They will study Newton’s first law of motion then apply their knowledge to build a car which will seat an egg passenger. Measurements are in both English and metric units. Students’ cars will be propelled into a wall and success will be measured by whether the passenger survives.
I stayed for the next two periods while eighth grade students drew house plans with drafting tools. After reviewing measurement and the concept of scale drawing, students began designing and drawing individual house floor plans. Working from an existing house plan students could adjust design parameters to their preferences. Among the many lessons in this activity students apply measuring skills and ratio to locate outer and inner walls for the house, position rooms for convenience and function, locate doors and windows, position plumbing fixtures and calculate roof pitch.
When students complete their individual house drawings they will form teams of two to make a scale model house from cardboard with a removable roof to reveal the interior walls and doors.
Following this project, students will solve problems cutting and shaping materials using the variety of woodworking machines in the lab.
Mileson emphasized his student activities are designed using PERR (Purpose, Engagement, Rigor, Results) principles. Student engagement is motivated by the hands-on nature of class activities. Utilizing GLAD (Guided Language Acquisition Design) methods, students learn new terms and definitions related to their work like relief cut, kerf, crosscut, miter and rip. Even parts of speech are reinforced when students are instructed to “hold the board firmly” and are reminded that “firmly” is an adverb.
Other examples of technology challenges students will engage in Mileson’s classes include:
- 6th grade – magnetic levitation vehicles and a scroll saw project
- 7th grade – bridge design, building and testing, catapult construction and building an electric motor from raw materials
- 8th grade – egg cracking device, pneumatic tennis ball mover and transportation device using an electric motor and controls
Students learn teamwork and apply math and science concepts for technological problem solving with activities allowing different, but equivalent solutions.
The state recognizes programs like Mileson’s as pre-vocational and provides additional funding for the purchase of equipment and supplies. Materials science activities will be added to the curriculum when new equipment is available for students. Having students develop career awareness in middle school empowers them to make appropriate choices for continued learning.
Next week the eighth graders will take a walking field trip to Kennewick High School to visit the drafting, materials science, principles of technology and construction classes. This will help inform their choices for elective classes when enrolling in high school.
Park Middle School is able to provide these exploratory class opportunities to students as a consequence of their 8 period daily schedule. This schedule was initiated last school year. Prior to the new schedule, Mileson’s technology lab was little used because of doubles classes.
My next report will explain how Park has managed to provide this richer curriculum.
Are all students now able to take exploratory with the advent of the 8 period day? What about other Kennewick middle schools?
Yes, all students have exploratory classes. That was an original goal of the new schedule. This is not the case at other middle schools. I will be reporting on classes at other schools.
See the new article published February 9.