Building Design Thinking Skills with Keva Planks
By Stephanie Dietrich
Lesson: Bridge Challenge with Keva Planks
| Time Required: 45 Minutes | Materials Required: Keva Planks |
| Grade(s): K-1 | Supplies: Building Map |
“But the bridge I like the best isn’t so grand. It connects me to you and you to me…through the simple holding of hands.” – Cheryl Keely
I rarely come across a book that can so easily be paired with an engineering design challenge that also promotes building community. A Book of Bridges: Here to There and Me to You by Cheryl Keely and beautifully illustrated by Ceia Krampien is one of those books.
This simple narrative is about the ways that bridges connect us to each other, our communities, and our world. Sprinkled throughout the book are fun facts about our most famous bridges. Have you ever wondered why the Golden Gate Bridge is Orange? Or why birds’ eggs were mixed with mortar to create South America’s Puente de Piedra in Lima, Peru? Kids will be fascinated by these facts as well as learn about different types of bridges, including “wildlife bridges” designed solely for the safe passage of animals over busy roads and highways.
Linking Picture Books with Early Design Thinking Skills
Using picture books as a catalyst for design thinking challenges is a great way to get students engaged in using the design cycle. Introducing design thinking skills early to children is important for several reasons including:
- Promoting Creativity- Keva Plank engineering design challenges are great because they illustrate how there are multiple ways to solve a problem.
- Encouraging Collaboration & Communication- Working in teams to complete a design challenge helps students learn positive communication and group decision-making skills.
- Developing Critical Thinking Skills- In design challenges students learn how to break down problems into smaller parts and make plans for solving those problems.
Routinely incorporating quick design thinking challenges, like this one, helps students grow a fail forward mindset where they learn from challenges and are eager to try again instead of giving up.
Materials Preparation
Before the lesson, print out the building map on 11 x 17 or 11 x 14 paper and laminate. Divide Keva Planks into bins for each group. (Around 50 planks per bin.) This activity can also be done with Lego bricks or other building block materials you may have.
Procedure
If your students have never used Keva Planks before, offer opportunities prior to this lesson for free exploration with the planks.
- Begin by reading the book. Have a discussion about the different types of bridges in the books. Ask students what they know about bridges. Did they notice any bridges in the book that weren’t man-made? Why are bridges important to us?
- Introduce the Design Cycle to students. For younger students it is recommended to use a simplified version of the Design Cycle with Ask, Plan, Create, Evaluate, like NIU STEAM’s Design Cycle.
- Divide students into groups of 3-4. Each group gets a building map and a bucket of Keva Planks.
- Explain the design challenge:
- Students will work in groups to design a bridge to go over the pond.
- The blocks can’t touch the water.
- Everyone on the team must be included in the design and building.
- Model how to work in a team and what it looks like to make decisions as a group.
- If students are struggling to get started, you can model some building strategies with the Keva Planks.
- While students are building, continue to encourage collaboration and communication, making sure all voices are being heard and valued within the group.
- After students have constructed their bridges, ask for groups to quickly share out their designs and one example of a way their group worked well together.
Assessment
You can visually assess students’ success by seeing if the bridge connects one side to the other and does not touch the water.
Additionally, you can add a strength component to the challenge by placing a toy car on the bridge and seeing if it will hold the weight of the car.
Additional Resources
Happy Reading!
