I Can't Build a Building...YET!

School:: Vineyards Elementary
Subject:: Stem
Teacher:: Julie Kelly
Students Impacted:: 900
Grade:: K-5
Date:: July 20, 2019

Investors

Thank you to the following investors for funding this grant.

Naples Luxury Builders, Inc. - $100.00

Naples Luxury Builders, Inc. - $214.67

Naples Luxury Builders, Inc. - $54.65

Naples Luxury Builders,Inc. - $100.00

Naples Luxury Builders,Inc. - $45.35

Impact to My Classroom

# of Students Impacted: 900

Building critical thinkers and problem solvers, one brick at a time. That is what we do in the Vineyards Elementary Media Center.

Our goal for the 2019-2020 school year was to provide a space for students to explore their creative side, a Makerspace. This is a space designed for students to explore Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics in conjunction with corresponding literature. Over nine hundred students had access to these materials on a daily basis.

The KEVA planks and Lego Table were introduced to our students through our morning news show advertisement created by the VES News Crew. Excitement was immediate! Students from all grade levels rushed to the Media Center to construct structures using both the Legos and the KEVA planks. Interest did not waiver throughout the year.

One added bonus to this project was to see students grow in their Social Emotional Learning. Students found these areas to be peaceful. There was never one instance of students not getting along and sharing materials. The collective spirit to work together was evident as students worked together. They embodied our school pledge of being “respectful, responsible, peaceful, and problem solvers.

grant photo

Original Grant Overview

Goal

Our goal is to provide materials for students to foster a love and desire to think critically through experimentation and exploration.

What will be done with my students

Students will be provided children’s literature along with related materials, which supports the theme of this project. The students will read the picture books and be provided time and opportunity to create their own structure. They will explain their structure, capture an image of it, and write a brief description. These pictures and descriptions will be displayed in the Media Center for all to see.

Benefits to my students

Students will be able to develop their personal “Power of Yet”. Rather than saying “this can’t be done”. Their attitude will shift towards “this can’t be done…yet.”

Through this transformation, students will also be able to see failure as an opportunity rather than an end. They will be able to elaborate, refine, analyze, and evaluate their ideas. In addition, they will be able to develop communication skills as they communicate their ideas clearly and effectively to others. Students will be risk takers not only in their ideas, but also in their openness to constructive feedback from peers and adults.

Problem solving and the creation of a new idea or innovative product will be the heart of this project. Students will be able to trial a new idea and see it as potential initial failure, persevere through the task by finding alternate solutions until they are able to reach final success.

Students will also be able to explore Construction and its related fields as a possibility for a future career. This initiative supports Language Arts Florida Standards (LAFS) Anchor Standard 10 that states that students will “read and comprehend complex literary and informational texts independently and proficiently.”

Budget Narrative

A collection of children’s books, Legos along with KEVA building materials will be purchased to be used in a “Makerspace” in the Vineyards Elementary Media Center. These materials will be available to be used not only in this year, but in the years to come as well.

Items

#	Item	Cost
1	The Future Architect’s Handbook - Barbara Beck	$11.60
2	13 Architect’s Children Should Know -Florian Heine	$11.96
3	The Story of Buildings - Patrick Dillon	$16.35
4	Dreaming Up: A Celebration of Building	$37.66
5	Look at that Building!: A First Book of Structures	$14.22
6	Lego Table Amazon	$169.95
7	Lego Classic Large Creative Brick Box	$47.99
8	MindWare KEVA Maple (400 Piece Set)	$154.99
9	MindWare KEVA Contraptions (200 piece set)	$49.95
	Total:	$514.67

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