Fifth-Grade Brainstorms to Create Solutions for Real-World Problems

In a captivating engineering design project, fifth-grade students tackled the pressing issue of water shortage on Ferris Island. Situated amidst saltwater, half of the island faced a scarcity of freshwater. The students delved into the intricacies of the water cycle, understanding processes such as accumulation, evaporation, transpiration, condensation, and precipitation. Armed with research and analytical skills, they designed, built, and tested freshwater collection systems.

The challenge involved creating a distilling system to transform saltwater into freshwater, and each student had three attempts. Gradie, Jasmin, Kathryn, and Chris emerged as the standout engineers, collecting 30 mL of freshwater. The project showcased the students' ability to think creatively and address real-world problems and underscored their dedication to the engineering design process. This hands-on experience deepened their understanding of scientific concepts and fostered critical thinking and problem-solving skills. You can click on this link to get a glimpse into the classroom.