Direct Instruction

The learning intention for this lesson was: To innovate a rocket based on what you already know about existing rockets and what they require to explore space.

NZCM Level One and Two: Science:

Nature of Science

Students will:

Appreciate that scientists ask questions about our world that lead to investigations and that open-mindedness is important because there may be more than one explanation.

Extend their experiences and personal explanations of the natural world through exploration, play, asking questions, and discussing simple models.

Build their language and develop their understanding of the many ways the natural world can be represented.

Explore and act on issues and questions that link their science learning to their daily living.

Extended Lesson Plan Here

Reflection:

This lesson was highly engaging for students, and their enthusiasm for the task was evident throughout. It was clear that they have developed a strong understanding of the key concepts of innovation and exploration, and were able to articulate these ideas during discussion and apply them to their rocket designs.

I was particularly pleased to see students becoming more confident in navigating the hub site to revisit the learning task and related content. They are also improving in how they organise their Google Drive, using correct folder structures and naming conventions, which is an important part of building digital fluency.

While the students enjoyed the creative aspect of the lesson, many of their rocket designs remained quite traditional in shape and concept. I had hoped for more inventive thinking, but this may reflect their developmental stage and the need for more explicit modelling or scaffolding around what “innovation” could look like in a design context.