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Learning area: Technology
Level: Years 3 and 4
Tower
1 Nature of the assessment task
Encountering an interesting tower in SOSE/HSIE can provide a context for giving students the opportunity to investigate, discuss and reflect on ways of engineering tall but stable and strong structures. In this assessment task students investigate, analyse and apply their knowledge to the construction of a tower, creating a suitable structure to meet a design brief and selecting and using appropriate materials for different construction purposes. They orally present their model to the class, describing design features, problems encountered and material used, and explain why particular choices or changes to their original design were made.
Their completed design folio includes their chosen design, a photograph of their completed model, peer feedback, individual self assessment and a teacher's group observation checklist.
The completed assessment task is expected to demonstrate the following qualities:
- ability to convey ideas in annotated design
- ability to review a design
- ability to communicate ideas using technical terms
- ability to choose appropriate materials
- ability to show use of strong shapes to strengthen the model
- ability to use tools and equipment correctly, safely and competently.
2 Links with State and Territory curriculum
3 Prior teaching and learning
For this task, students need to have an understanding of:
- measurement using centimetres
- 3D shapes
- some construction terminology
- how to work to a specified design brief.
In addition, students should be able to:
- use simple tools, eg scissors and wire-cutters or pliers, safely and effectively
- tie knots, cut plastic, use masking tape
- give and respond to constructive feedback and ideas
- create and annotate designs using drawings and text
- transfer ideas from drawings to constructions
- make inferences from their observations
- communicate in writing and verbally
- work independently and collaboratively.
4 Teacher preparation
Teachers will need to provide the following resources:
- a large quantity of drinking straws (plastic and/or paper), which may be bought in bulk quantities. The straws should be selected so that there are two different widths, with one size being able to be slipped snugly inside the other. A combination of plastic and paper straws may enable this
- a bulk pack of small pipe cleaners
- enough rolls of masking tape to allow easy access for all students
- 4 balls of string
- scissors for each student
- a ruler for each student
- 2–3 rulers one metre long
- cardboard cut to approx A6 size (¼ A4) (five pieces per child)
- wire-cutters or pliers (for pipe cleaners) enough for easy access
- a marble (or similar weight) for each group of three students.
Student resources
The following resources are provided:
- Design brief for tower assessment task
One copy should be displayed in the classroom.
- Design folio
This pro forma should be photocopied double sided and enlarged to A3. Copies could be distributed to individuals or to groups of three students. The design folio includes:
- space for the students to draw their chosen, annotated tower design
- a photograph of the completed model
- criteria for peer feedback
- a self-reflection grid for one group member
- spaces for the other two members of the group to attach their self-reflection grids. (This strategy enables all members of the group to record at the same time.)
- Peer assessment 3D model
Students will require one copy each. If desired, enlarge and photocopy a copy for display in the classroom.
- Towers around the world
A series of sketches of towers used in Activity 1. Either photocopy sufficient copies for each student or copy onto an overhead transparency.
- Student rubric for the tower assessment task
| The student rubric can be used: |
| (a) | |
to make certain that students are aware of the criteria against which they will be assessed by the teacher |
| (b) | |
to provide a focus for student self assessment. |
Teacher resources
Teachers might find it helpful to examine an annotated worksample for the task. Further information about worksamples and how to use them can be found at this link.
5 Scaffolding: Preparing students for the task
The scaffolding activities will offer opportunities to informally assess for learning and allow for informal feedback to students on their progress.
Explain to students that they will be designing and building a model of a tower for a particular purpose. Either distribute copies of the Design brief or display and discuss with students so that they are aware of the requirements.
There is opportunity here for a variety of approaches. Teachers could decide to specify a particular purpose for the tower or allow students to suggest their own purpose. A specified purpose might tie in with another aspect of learning that has recently occurred in the classroom. For instance, while studying Indonesia as part of LOTE or SOSE/HSIE, students might have encountered reference to Balinese funeral towers, which can be several storeys high and often support a relative or priest sitting on top as it is carried to the funeral site.
Activity One: Building prior knowledge about towers
Ask students to recall the tall towers they have previously seen or visited, and briefly discuss the reason why it was important for the structure to be tall.
Brainstorm their knowledge of other tall structures, asking them to guess how high they are, and the main purpose for which they were built.
The teacher resource Towers around the world and other available resources (eg Towers from around the world – websites, posters, photos etc) may be of assistance in this discussion. Students may wish to conduct further research or investigations of their own.
The reasons the towers were built might include symbolic purposes (eg church steeples, funeral towers, pyramids, statues), where frequently the height of a structure reflected status, importance or connection with heaven, and practical purposes like storage (eg water towers, silos), plunging (shot tower, diving tower, bungee tower), observation (eg watchtowers) and communication (eg clock towers, signal towers and telecommunication towers). Moreover, towers frequently reflect the culture, priorities, lifestyles and available materials of societies and civilisations at different times.
Teachers might choose to discuss issues such as the cost and availability of materials, cultural influences, environmental and aesthetic considerations and structural stability. (Suggested questions could be: Where are mobile phone towers located? Do they blend in with their environment? How do tower designs reflect different cultures? What tower designs do you think would suit our environment? Are satellites a good idea?)
Explain to students that they will be building their own tall tower, and that, if relevant, they should give some consideration to what the purpose of their tower will be.
Activity Two: Joining straws to make constructions
Inform students that they will build their tall towers using straws, pipe cleaners, string and tape as building materials. This activity is designed to provide ideas on how to join the straws in order to make a construction. (Point out to students that the straws are the equivalent of tubular piping, used in real-life constructions.)
Students should work in small groups so that they can discuss and share ideas as they work.
The following resources will be needed for this activity:
- straws of two different diameters (plastic and/or paper) approximately six per student
- a pack of small pipe cleaners (approximately three per student)
- enough rolls of masking tape to allow easy access for all students
- string
- scissors for each student
- a ruler for each student
- cardboard cut to approximately A6 size (¼ A4) – five pieces per student
- wire-cutters or pliers (for pipe cleaners) – enough for easy access.
Distribute card and have students write on it: 'Connecting two straws'.
As students connect the straws they attach them to the A6 size (¼ A4) card, with appropriate labelling, to create a sampler for later display and reference.
Distribute two straws to each student, and have students measure and cut the straws into three pieces approximately 7 cm long. The length is suggested only, and is designed to conserve resources.
Challenge students to join two straws of the same diameter together in two ways, without using any other materials, and then to connect two straws:
- of different diameter
- with a pipe cleaner
- with string
- with tape.
When all samplers are completed, use a Modified jigsaw technique to enable students to share their ideas with other groups.
The A6 samplers can be glued onto larger pieces of cardboard to make class posters which show ways of joining straws. Students could then display these cards as a reference resource.
Activity Three: Making structures secure
This activity focuses on ways in which structures can be made more secure.
Discuss with students what happens when buildings are not strong enough to withstand earthquakes, typhoons etc (or wolves, as in The Three Little Pigs), and how their construction could be improved. A discussion of changes to building practice after the Darwin cyclone might be of interest here. Refer back to the Towers around the world resource to discuss particular issues that might apply to tall structures.
Tell students that they are now going to look at other ways of joining straws for their own tower construction and, in particular, to look at ways in which their tower can be made stable and secure.
Through guided questioning in a class discussion, ideas are elicited for joining straws using a range of techniques, eg:
- how could straws be joined so that they make a long rod? a T-Junction? a four-way junction?
- how can joins be strengthened so that they do not break apart?
- how can straws be strengthened so that they do not bend?
The information sheet Ideas for connecting straws can be used as a reference to supplement the teacher's own ideas and ideas generated by the students.
A PMI chart may help to analyse the pluses, minuses and interesting uses of different joining strategies.
The list of possible terms also provides ideas for construction, and appropriate vocabulary and terminology to facilitate communication.
Teacher information sheets could be enlarged and put on display so that the information is accessible to the students. Students could suggest how models of real towers (eg those that feature in Towers around the world) could be made using pipe cleaners, straws, string and tape, and theorise about the materials which were probably used in their actual construction.
Activity Four: Making structures strong
Students will practise their ideas for joining straws and compare the stability and strength of two different shapes by making and testing two 3D models:
- a triangular based pyramid
- a cube.
Make an enlarged copy of Peer assessment 3D model, show it to the students and explain the design criteria for their models and how they will be assessed.
Provide students with straw pieces, approximately 10 cm long, and other materials such as pipe cleaners, tape and string.
When they have completed their 3D models, students work in small groups to assess each other's models, using and completing their own Peer assessment 3D model. This gives them the opportunity to become familiar with this assessment technique, which is an integral part of assessment for learning.
Consolidate the learning in a whole class discussion about which shape they found was strongest and most stable. Discuss students' previous building experiences with other materials (wooden blocks, Lego, sand) and reflect on the shapes they found best enabled them to build tall structures.
Refer students to Ideas for connecting straws and challenge them to devise a way of making their cube stronger by bracing the corners.
Attempt to make a class tower by taping the 3D models together. Discuss the problems encountered.
6 The task
Designing
- Display and discuss an enlarged copy of the Student rubric for tower assessment task so that students are aware of how they will be assessed for this task.
- Revisit the Design brief so that students are familiar with its elements.
- Distribute the A3-sized Design folio to each team and explain its features and how they will be used by the students. This should happen before the initial designs are made as they will be part of the design folio.
- Students work individually to produce two design ideas for a tower that accords with the elements of the design brief.
Making
- Put students in teams of no more than three members.
- Each student presents his/her designs to their team and a decision is made as to which design will be adopted by the team, and whether any alterations need to be made. Discussion could include working out the quantities required (eg number of straws) to make the design, and identifying which components make it more stable.
- Each team pastes its chosen design into their Design folio. (The student designs which have not been selected are named and will be submitted with the Design folio for assessment.)
- Explain to students that they will have limited materials to work with, and remind them that they will be assessed on their ability to work safely with tools and their ability to choose appropriate materials and shapes for different parts of their model.
Give each group of students tin/s containing their equipment, organised beforehand by students or the teacher:
- 100 straws of 2 different diameters (plastic and/or paper)
- 30 small pipe cleaners
- 3 metres of string (this could be wrapped around the tin)
- 1 marble. This represents the weight of people or objects that towers usually need to support to perform their function. Classes who have an identified purpose for their tower could choose to have a replica of that object (eg a cardboard clock face, a figurine, etc) instead of a marble weight
- 2 metres of masking tape (this could be measured out by the teacher beforehand and attached to a desk or table)
- 1 pair scissors
- access to a ruler one metre long, for use in measuring height of structures
- access to wire-cutters or pliers (for pipe cleaners).
They do not need to use all of the equipment, but may not use more than allocated when making the actual model. (This provides some flexibility for students who find that their plan doesn't work and want to restart, while at the same time placing some restrictions on use of materials in order to avoid wastage.)
- Remind students that, for practical classroom purposes, their model will need to be able to be moved.
- While the students are working, the teacher uses the Group observation checklist to note students' performance, particularly in relation to how they manipulate and use tools, or to write important comments or relevant anecdotal notes. Students working in the same group are named on the same A4 sheet, to facilitate this task.
Critiquing/evaluating
- Ask groups to present their models to the class. In their presentation they should:
- explain the purpose of their tower if this has not been designated by the teacher
- explain the design features (students could use post-it notes to label some features to assist them in their presentation)
- describe any difficulties encountered
- explain the solutions devised and changes made.
- For each presentation, the class critiques and evaluates the extent to which the design criteria have been met, and the team then fills in feedback grid in the Design folio to capture the feedback received.
- The teacher completes the Group observation checklist for each student in the team while the models are being shown to the class. This is also an opportunity to clarify why particular choices were made (eg joining techniques, choice of materials) or which aspects of the design and building were done by a particular student.
- A photograph of the model can be taken and pasted onto the back of the Design folio.
- Students in the group complete their own student rubric (for one member this will be placed inside their Design folio and the other two group members each receive a photocopy to complete) and paste it in their team's Design folio.
7 Professional advice
The following diagnostic grid could be used by teachers to record brief observations about students' performance on each of the expected qualities to obtain a snapshot of those areas in which students will need further instruction. The teaching and learning activities that follow relate to each of the expected qualities and suggest some ways in which teachers could consolidate or extend student performance in these areas. Click here to view how the grid might be completed.
Teaching and learning activities linked to the expected qualities listed in the rubrics and the diagnostic grid, can be found at the following links:
Teaching and learning activities
Ability to convey ideas in an annotated design
- If students performed at a low level on this aspect of the task, it could be because they have had insufficient experience with drawing designs or making models.
- Use a reverse strategy in some design and make activities, where their model is illustrated or a digital photograph taken and coloured, before annotating it with simple labels.
- Discuss the features of some good annotated designs and display them prominently.
- Have students use the maker's model building instructions when working with manufactured building equipment, eg Lego or K'nex.
- Students may also find it difficult to compare their final model with their design, or analyse why they decided to make certain changes. Opportunity to have students clarify some of the problems encountered may be found during construction of the model and also when they are presenting the finished product through targeted questioning, eg 'Why did you tie that pipe cleaner there?'; 'How did inserting a straw help your tower?'.
- Students who perform at a high level in this task could research some famous towers from around the world, analysing the possible role of different design features.
Teaching and learning activities
Ability to review a design
Students performing at a low level on this aspect of the task may have found it difficult to notice the similarities and differences between two pictures or objects, or to remember their thinking processes. Students could be given opportunities to do games or puzzles that focus on comparing different objects or pictures (eg looking at similarities and differences between a model and its design as a class group, or using 'Spot the difference pictures' eg http://puzzles.about.com/library/weekly/aa040124.htm to develop their skills).
Students may also benefit from explicit scaffolds that help them to analyse their thinking processes. For example, students could be firstly asked to identify and articulate a difference between their design and their model, and then asked to complete this sentence:
'I thought this would make my model better because …'
These scaffolds could be written on the board for students to refer to when presenting their model. - Presentations from students who were able both to describe the problems they encountered and to provide clear explanations of changes they made to their design to try to solve these problems could be used to provide high quality examples of design review for other students to follow.
Teaching and learning activities
Ability to communicate ideas using technical terms
If students performed at a low level on this aspect of the task, it could be because they were unsure of the appropriate vocabulary. Teachers should use correct terminology whenever possible.
Wall charts that show pictures of different structures, with different parts of the structure labelled with the correct term and its definition, would provide some assistance. - Students who perform at a high level in this task could add other building terminology they know or have researched onto a class chart.
Teaching and learning activities
Ability to choose appropriate materials
If students performed at a low level on this aspect of the task, consider engaging them in the following activities:
- Devise and carry out science experiments which test attributes of different materials (eg absorbency, strength, solubility etc).
- Sort materials using different criteria:
- how easily they are torn, twisted, knotted, unfolded etc
- uses they could have, eg to write on, to write with, to make sound.
- Classify objects from best to worst for particular tasks (eg mopping up water) and justify why the choices were made.
- Before engaging in tasks that require the use of equipment, have discussions about which equipment would be most suitable for that particular purpose and explain why.
- Students who perform at a high level in this task apply their skills in the construction of another skeletal model, eg a windmill or bridge, using equipment and designs of their choice.
Teaching and learning activities
Ability to use strong shapes to strengthen the model
If students performed at a low level on this aspect of the task, it could be because they had not been successful in building their smaller 3D models, and were not able to apply understandings about materials and strong shapes in the building of their tower.
Games like 'Statues' can be played to reinforce stable and unstable shapes, as children freeze into different positions, eg one leg, on toes, feet apart etc.
A walk around the school grounds may provide some examples of triangular shapes being used for strength and stability (eg pergola, ladder). - Students who perform at a high level in this task could lead groups to further investigate strong shapes by working collaboratively to build giant 3D shapes (eg prisms, pyramids or cubes) from metre lengths of rolled cardboard and tape. Encourage students to investigate ways of making the shapes the most stable using struts, trusses and braces.
Teaching and learning activities
Ability to use tools and equipment correctly, safely and competently
If students performed at a low level on this aspect of the task, it could be because they needed explicit instructions and reminders about safe practices when working with tools (eg holding the closed scissor blades pointing downwards when walking).
Negotiate rules for safety when working with tools, display them prominently and revisit the rules before using featured equipment.
If they are unable to use tools and equipment competently, it could be because their technique is awkward, they need to develop fine motor skills or they have special equipment needs. Ask them to explain and show the difficulties they are having.
- Find opportunities to give some explicit instruction to those students whose use of equipment required some intervention, eg how to tie a knot.
- Teach helpful tips or strategies, eg wiggling pipe cleaners apart if wire-cutters or pliers do not cut right through.
- Supply adapted equipment if required (eg left-handed scissors).
- Students who performed at a high level on this aspect of the task could act as peer tutors to assist where required.
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