Lego Challenge Amazing Mazes Your Challenge Create a

Lego Challenge: Amazing Mazes Your Challenge! Create a maze that a marble can run through including turns, tunnels, and dead ends to make the maze difficult to navigate. Try and make it as imaginative as possible, and don’t forget about making the design look exciting Engineering Goals: • • Emphasise the need for the maze to have a defined starting point and ending point. Make sure that you make a plan before they build, just like an engineer would! This about a theme you can use for your maze that will give it the WOW factor Reflection Questions What should I do first? Is something confusing me? Could I explain this to someone else? Where can I look for help? How can I do it better? Planning during this challenge 1. Take a piece of graph paper 2. Draw the overall shape you would like your maze to be: round, square, a shape of a picture etc. on the graph paper 3. Leave one block open on both sides of the shape, to "BEGIN" and "END" (use an eraser to clear two blocks if need be) 4. Now start from the "Begin" block and draw the correct route to the "end" block, with a double line, making a few twist and turns through your shape to make it difficult. Don't press too hard, you may want to erase some lines later to create a challenge and you do not want to leave the traces behind. 5. Create a few other possible routes to choose from (fake routes) stemming from the beginning of the existing path, by erasing the lines of some blocks and making other paths that lead to dead ends near the "end" block. 6. Continue to create more fake routes out of the initial fake routes, erasing lines as necessary and adding additional dead-end paths as necessary. 7. Continue doing this until most of the graph paper have some form of path or lines on, adding individual straight lines where necessary.

Lego Challenge: Animal Aid Your Challenge! Just like humans sometimes have injuries that require them to use things like wheelchairs and walkers, animals can get injuries like that too. Build an animal with an injury, and come up with a device that will help its injury heal and allow the animal to continue to live in the wild Engineering Goals: • • Learn to design for a unique client (animal). Design with specific constraints (the solution has to allow the animal to stay in its natural habitat). Reflection Questions What should I do first? Is something confusing me? Could I explain this to someone else? Where can I look for help? How can I do it better? Case study 1 Winter was found stranded in Mosquito Lagoon, near Cape Canaveral, Florida when she was only two months old, entangled in a crab trap line which cut off circulation to her tail flukes. Despite exhaustive efforts to promote healing, her tail deteriorated and could not be saved. Winter had a prophetic tail attached which allows her to swim. Case study 2 When an injured turtle was brought to the Maryland Zoo’s hospital for treatment of fractures on the bottom part of his shell, doctors knew they needed an inventive solution to both help maintain his mobility and allow him to heal properly. following a surgical procedure to stabilize the wild eastern box turtle’s severely fractured shell, the veterinary team realized the importance of keeping the bottom of the shell off the ground so it could heal properly. ‘They don’t make turtle-sized wheelchairs. ’ said Garrett Fraess, veterinary extern at the zoo, ‘So, we drew some sketches of a customized wheelchair and I sent them to a friend who is a LEGO enthusiast. ’

Lego Challenge: Boat Building Your Challenge! This challenge is to construct unsinkable ships. Fill a sink with a tub of water, and ask students to create ships that must endure the "ocean" waves and lots of heavy cargo. The students should be given multiple trials to see if their ship kept the passengers in, and water out. Engineering Goals: • • Learn about buoyancy and how to design objects that will float. Have various weights to add to your boat. Start with the lighter weights, and see how much can be added to each design. Reflection Questions What should I do first? Is something confusing me? Could I explain this to someone else? Where can I look for help? How can I do it better? Types of boat Fishing boats in different sizes are used on both salt and freshwater bodies. The immediate qualities of these boats include stability, strength, and durability to survive the fishing ventures across various kinds of waterways. A dinghy can be a small inflatable boat usually made of rubber and comprises of cross thwarts and rowlocks that act as seats and oars, respectively. Deck Boats come with an open deck area that provides plenty of seating arrangements for a small group of people. Catamaran is a multi-hulled watercraft that features two parallel hulls of equal size. Compared to vessels with a single hull, Catamaran Boats features less hull volume, shallower draft and higher displacement. Pontoon boats are flattish in shape and that relies on tubes (pontoons) to float on the water.

Lego Challenge: Bridge Building Introduction A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle, such as a body of water, valley, or road, without closing the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, usually something that can be detrimental to cross otherwise. Your Challenge! A LEGO person who lives in the United States wants to visit his LEGO friend in England. To get across the ocean that separates the U. S. and England, the LEGO person can only drive. Challenge students to build a bridge that is strong and sturdy so no LEGO people fall into the ocean. Reflection Questions What should I do first? Is something confusing me? Could I explain this to someone else? Where can I look for help? How can I do it better? Engineering Goals: Look at how bridges are constructed and how they distribute weight. Discuss how to make supports for the bridges using trusses and arcs. Types of bridge Beam bridge The most simple and common type of bridge used in the real world. This type can be quite effective, even if it isn’t very beautiful. Most highway bridges fall under this category, made from I-Beams and reinforced concrete. A suspension bridge is a type of bridge in which the deck is hung below suspension cables on vertical suspenders. The basic structural components of a suspension bridge system include stiffening girders/trusses, the main suspension cables, main towers, and the anchorages for the cables at each end of the bridge. An arch bridge is a bridge with abutments at each end shaped as a curved arch. Arch bridges work by transferring the weight of the bridge and its loads partially into a horizontal thrust restrained by the abutments at either side.

Lego Challenge: Engineering Escapes Your Challenge! A LEGO person gets stuck at the bottom of a Canyon (a trashcan). Can you devise a solution using LEGOs to get the LEGO man out of the "trash canyon"? Reflection Questions What should I do first? Engineering Goals: Is something confusing me? Could I explain this to someone else? Where can I look for help? How can I do it better? • • Learning to design a product to solve a problem that a specific client has. Learning that there is no one "correct" solutions, but rather infinite ways to successfully solve the problem. Things to consider A crane is a type of machine, generally equipped with a hoist rope, wire ropes or chains, and sheaves, that can be used both to lift and lower materials and to move them horizontally. It is mainly used for lifting heavy things and transporting them to other places. An elevator or lift is a vertical transport vehicle that efficiently moves people or goods between floors of a building. They are generally powered by electric motors that either drive traction cables and counterweight systems, or pump hydraulic fluid to raise a cylindrical piston. A stairway, staircase, stairwell, flight of stairs, or simply stairs, is a construction designed to bridge a large vertical distance by dividing it into smaller vertical distances, called steps. Stairs may be straight, round, or may consist of two or more straight pieces connected at angles. Ladders: a piece of equipment consisting of a series of bars or steps between two upright lengths of wood, metal, or rope, used for climbing up or down something.

Lego Challenge: Tallest Tower Your Challenge! Because of overpopulation in LEGOville, the city has decided that because it has no more land to build on. Therefore, the LEGO people must build up instead of out. The challenge is to help LEGOville solve their problem by constructing the tallest LEGO skyscraper. Keep in mind that there are lots of earthquakes in LEGOville, so the tower must be able to withstand an earthquake (a shake test). Engineering Goals: • Learn about the stability of tall structures and how to engineer tall buildings that are also strong. Reflection Questions What should I do first? Is something confusing me? Could I explain this to someone else? Where can I look for help? How can I do it better? Planning during this challenge 1. Place a baseplate on a flat, sturdy surface. A LEGO baseplate is a flat piece covered in studs so you have a starting point for your tower. 2. Use square and rectangular bricks at least 2 studs wide. If the bricks are wider, your tower will be sturdier as it increases in size. 2 x 2 and 2 x 4 bricks work perfectly for building exterior walls for your tower, but you can experiment with any size you’d like. 3. Build 4 walls that are the same length. Attach bricks to the baseplate to form a foundation for your tower. These will be your ground floor exterior walls, so outline how big you want your tower to be. 4. Stagger where the seams meet as you build taller. If you stack the same piece in line with the piece below it, you line up the seams. When the seams are lined up, the tower will be less sturdy and more likely to collapse when you make it taller. 5. Avoid building interiors to save bricks. While it may be nice to have separate floors inside of your tower, it will only use more bricks in the end and cost more money. 6. Give your tower some decorations. Once you’ve finished building the basics of your tower, you can get creative by adding your own touches. Make it unique!

Lego Challenge: Transportation Innovation Your Challenge! Create a new method of transportation that is environmentally friendly. Try and think of something innovative to make you contraption move and don’t forget to make it look good. Engineering Goals: • • • Think outside the box about transportation methods that don't yet exist. Explore forms of alternative energy that are more ecofriendly. Try not to use wheels. Walking vehicles A walking vehicle is a vehicle that moves on legs rather than wheels or tracks. Walking vehicles have been constructed with anywhere from one to more than eight legs. They are classified according to the number of legs with common configurations being one leg (pogo stick or "hopper"), two legs (biped), four legs (quadruped), and six legs (hexapod). Reflection Questions Wind powered vehicles What should I do first? Wind-powered vehicles derive their power from sails, kites or rotors and ride on wheels—which may be linked to a wind-powered rotor—or runners. Whether powered by sail, kite or rotor, these vehicles share a common trait: As the vehicle increases in speed, the advancing airfoil encounters an increasing apparent wind at an angle of attack that is increasingly smaller. At the same time, such vehicles are subject to relatively low forward resistance, compared with traditional sailing craft. As a result, such vehicles are often capable of speeds exceeding that of the wind. Is something confusing me? Could I explain this to someone else? Where can I look for help? How can I do it better?

Lego Challenge: Ultimate Amusement Park Your Challenge! A theme park is a place with attractions made up of rides, such as roller coasters and water rides. Theme parks can be enjoyed by adults, teenagers and children. Design the ultimate amusement park using your knowledge of simple machines! Engineering Goals: • • • Learn about the different simple machines. Apply this knowledge to design awesome amusement park rides. Think both about safety and fun when designing new amusement park rides. Reflection Questions What should I do first? Is something confusing me? Could I explain this to someone else? Where can I look for help? How can I do it better? Ride examples Pendulum rides are amusement rides based on the motion of a fixed pendulum. The configuration of the ride consists of a gondola, arm, and an axle. One end of the arm is fitted with a passengercarrying gondola, while the other is attached to the axle. On some models, the arm extends beyond the axle and is fitted with a heavy counterweight. Bumper cars or dodgems is the generic name for a type of flat ride consisting of several small electrically powered cars which draw power from the floor and/or ceiling, and which are turned on and off remotely by an operator. A carousel roundabout or merry-go-round, is a type of amusement ride consisting of a rotating circular platform with seats for riders. The "seats" are traditionally in the form of rows of wooden horses or other animals mounted on posts, many of which are moved up and down by gears to simulate galloping. Water rides are amusement rides that are set over water. For instance, a log flume travels through a channel of water to move along its course.

Lego Challenge: Ultimate Playground Your Challenge! Modern playgrounds often have recreational equipment such as the seesaw, merry-go-round, swingset, slide, jungle gym, chinup bars, sandbox, spring rider, trapeze rings, playhouses, and mazes, many of which help children develop physical coordination, strength, and flexibility, as well as providing recreation. Design the ultimate playground using simple machines! • • A playground, playpark, or play area is a place specifically designed to enable children to play there. It is typically outdoors. While a playground is usually designed for children, some target other age groups or people with physcial disabilities. Engineering Goals: Examples of things in a playground Learn about the different simple machines. Apply this knowledge to design awesome playgrounds. A seesaw is a long, narrow board supported by a single pivot point, most commonly located at the midpoint between both ends; as one end goes up, the other goes down. These are most commonly found at parks and school playgrounds. Reflection Questions What should I do first? Is something confusing me? Could I explain this to someone else? Where can I look for help? How can I do it better? A playgroundabout is a flat disk, frequently, with bars on it that act as both hand-holds and something to lean against while riding. The disk can be made to spin by pushing or pulling on its handle. On playgrounds, several swings are often suspended from the same metal or wooden frame, known as a swing set, allowing more than one child to play at a time. Playground slides are found in parks, schools, playgrounds and backyards. The slide is an example of the simple machine known as the inclined plane, which makes moving objects up and down easier.

Lego Challenge: Water Filtration Your Challenge! Globally, clean water is not so easily accessible. Ask students to design a water filtration system that cleans out all of the germs and unsafe chemicals from dirty water to make it drinkable! Engineering Goals: • • • Define the problem that not everyone has access to clean water. Identify ways to make dirty water safe. Discuss Existing solutions Brainstorm and prototype LEGO filtration solutions to provide people with clean water. Reflection Questions What should I do first? Is something confusing me? Could I explain this to someone else? Where can I look for help? How can I do it better? How Filters Work Physical filtration provides a physical barrier that removes larger particles from your water. Chemical filtration uses simple chemical reactions on water passing through an activated material (like carbon) to remove smaller impurities that physical filters can't catch.