The Arizona STEM Acceleration Project
Tornado Towers
Tornado Towers
A 2-5 grade STEM lesson
Leanne Phillips
June 11, 2024
Notes for teachers
This lesson plan an be adapted to any age group. It is great for team building. I would recommend students working in groups of 3-4.
List of Materials: PER GROUP
Standards
Science and Engineering
SEP 1.1
Ask questions about what would happen if a variable is changed.
SEP 1.2
Identify scientific (testable) and non-scientific (non- testable) questions.
SEP 1.3
Ask questions that can be investigated and predict reasonable outcomes based on patterns such as cause and effect relationships.
3rd grade Math
3.MD.A
Solve problems involving measurement.
2nd grade Math
2.MD.A
Measure and estimate lengths in standard units.
Standards
Cross Cutting Concepts
CCC.1
Patterns - Observed patterns of forms and events guide organization and classification, and they prompt questions about relationships and the factors that influence them.
CCC.2
Cause and Effect - Events have causes, sometimes simple, sometimes multifaceted. A major activity of science is investigating and explaining causal relationships and the mechanisms by which they are mediated. Such mechanisms can then be tested across given contexts and used to predict and explain events in new contexts.
Objective(s):
Students will modify a paper towel tube so that it is able to withstand at least 15 seconds of high wind from a “tornado’s wind field”.
Agenda (30 minutes)
~Begin the lesson by discussing different types of environmental factors that could impact a structure (hurricanes, earthquakes, lightning strikes, snow/ice storms, flooding, and TORNADOES!)
~Demonstrate the wind level of the fan on an unmodified paper towel roll before students begin building. Having this knowledge will help students see the force of the “tornado’s wind field” being output by the fan.
~After placing students in groups, hand out their materials.
~ Give groups about 15 minutes before testing the first round.
~ If time permits, allow them to make modifications and retest and to answer reflection questions.
Intro/Driving Question/Opening
Begin the lesson by asking students if they have ever heard of tornadoes and what they know about them.
Show a short video or images of tornadoes to capture students' interest and introduce the topic. There are several on YouTube that you can choose from depending on the grade level you are choosing to do this activity with.
Hands-on Activity Instructions
Hands-on Activity
Assessment
~Teams will take their Tornado Towers to the fan.
~They will measure out a distance of 15 inches and place their tower
in that spot in front of the fan.
~ The teacher will turn fan on to full force (as they did for the demonstration)
~ The groups will watch their tower to see what needs to be modified so
that their tower can last longer during the “winds”
~ Modifications will be made and the teams can retest.
Reflection Questions
What was your groups strategy?
What worked will in your group?
What would you do differently after seeing how your tower performed in the test?
Share one thing you learned about tornados in today’s lesson.
Share one thing you learned about structure building in today’s lesson.
Differentiation
Groups can be grouped together by ability level. This activity can also be done on its own if there is a particular student that prefers to work alone.
Remediation
Extension/Enrichment
To extend the lesson, allow students to improve their towers after the initial test. Allow 10-15 minutes for alterations. Then, run the test again. Optionally, track the change in the time each tower held between its initial and second test.