Lesson overview

Part two sees students develop their understanding of levers and pulleys and relates this to how cranes launch and recover submersibles. Students will continue to develop their crane, this time adding a lever or pulley system which will raise and lower their submarine model. Students will reflect on their build, evaluate the effectiveness of their cranes and make suggestions for improvements. Finally, students will demonstrate their learning by creating a poster which describes and explains how cranes work to launch and recover submersibles, concluding the Submarine STEM unit.

Learning outcomes

• Describe how machines help people
• Describe and apply the features of a stable structure
• Construct a working model of a crane
• Reflect on learning and plan next steps

Lesson steps

1. Levers and pulleys (10 mins)
   Students investigate how levers and pulleys work and how their cranes will use these to launch the submersible.
   
2. Plan and build (30 mins)
   Students plan and construct the levers and pulleys on their cranes and test their function using model submersibles.
   
3. Evaluate and improve (10 mins)
   In pairs students consider how effective their crane is through evaluation and make suggestions for improvements.
   
4. Demonstrate learning (10mins)
   Students design a poster which demonstrates how cranes launch and recover submersibles.

England

Science Key Stage 2

Forces

• Pulleys, gears and levers

Materials

• Properties of materials

Working scientifically

• Investigation skills: planning, taking measurements, recording data, making predictions
• Scientific conclusions: reporting and presenting, using evidence

USA

• Engineering Design
  3-5-ETS1-1. Define a simple design problem reflecting a need or a want that includes specified criteria for success and constraints on materials, time, or cost.
  3-5-ETS1-2. Generate and compare multiple possible solutions to a problem based on how well each is likely to meet the criteria and constraints of the problem.