Exchange: Oobleck, Slime, and Playdough Materials Engineering for the Elementary Classroom

• Published in: Association for Engineering Education - Engineering Library Division Papers p. 22.666.1
• Main Authors: Gerdemann, Gail Ellen, Willie (Skip) E. Rochefort
• Format: Conference Proceeding
• Language: English
• Published: Atlanta American Society for Engineering Education-ASEE 26.06.2011
• Subjects: Borax; Castles; Children; Children & youth; Childrens literature; Classrooms; Engineering; Engineering education; Exchanging; Materials engineering; Properties (attributes); Slime; Students

EXCHANGE: Oobleck, Slime, and Playdough Materials Engineering for the Elementary ClassroomOne aspect of Materials Engineering that is accessible to young children is the opportunity tovary a "recipe" and see how that affects the properties of a substance. Children enjoy playingwith materials with interesting properties; oobleck (cornstarch and water), slime (glue, borax,and water), and playdough (flour, salt, and water) fascinate. Just interacting with thesesubstances is a great way to develop scientific descriptive vocabulary, but take it a step furtherwith an engineering challenge. This can be approached from two angles: (1) start with a problemto be solved, perhaps from children's literature, and challenge students to adjust the process tomeet the criteria for success OR (2) start with the strange properties the substance has and comeup with a problem the substance solves. This presentation will demonstrate some of theengineering design projects students can do with oobleck, slime, and playdough. All lessonshave been tested in elementary classrooms by the author and other classroom teachers.Starting with children's literature, for example Bartholomew and the Oobleck by Dr. Seuss,challenge students to design a moat around the castle to keep out those who don't know the"trick" for crossing OR a moat that traps those trying to get to the castle. What proportions ofcornstarch and water create the most solid support (if you know how to move on it) and which"recipe" might be sticky enough to trap intruders? Can you make up a variation of the story tomatch your oobleck's properties?Designing a "toy" with certain properties is another way to start the engineering designchallenge. Allow students to spend time exploring the properties of slime to see what fun thingscan be done with it. Ask them to vary its recipe to maximize bounciness or its ability tomaintain its shape. Write an ad for this new toy describing the properties that make it fun.Starting with criteria for success is another way to launch a materials engineering designchallenge. Playdough is a familiar childhood material. Can students design tests (snake test orcookie cutter test) to check the quality of playdough they mix? Can they find different waysplaydough can be used depending on the recipe?This presentation will provide an opportunity to experiment with two versions each of oobleck,slime, and playdough and allow participants to deduce their recipes. Fun for materials engineersof all ages!