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Third grade teacher Jessica Rossi is always willing to go the extra mile in order to provide her students with unique, memorable, and engaging learning experiences at Rodgers Forge Elementary. Most recently, she devised a hands-on simulation experience for her students to try using drones to carry out real-life scenarios. The students first read an article about the many ways that drones are currently being used in our society as well as ways they may be used in the future. After identifying and discussing identified situations, students actually went outside to fly drones through six simulation experiences. For example, one group attached a “pesticide” card to their drone, had to fly it several feet in front of them and land it in a hula hoop sized-spaced, designated as the “apple orchard.” Team members then had to remove the “pesticide” card from the drone, attach an “apple” card to the drone, and fly it back to the starting point in order to successfully complete the mission. This simulated the real-world use of drones to dispense pesticide on crops that are being attached by insects, and then to later deliver a healthy apple to someone’s doorstep.
The entire simulation experience connected to an opinion writing piece that students would be working on next, stating whether or not they believe that drones are valuable to society. From their own simulation experience, students were able to talk through various problems that could be presented. For example, students who were simulating the use of a drone to deliver pizza discovered that drone flight is not always stable, due to user control issues or wind factors. They realized that this could cause the pizza to tilt from side to side, which could cause the cheese to slide to one side or to get stuck to the box. They also recognized the difficulty of accurate landings, especially with unpredictable wind, and students worried that the pizza might accidentally be delivered to a neighboring house instead. Students took these valuable observations and more away from the simulation in order to write their opinion essays, and, as you can imagine, they are itching to get back outside with the drones for another experience soon!
The entire simulation experience connected to an opinion writing piece that students would be working on next, stating whether or not they believe that drones are valuable to society. From their own simulation experience, students were able to talk through various problems that could be presented. For example, students who were simulating the use of a drone to deliver pizza discovered that drone flight is not always stable, due to user control issues or wind factors. They realized that this could cause the pizza to tilt from side to side, which could cause the cheese to slide to one side or to get stuck to the box. They also recognized the difficulty of accurate landings, especially with unpredictable wind, and students worried that the pizza might accidentally be delivered to a neighboring house instead. Students took these valuable observations and more away from the simulation in order to write their opinion essays, and, as you can imagine, they are itching to get back outside with the drones for another experience soon!
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