Upper School Engineering Students Teach the Dynamics of Flight to Grade 2 Tartans

Pasternack Field House was filled with joyful learning and wonderment for STEM this week, as grade 2 students were taught by the Upper School’s introduction to engineering class in a fun-filled interactive lesson on the dynamics of flight. The presentation aligned with the grade 2 STEM theme of air.

The Lower School students were divided into six groups, each with two Upper School students teaching terminology such as roll, pitch, yaw, throttle, lift and rudder. The students then put the lesson to work in fun activities associated with each term. There were walk-along foam gliders to learn about pitch, balloon helicopters to teach throttle, an airboat to learn rudder and paper gliders to demonstrate lift.

“I was very impressed with the engineering students’ ability to break down complex topics related to grade 2’s STEM theme,” said grade 2 teacher Christee McCarthy. “They were able to teach the younger students in a very engaging manner.”

At the end of the hour, engineering teacher Steve Harless introduced the grade 2 students to quadcopter drones that the Upper School students built in class. Senior Logan Smith operated one, landing it inside of a box and navigating it through a hoop as the younger Tartans cheered him on. The quadcopters took several weeks to build and were purchased through the generosity of a PTF grant.

For the engineering students, teaching the younger Tartans what they learned in the unit served as a fun way to demonstrate their comprehension of the subject matter.

“The younger students definitely appreciated the things we work on in class,” Logan said. “It was neat that they get to see all stuff we get to build, and all the smiles on their faces were really great.”

Mr. Harless did a similar presentation last year to grade 2 students, but chose this year to have his engineering students lead the demonstrations. The Upper School students spent three class periods preparing and practicing their presentations.

“It was a powerful experience to see our second graders challenged and inspired by the engineering students in this incredible cross-divisional STEM presentation,” Mrs. McCarthy said. “In a classroom follow-up discussion, our students shared that they loved the presentation because they were able to interact with the older students and it was fun to have Upper School students teaching them.”