Monster Machines Workshop

In this workshop students will imagine that it is the year 2102 and the Canadian Space Agency has discovered a new Solar System! In this solar system the astronauts have discovered a habitable planet, which they have fondly named Qanik (an Inuit word for falling snow). The planet is covered by snow and ice and has a winter climate all year round! The astronauts and scientists on Qanik have the difficult task of making the new planet “people-ready” before earthlings begin to make their home in the newly discovered world.

Students will be challenged to think like these astronauts and scientists and come up with machine designs that will assist in building communities on Qanik. They will work in teams of up to five students each to design, build and present their creations. Students will each be given a set of K’nex with which to build their machines. This is one of Spaceport’s latest and “coolest” workshops!!

Curricular Links:
Grade 1: Topic C: Building Things
Grade 3: Topic: B: Building with a Variety of Materials
Grade 3: Topic C: Testing Materials and Designs
Grade 4: Topic C: Building Devices and Vehicles that Move

Learner Outcomes:
SpacePort closely matches its programs to Alberta Learning’s Programs of Study for elementary and junior high grades. We are always happy to fax or email a detailed outline of how our programs match Specific Learner Expectations (SLEs) and General Learner Expectations (GLEs) as established by Alberta Learning. Please call or email our Educational Program Director for further information.

Cool and relevant space facts:
In 1991 radio astronomers detected the first extra-solar planets orbiting a dying pulsar star. Although the deadly radiation from the pulsar is not conducive to life, it was the first example of a star other than our Sun producing planets. Since then more than 100 planets have been found orbiting other stars. Some of them are orbiting extremely close to their parent star like the 51 Pegasi planetary system, while others are found to be at distances comparable to where Mars and Jupiter orbit in our solar system. (From NASA).

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