STEAM Park
Teacher Guide

45024

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Table of Contents

Table of Contents
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  3Learning Grid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  5

Find all lessons on legoeducation.com/lessons
Beginner – Getting Started – Functional Elements
Become familiar with the special elements in the STEAM Park set

Beginner – Getting Started – Welcome to STEAM Park
Become familiar with the STEAM Park set and characters

Beginner – Ramps
Learn about how and why things roll, and predict and measure distances

Beginner – Moving on Water
Learn about how and why and things float, and design and test sails

Intermediate – Probability
Learn about probability, making predictions, and recording dat aIntermediate – Performing Arts
Learn about different forms of art

Advance – Gears
Learn about how gears work

Advance – Chain Reactions
Learn about cause and effect by creating chain reactions

2Introduction

STEAM
Park
Teacher Guide Introduction
Who is the material for?

The STEAM Park Teacher Guide is for kindergarten teachers. It is designed to help
teachers develop students’ science, technology, engineering, art, and math (STEAM)
skills, including understanding cause and effect relationships, making predictions
and observations, problem-solving, and creating representations.

What is it for?

Throughout the lessons, students will explore the world around them as they use
functional elements to build interactive models.
Using the Teacher Guide, kindergarten teachers can facilitate exciting lessons in which
students learn to think like scientists as they build models, and experiment and test
ideas to answer questions such as:• Which items will sink? Which items will float?
• What will happen if I roll the car down the ramp?
• How can I make a chain reaction?

How are the learning objectives achieved?

Throughout the lessons, strategic questions will guide students through the processof applying science, technology, engineering, art, and math skills. Furthermore, theLEGO® DUPLO building activities will reinforce the students creativity.
The unit includes two Getting Started lessons designed to introduce the students tothe basic ways they will be using the STEAM Park set. Introducing these activities firstwill give the students a solid foundation for completing the other six lessons.
Subsequent lessons may be selected according to what is most relevant andappropriate for the students.

Printables

The lessons may contain three types of printables: templates, graphs, and inspiration
photos showing lesson-related models. The inspiration photos can be used to help
the students connect to the lesson, and may also be used as building inspiration
when students are constructing their own models.

Customizing to Your Class Needs

The STEAM Park lessons can be tailored to your needs and the needs of your class.
One STEAM Park set can be used with up to six students at a time, working in pairs.
Students need a lot of practice before they become proficient at building with apartner, and this is a good way to promote collaboration. The activities can be donein centers or stations around the classroom, or in small groups.

Lesson Structure

Each lesson is structured according to a natural learning flow called theLEGO® Education 4C Approach, which promotes successful learning experiences.
The Connect and Construct phases, which are the first two phases of each lesson,
can be done in one 20-minute session. To ensure that young students are activelyengaged, the Contemplate and Continue phases can be completed during a latersession.

3Introduction
ConnectDuring the Connect phase, short stories and discussions will spark students curiosityand activate their existing knowledge while preparing them for a new learningexperience.

Construct

In this phase, the students will participate in a hands-on building activity. As theirhands create models of people, places, objects, and ideas, their minds will organizeand store new information related to these structures.

Contemplate

During the Contemplate phase, students are given the opportunity to reflect onwhat they have done, and to talk about and share insights they have gained during
theConstruct phase of the lesson.

Continue

New challenges in this phase build upon the concepts students learned previously inthe lesson. These extension activities enable students to apply their newly-acquiredknowledge.

Did you notice?

The lessons have been developed using the the Next Generation Science Standards,
and the Common Core State Standards. They also support the science, math, andtechnology guidelines from the National Association for the Education of YoungChildren (NAEYC).
Please refer to the learning grid (p. 5) for an overview of these education guidelines.
The Observation Checklist is listed at the end of each lesson can be used todetermine whether or not each student is developing the relevant skills. These steps
and bullet points target specific skills or pieces of information that are practiced orpresented during each lesson.

4

CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.K.G.A.1

NGSS K-PS2-1

CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.K.G.B.4

NGSS K-2-ETS1-1

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.K.3

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.K.6

CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.K.CC.C.6

CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.K.MD.B.3

CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.K.MD.A.1

NGSS K-2-ETS1-3

CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.K.CC.B.4

NGSS K-PS2-2

NGSS K-2-ETS1-1

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.K.4

STEAMPark
Learning
Grid

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.K.5

Learning Grid

Getting Started Functional Elements
Getting Started Welcome to STEAM Park
Ramps
Moving on Water
Probability
Performing Arts
Gears
Chain Reaction

CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.K.MD.A.1.
Describe measurable attributes of objects, such as length or weight. Describe several measurable attributes of a single object.
CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.K.G.A.1
Describe objects in the environment using names of shapes, and describe the relative positions of these objects using terms such as above, below, beside,in front of, behind, and next to.
CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.K.MD.B.3
Classify objects into given categories; count the numbers of objects in each category and sort the categories by count.
CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.K.G.B.4
Analyze and compare two- and three-dimensional shapes, in different sizes and orientations, using informal language to describe their similarities,
differences, parts (e.g., number of sides and vertices/”corners”) and other attributes (e.g., having sides of equal length).
CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.K.CC.B.4
Understand the relationship between numbers and quantities; connect counting to cardinality.
CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.K.CC.C.6
Identify whether the number of objects in one group is greater than, less than, or equal to the number of objects in another group, e.g., by using matching
and counting strategies.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.K.3
Use a combination of drawing, dictating, and writing to narrate a single event or several loosely linked events, tell about the events in the order in which
they occurred, and provide a reaction to what happened.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.K.4
Describe familiar people, places, things, and events and, with prompting and support, provide additional detail.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.K.5
Add drawings or other visual displays to descriptions as desired to provide additional detail.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.K.6
Speak audibly and express thoughts, feelings, and ideas clearly.
NGSS K-2-ETS1-1.
Ask questions, make observations, and gather information about a situation people want to change to define a simple problem that can be solved throughthe development of a new or improved object or tool.
NGSS K-2-ETS1-3.
Analyze data from tests of two objects designed to solve the same problem to compare the strengths and weaknesses of how each performs.
NGSS K-PS2-1.
Plan and conduct an investigation to compare the effects of different strengths or different directions of pushes and pulls on the motion of an object.
NGSS K-PS2-2.
Analyze data to determine if a design solution works as intended to change the speed or direction of an object with a push or a pull.

5

Help your kindergartners
develop i­mportant skills

The Kindergarten solutions from LEGO® Education equip teachers to
instantly engage their students in playful, hands-on, curriculum-relevant
learning that encourages students to practice and apply essential skills
and knowledge.
Students develop early STEAM, Literacy and Computer Science skills
through standards-aligned lessons using familiar DUPLO® bricks.
A foundation for entry to the LEGO® Learning System, the Kindergarten
solutions provide educational experiences that build students’
confidence in learning as they begin school and prepare for the future.

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