Robo Hand

1. Ask child what kind of things they can do with their hands.
2. Have child act them out:
   1. Safety and defense (blocking,
      holding on)
   2. Eating
   3. Constructing (building, drawing,
      writing)
   4. Communicating (pointing, waving,
      sign language)

1. Construct the robo hand project with students
2. Students take time to familiarize themselves with the anatomy of the hand
   1. How it bends
   2. Number of fingers, function of the thumb
   3. What happens when they lose the use of a finger?

1. Discuss humans’ hands vs. other animals.
   1. Do other animals have hands?
   2. How are they different? How are they similar?
2. Read a few books on animals and discuss:
   1. What if a creature doesn’t have hands?
   2. How might they solve the problems we use our hands for?
      1. Safety and defense (blocking, holding on)
      2. Eating
      3. Constructing (building, drawing, writing)
      4. Communicating (pointing, waving, sign language)
3. Discuss various animals and their evolved traits.
   1. Tongues, shells, beaks, claws, trunk etc.

1. Student picks one problem we solve with our hands.
2. Use a variety of materials to create a device to mimic an animal completing the task.
   Examples:
   1. An elephant trunk to grab and eat
   2. A turtle shell to defend from predators

NGSS CONNECTION:

1-LS1-1. Use materials to design a solution to a human problem by mimicking how plants and/or animals use their external parts to help them survive, grow, and meet their needs.*

COMMON CORE CONNECTION:

ELA/Literacy

W.1.7 Participate in shared research and writing projects (e.g., explore a number of how-to books on a topic and use them to write a sequence of instructions).

DOK:

Level 3: Strategic Thinking
Level 4: Extended Thinking