PR-6171IRE Science A STEM Approach - 1st Class

Earth and the Environment
IN THE SKY AND ON THE LAND
STEM project Project
STEM Project:
Teacher Notes
Pupils design a day and night scene for a video game using Toondoo and use a video to explain
the scenes and how the video game character interacts with the scenes.
Estimated duration: 2–4 weeks
1. Introduce the project
• Pupils share what video games they have
played. Can you describe what scenes
are in the game? Are they in the day or
the night? What kind of features are in the
scenes? Natural? Constructed?
• Make a T-chart of natural and constructed
features as suggested by the pupils.
• Read the project brief on page 160.
2. Investigate
• View the website as a class. It will be helpful to set
up a login account and give the password
details to pupils when it is their turn to
explore the website in pairs. You may also
wish to pre-prepare a scene to show pupils
what can be done in Toondoo. You can use
DoodleR to free draw or select appropriate
backgrounds and props from the icon
buttons.
• Allow pupils one or two lessons to play
around with Toondoo and familiarise
themselves with how the program works
and all of the icon buttons so they can view
the images and scenes contained within
the program. It is flash based so will only be
accessible on a computer.
• Teachers may wish to use an alternative
program or application.
3. Design, plan and manage
• Pupils select a character in Toondoo and
sketch a rough plan of what their scene will
look like based on this character; i.e. if they
choose a queen as their character then the
background may include a castle, river and
bridges that they need to cross or collect
gems to earn points. A template is provided
on page 163.
• Pupils list what features they want to
include in their day and night scene using
the Venn diagram on page 162. Will some
of the features used in the day scene be
used in the night scene too?
• Pupils write a brief synopsis for their
game using page 164, including how the
character needs to move and what the
character needs to achieve in the day and
night scenes, in order to aid them with their
description for the video presentation to be
recorded later.
4. Make
• Pupils create a day scene and night scene
using Toondoo. Each scene must include
at least one natural and one constructed
feature.
5. Evaluate and refine
• Pupils check that their morning and night
scenes contain at least one natural feature
and one constructed feature, and are
appropriate for day and night landscapes
and skies. Then they will need to make the
appropriate changes.
6. Communicate
• Pupils save and print out their final version
of their day and night scenes from Toondoo
and glue them onto card.
• Pupils record a video explaining their video
game, character and what they need to do
in the day and night scenes, and what part
the features play in the scene. Alternatively,
they can write a script explaining what
happens in each screen.
• Set up a classroom display of the printouts
of the scenes created in Toondoo, or view
the saved files online in your Toondoo
account. Share the videos with the class
and discuss any unusual features for the
day and night landscape and sky. The video
can also be shared via email or submitted
to the school website for friends and family
to watch.
Viewing sample
Prim-Ed Publishing – www.prim-ed.com 978-1-912760-15-2 1st Science: 159
CLASS
A STEM APPROACH