iSTEM Assessment Task

What are the qualities that we value in this activity?
This activity allows students to spend time modeling play-doh to create imaginative artistic sculptures. It also invites students to use the material as a purely functional “wire” to conduct the electricity. But when those two combine, people begin to operate in the sweet spot between art, science, and technology.

Materials that invite inquiry
It’s hard to think of a material more accessible and inviting than Play-Doh. The tactile pleasure of squishing, molding, and sculpting malleable dough unleashes untapped wells of creativity. The batteries, buzzers, LEDs, and motors are familiar as well, and offer possibilities for building understanding of how electrical connections work.

STEM content is a means, not an end
This activity allows opportunities for exploring series and parallel circuits, polarity, or the creation of complex switches. Resistance may be explored by passing current through a long tube or squeezing the wad of dough hooked up to a motor.