Separate the class into groups of 3 and explain to them to use the tools in front of them to build the tallest structure that holds the large marshmallow.
Each group will receive...
-1 yard of tape
-handful of mini marshmallows
-one large marshmallow
-18 spaghetti noodles
Set the timer for 18 minutes and watch!
During this time, I said nothing. I actually took notes of what students were saying to each other so that I could refer to it later.
"It's ok if we don't win."
"We are not working together."
"Just use your imagination."
"This is getting really frustrating."
"Winning is just for fun."
"Never quit."
When the timer went off, I had a group that won and I also had some students who were frustrated and upset. We gathered on the carpet to talk about what went well, what didn't go well, were the tools helpful, did you have enough supplies, did you have enough time, etc.
Then we ended with thinking about what we learned after doing this marshmallow challenge. THIS IS WHERE THE PROBLEM SOLVING MINDSET COMES IN! Check out what we came up with!
We used this activity along with the book called The Most Magnificent Thing.
