[Patrick O’Donnell]

Construct a sun-dial:

I think constructing a sun-dial would be a really engaging STEAM activity for almost any class in my school. Sixth class could get huge amounts of curricular integration from this as it incorporates History (the use of sun-dials by past civilizations), Geography (the impact of the weather), Maths (time) and more, not to mention the core elements of STEAM itself.

In our school, there is a flat, open area alongside the yard: I would select this as a site for the sun-dial and ask sixth class to research and consider the challenges and opportunities of this site (its open access to sunlight at all times of the day, siting the sun-dial away from the shade of the school building, etc). Children could then consider the material requirements of the sun-dial – it would have to be sturdy enough to stand up in the wind and durable enough to survive the elements. The sun-dial could be installed and children could make measurements every hour during school time and mark out the positions indicated by the sun-dial for 9 a.m., 10 a.m., etc. This would be a great activity to revisit at different times of the year to see how the sun-dial is affected by the angle of the sun and its position during different seasons.

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