Run the How Much Will It Absorb Diaper STEAM Activity as a real lab for 4th to 6th grade: test diaper gel, convert capacity units, and design a diaper, with an answer key included.
Using the Computer Whiz Reward Certificate for Boys, your student will feel celebrated and recognized for their accomplishment of being a computer whiz.
Using the Computer Whiz Reward Certificate for Girls, your student will feel celebrated and recognized for their accomplishment of being a computer whiz.
Think it, design it, test it
Sixth grade technology mixes digital skills with real design thinking. Students build typing speed, learn to research safely and judge whether a website is reliable, and practice digital citizenship, like protecting passwords and being kind online. Many classes add beginning coding with blocks or simple scripts. They also use the engineering design process: ask, imagine, plan, create, test and improve. The click moment is a student whose first design fails and who figures out exactly how to make version two better.
Tech class works best when kids are making, testing and talking about real choices. These moves keep it hands-on.
Give teams a real question, like which material absorbs the most water, and have them predict, test and record results. Then ask, "What would you change next time?" The improve step is where the engineering thinking happens.
Why it works: the U.S. Department of Education's guide for teaching elementary math recommends moving from hands-on objects to drawings to numbers.
Try it withHow Much Will It Absorb Diaper STEAM ActivityActivitiesOpen it →Project a search and narrate your choices: "This site has no author and lots of ads. Hmm, let's check a second source." Kids learn what careful research looks like by watching you do it.
Why it works: showing first, practicing together, then letting kids try alone is the "gradual release" model teachers have relied on for decades (Pearson and Gallagher, 1983).
Try it withSmartboard Attendance CheckerActivitiesOpen it →Start each tech class with a short typing warm-up instead of one long unit. Steady practice over the year builds speed and accuracy that sticks.
Why it works: spreading practice out over days is one of the two most effective study methods in a major research review (Dunlosky and colleagues, 2013).
Try it withComputer Whiz Reward Certificate for BoysOpen it →Tech time can be the most fun period of the day.
ActivitiesKids tap the board to check in each morning, practicing quick, confident screen skills.
Open Smartboard Attendance Checker →
One student writes step-by-step directions and a partner follows them exactly, like a robot.
Open Computer Whiz Reward Certificate for Girls →Teacher favorites right now: Smartboard Attendance Checker, How Much Will It Absorb Diaper STEAM Activity and Computer Whiz Reward Certificate for Boys.
Most 6th graders are building keyboarding speed, using documents and slides, researching online, judging reliable sources, and practicing digital citizenship. Many also start basic coding.
It is a set of steps engineers use to solve problems: ask, imagine, plan, create, test and improve. Kids repeat the steps, learning from each test to make a better design.
Talk about real situations, like what to do if someone posts something unkind or asks for personal information. Role-plays and discussions work better than a list of rules.
Let kids research a topic they love and talk about which sites they trust. Typing games, simple coding apps and building projects together all help too.
Loved by 2 million teachers & families
Printables, songs and games for every subject, Preschool through 6th. Ready to teach today, and kids beg for more.
