Ridgefield fourth graders create electronic inventions

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Fourth graders at Union Ridge Elementary School created inventions using electronic circuits as part of their science classes and demonstrated the inventions during a special Invention Fair for family members and other attendees.

The project stemmed from a science project from Full Option Science System (FOSS) kits typically used to teach students the basics of electronics including the differences between parallel and series electronic circuits.

"The students enjoyed learning about the different circuits so much that I built on the basic project to create the Invention Fair," said Kelly O'Boyle, fourth grade science teacher at Union Ridge. "The new project takes what the students learned to the next level by inspiring them to create their own electronic inventions."

Unlike preset scientific experiments, many students' inventions didn't work on the first try.

"This is a very challenging project for my high-level thinkers because they're learning how inventions often don't work correctly the first time," explained O'Boyle.

As part of the project, students were asked to describe their invention, draw scientific diagrams and create schematic drawings showing how their inventions work. Some students even brought items from home to help create more elaborate inventions. In addition, students studied other inventors including Alexander Graham Bell, Nikola Tesla and Thomas Edison.

Throughout the process of creating their inventions, students kept records of their changes.

"The recordkeeping can become quite tricky because it adds deliberate methodology to the process of creation," said O'Boyle. "Students get very excited to change their invention, but recording the changes is almost as important as the change itself so students can see what works and what doesn't work."

To help reinforce the concepts students were learning in their English Language Arts classes, O'Boyle assigned students a writing assignment asking students to describe their experiences creating their inventions.



"With the new Common Core standards, I try to reinforce what my students are learning in their English classes by having them reiterate the concepts in my science classes," said O'Boyle. "The quotes the students wrote about their experiences creating their inventions were almost as powerful as the inventions themselves."

Some student quotes included the following:

• "It's not about the fun of building the experiment, but about if you learn something or you enjoy it," said Alexander Raymond.

• "Inventing is important, and even though things get rough you should never give up,"  said Carl Molina.

• "Inventing is fun and hard at the same time. It also a work of art," said Jayson Volkoff.

• "Inventors' inventions are far from perfect, but it doesn't mean you don't try to make it perfect," said Paige Stepaniuk.

• "Scientists are never perfect, so they are always changing their experiments," said Jordyn Davies.

Parents and family members attended a special Invention Fair to see the inventions their students created over the course of the project. O'Boyle intends to assign this project every year as part of every fourth grader's science studies.