Lesson: The STEM Brothers

Play the “Trashbots” video. Then discuss the following questions as class:

• What do Rohit and Sidharth consider a real engineer to be? (a person who finds materials around them to
create something new instead of buying materials)

• What problem did Rohit and Sidharth notice? (Teachers might not be able to teach their students technical skills adequately since materials and tools are so expensive. Also, resources might be scarce.)

• What was their solution? (They built a basic robotics kit that would make resources and tools more accessible.)

Distribute or digitally share the “Similarities and Differences” literacy skills sheet. Read the instructions aloud to students. Tell students that the article they are about to read is a Kidpreneur File. Have each student choose a past Kidpreneur to read or reread about from the September, October, or November 2020 issues. Then have students read about Rohit and Sidharth Srinivasan individually. Each student can use the skills sheet to compare and contrast the Srinivasan brothers and the past Kidpreneur they chose. Allow a few student volunteers to share their comparisons.

Have a volunteer read through the introduction and chart of the “Supply Cost & Unit Rate” box on pages 22 and 23. Then read question 1 aloud and ask:

• How can you find the single Popsicle stick cost if purchasing 10,000? (Look at the chart to find how much 10,000 Popsicle  sticks cost. Divide this cost by 10,000.)

• Is there a shortcut you can use rather than dividing by 10,000? (10,000 is a power of 10. So you can move the decimal point of $725.20 to the left 4 spaces.)

Extend students’ knowledge of calculating unit rates to include simplifying unit rates that are expressed as complex fractions. Remind students that fraction bars are synonymous with division—they can divide the numerator by the denominator to simplify the complex fraction. Refresh students’ memories on how to divide fractions, then allow students to practice simplifying some examples of complex fractions.

Have students research where there might be need in your community—it may be at a school, a homeless shelter, an animal shelter, etc. Choose one need as a class. Then have students work in small groups to design a fund-raiser that will raise money for that cause. Students can offer unit prices and discount bulk prices on the goods or services that they sell.

Introduce students to scratch.mit.edu, which is a free, kid-friendly coding program. Students can learn and practice coding basics.

Have students find bulk prices of items that they use every day, such as pencils or bottled drinks. Then have them find the unit price of at least 3 items.