Save Fred

Save Fred

Today my students did such a fun activity. It's called "Save Fred." You can get information on it HERE.

Fred is a worm (gummy worm) who goes out on his boat (plastic cup). A strong wind blows the boat over & Fred is stranded on top. Fred brought his life preserver (gummy ring), but it's under the boat. To "save Fred" students must find a way to get the life preserver snugly around Fred. The trick? Students may not touch Fred, the boat, or the life preserver with their hands. They may only use their oars (paper clips) to do this. If Fred falls in the sea (the desk) more than 1 time then he drowns. Fred also can't be injured in any way. (Think stabbing Fred with the paperclip.)

I put the online timer on the screen, gave students the instructions, and set them loose. Students had to be able to problem solve and work together. This activity gives you a good idea of how strong your students are at problem solving and how to participate in a group. You can quickly see which students are "leaders" in the room, bossy students, and students who are content to sit back and just watch. Without the entire group participating it's unlikely Fred will be saved.

I know after doing the activity with my students today that problem solving is not something they are skilled at and we will need to spend a lot of time working on and discussing strategies to solve problems.  They still had a lot of fun and I gave them all worms to eat afterwards.

Afterwards I had students fill out a flow chart & rate how well their group worked together. We then discussed the different strategies & challenges their group faced as a class. I found a great free flow chart. HERE,

When I do this activity next year I"m going to use the SOUR gummy worms instead of the regular. The brand I bought this year were really sticky & I believe that played a role in them not being able to get Fred through the life saver as easily. I think the sugar coating will make them less sticky. I will also consider giving them maybe 6-7 minutes instead of 5 minutes. It was a great activity though & one I didn't have to worry about my peanut allergy students having to sit out.