Mechanical Advantage Pacing Guide

STEM Labs are designed to be supplemental education experiences that are flexible and can be implemented in many different ways. Use the Pacing Guide to help make the Mechanical Advantage STEM Lab fit into your schedule. This STEM Lab can be adapted for a 45-, 60-, 90-, and 110-minute implementation instead of the full 180 minutes included in the materials.

Options for implementing this STEM Lab include:

If you have a limited amount of time, only complete the Seek and Play sections. The total time for both sections is 110 minutes. The students will finish with experiences in building and mechanical advantage.
An option for 90 minutes is to have a V5 Gear Box (or two) ready before class and have your students complete the Play and Rethink sections. This option uses the available time to maximize using gears for mechanical advantage.
An option for 65 minutes is to have at least one V5 Gear Box ready and have your students complete the Play and Apply sections. Students will gain programming experience in using gears while also having a sense of the context and value in building of this sort.
If you have only 45 minutes and can have at least one V5 Gear Box ready before class, have your students complete the Play section. Students will gain experience in using gear to control torque and speed.

STEM Lab pacing guides preview the concepts that are taught in each section (Seek, Play, Apply, Rethink, Know) of the STEM Lab, relate the resources that teachers can use to teach those concepts and identify all the materials that are needed. The STEM Lab Pacing Guide is an editable Google doc that you can save to your device and modify based on your classroom constraints, and the needs of your students.

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