Treasure Adventure

ENGINEERING TASK

Inspired by Pete the Cat and the Treasure Map by James Dean

MATERIALS IN KITS

• Gold painted rocks (Treasure)
• 15 craft sticks
• 5 rubber bands
• 10 straws
• 5 aluminum foil sheets
• Masking tape
• Scissors

READ & TALK

Read the book, Pete the Cat and the Treasure Map.

In the story, Pete the Cat and his friends go on a treasure hunt. Their ship is built to withhold the storms and carry the treasure back to their home.

Suppose you were going to hide a treasure or a gift for me to find, where would you bury it? What would you map look like? What clues would you provide?

ENGINEERING TASK

RESEARCH

There are many different kinds of boats. How many types of boats can you think of? Draw or ask someone to help you write them all. For more types of boats, watch these videos:

PLAN

Based on your research, design/sketch 2-3 boats. All boats have names, so you should name each of your designs.

PLAN

In addition to using materials from the kit, you can find items inside and outside our house that starts with the letters below. Think about what we might need to create your boat. Only one object per letter, but you can have more than one of that object. For example, for the letter P, you can use 15 paper clips or maybe 5 purple crayons. Get creative!

CREATE

Pick one of your designs. Construct something that will carry your treasure across stormy water.

 

TEST & IMPROVE

Place your boat in a bucket or a tub of water. Gently put your treasure (golden rocks) inside your boat and let it go. Did your boat stay afloat or did it sink? Can you add another rock?

What changes or improvements might we make? Why?

 

COMMUNICATE

Engineers have to be able to talk about their process and their prototype to a wider audience. We want you to create one of the following to tell someone else in your family or a friend about how you built a boat to hold a treasure.

Create a story. Or how about a song?

Or maybe a picture book full of drawings.

Who might your characters be?

 

 

DID YOU KNOW…?

There are engineers that create things that can work in environments like the ocean? They are called ocean engineers. Watch this video to learn more

And did you know that oceans cover about 70% of the Earth’s surface? Also, did you know that there about one million species of animals that live in the ocean? [We suggest having a discussion and/or draw a visual to illustrate the size of one million and the meaning of 70%.]

SHARE THE FUN AND PASS IT ON!

Thank you for participating.

When you are done with this project, gift the book and the directions to your friend to make the idea of engineering float.

RESEARCH – OPTIONAL QUESTIONS

Optional questions to ask after watching the videos:

• What was your favorite boat in the video? Why?
• “Do you remember…?” Relate to prior experiences with boats or where you have seen a boat such as in a movie or cartoon.
• Which type of boat would be suitable to hold our treasure? (Explore the treasure rocks.) Tell me why.
• I noticed _____ about _____(e.g., a canoe). What do you think?

TEST & IMPROVE – OPTIONAL QUESTIONS

Optional questions to ask:

• Would you consider this test a success or failure? Tell me what happened that made you think this.
• I noticed _____. (Note something positive about the test.)
• What do you think would happen if we used a hairdryer or a fan to make stormy water?
• Based on the test, what should we try next? Why do you think this?