Teacher ViewDay 11 of 30Build

Build the levee

Design a Resilient Community · Grade 6 · 75 min studio · 6 teams of 4

Prep materials Preview the student day →

Build days

Full teacher dossier · Day 11 anchor lesson

At a glance

Timing

75 min · mini-lesson → build → test → reflect

Grouping

6 teams of 4 · keep the Week 2 teams

Evidence

4 individual artifacts per student

Safety

Water station · towels ready · closed shoes

Today's objectives

MathMGSE6.G.2
Compute levee volume (V = l × w × h); justify units.
ScienceS6E3.c
Explain how surface water moves; how landforms redirect it.
ELAELAGSE6W2
Write a 150-word evidence-based watershed note w/ 2 sources.
SocialSS6G1
Identify which neighborhoods bear risk when a levee redirects water.

17 Georgia standards

Materials · per team of 4

Foam board sheets×1
Shallow test pans×1
Water pitchers, 1 L×1
Blue painters tape×1
Metric rulers, 30-pack×4
Stopwatch timers, 4-pack×1
Sharpies, assorted 12-pack×2
Plastic storage bins with lids×1
Existing tabletop community model

Shared at the sink: towels, sand refills, spare pan. 6 bins packed and labeled.

Unboxing & prep Open Materials

Room setup · two zones

6 clusters of 4. Clear the counter as "flood testing" near the sink. Chromebook carts closed until minute 65.

[ Alpha ]  [ Bravo ]      [ SINK ]
                          ┌──────┐
[ Delta ]  [ Echo  ]      │ TEST │
                          └──────┘
           [ TEACHER STATION ]

Vocabulary in play

Watershed

Land draining to a common water body.

Overtopping

Water spilling over a levee's top.

Seepage

Water passing through or under a levee.

Freeboard

Extra height above design flood level.

Floodplain

Flat land next to a river that floods.

Mitigation

Reduce harm.

Lesson script

Say this. Do this. A floor, not a ceiling.

Teaching styleShort teach, long build, whole-class debrief.

Hook 5 · teach 7 · build and test 45 · debrief 10 · write alone 10

Same standards, same materials, same evidence. Only the way the period runs changes.

Time · Phase

Say

0:00
Hook
"Yesterday you designed a levee on paper. Today we build it and flood it."
Show the tabletop model. Point to the river bend. Put today's evidence checklist on the board.
0:05
Mini-lesson
"Watch. Two ways levees fail — overtopping and seepage. Which one are you designing against?"
Play the 3-minute video. Pause at 2:10. Cold-call two students, chart the answers.
0:12
Release
"You have 40 minutes to build and test. Your own evidence is due by 1:00. Roles from Monday."
Release teams to materials in wave order — Delta first, they need the long pan.
0:15
Build
Circulate. Ask, don't answer.
Lap one: check every team measured before cutting foam. Flag teams skipping the ruler.
0:35
Test
"Time to flood. 500 mL, poured steady. Record before and after."
Lap two: watch who is holding the phone. Rotate the role if the same student had it Monday.
0:55
Debrief
"Bring your levee back. What is your before and after? What surprised you?"
Circle up. 30 seconds per team. Name one specific student contribution per team.
1:05
Write alone
"Now the part only you can do. Volume calculation and watershed note. Silent."
Chromebooks out. Post the evidence checklist. Set an 8-minute timer.
1:13
AI reflect
"Two sentences on how you used AI today and whether you trusted it. Be honest."
Silent write. Collect on the way out.

Contingency

If the mini-lesson runs long, cut the second question and give teams 45 minutes to build. The reflection moves to tomorrow's warm-up.

Questions to ask

"What did you measure before you cut anything?"
"Where does the water go when your levee holds?"
"Whose neighborhood is downstream of your design?"
"Show me the moment you decided to change your design."

Formative check-ins

Min 20: Every team has a measured base. If not — stop and model.
Min 40: One flood trial complete. Behind teams get +3 min, not a rescue.
Min 60: Photo captured on every team's device.
Min 70: Volume calc visible on 80% of screens.

Tomorrow · Day 12 · Test day

Full flood trial · variable rain (250/500/1000 mL).
Teams iterate once based on today's failure mode.
Urban Planner mentor Zoom · 12:30 · 15 min.
Prep: charge Chromebooks · refill pitchers.

Differentiation · three lanes

Support

Pre-cut foam pieces
Calculator + formula card
Sentence starters for reflection

Core

Standard build + volume calc
150-word watershed note
2-sentence AI reflection

Stretch

Add a second overflow channel
Compute % of town protected
Draft 60-sec showcase pitch

Common misconceptions

Higher = safer. Not if base is thin. Prompt width.
Levees stop floods. They redirect. Downstream still floods.
V = l × h. They'll forget the third dimension.
"AI already checked." Model can't see their pan.

Support plans · IEP · 504 · language

Marcus G. (IEP)3 of 4 items

3 of 4 items required · 2 test questions per standard · 50% more time · work arrives one part at a time · may answer out loud · word bank on the page

Writing is the hard part, not the math. Let him talk the reflection out.

Jordan T. (504)3 of 4 items

3 of 4 items required · 2 test questions per standard · 25% more time · work arrives one part at a time · one question on screen at a time

Give him the Tester role — physical and structured. Break the work into short runs.

Elena H. (IEP)2 of 4 items

2 of 4 items required · 2 test questions per standard · 100% more time · work arrives one part at a time · one question on screen at a time · may answer out loud · directions read aloud · word bank on the page

Two items is a full day for her right now. Sit with her for the first one.

Nia B. (Language support)4 of 4 items

25% more time · may answer out loud · directions read aloud · word bank on the page · directions in Spanish

Full workload, but she needs the glossary and the directions in Spanish.

Whole class: captions on the video · visual checklist posted.

Change a plan on the roster →

Safety · non-negotiable

Closed-toe shoes at test station.
Two towels at sink · one team tests at a time.
Pitchers max 500 mL — no jug pours.
Foam scraps to bin, not sink.

Rubric · at a glance

Levee volume calcMath

Watershed note (150w)ELA

Model photo + captionScience

AI reflection (2 sent.)AI Lit

Open review queue

Exit ticket

One sticky per student on the door frame:

One number from today.
One word for how your team worked.
One question you'd ask a civil engineer.

Family message · tonight

Auto-msg (editable): "Today your student built and flood-tested a levee. Ask: Whose neighborhood did your design protect — and whose did it not?"

No worksheet. One question at dinner.

Individual evidence · full rubric

Evidence queue →AI Verification Task

Every student turns in — 4 artifacts

Artifact	Subject	Approaching	Meets	Exceeds
Levee volume calculation	Math · MGSE6.G.2	Formula shown, one dimension missing.	Correct V = l × w × h with units.	Compares two designs; justifies choice.
Watershed research note (150 words)	ELA · ELAGSE6W2	One source; general claims.	Two sources cited; ties to community.	Contrasts sources; names tradeoffs.
Model photo + caption	Science · S6E3.c	Photo unclear or unlabeled.	Clear photo, before/after captions.	Annotates failure point and fix.
AI-use reflection (2 sentences)	AI Literacy	Names AI use.	Names use + one verification step.	Explains where AI was wrong and why.

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