Second Graders Create Popsicle Coolers

Wintertime is the perfect time for keeping things insulated, which is why second graders in Leah Kelleher and Maria Liso Gileno's class were psyched to make coolers for popsicles for a science lesson on properties of matter. More than anything they loved that they were working with partners.

“We are making coolers to keep stuff cool,” explained Stella Sanchez, “we are all partners at this table: I’m partners with Marianna, Victor and Stella M. are partners, and Owen and Nevin are partners. It’s best to work together because it means we come up with double the ideas.”

“In this Project Lead The Way module," said Kelleher, “students investigate and classify different kinds of materials by their observable properties, including color and texture, and heat conduction. Students learn about states of matter and properties of materials. They investigate which materials are good insulators and which are good conductors. After building their knowledge and skills throughout the module, students determine the best materials to use as they design a prototype to keep an ice pop frozen for at least 30 minutes.”

Before the building part, students designed and sketched their coolers in their notebooks–labeling the important elements: box, bubble wrap, tin foil, foam block. Then they shopped at a table with recycled materials including lots of post holiday Amazon boxes.

“We are using bubble wrap around the sides and tinfoil at the bottom of our box to keep the popsicles very cold,” said Thiago Torres.

“We learned that wood is a good material and gets cold really quickly,” said Wyett Alicea Torres, “so we are putting wood sticks at the bottom of our cooler.”

At the end of the class, each group had come up with their own unique cooler–some with more insulation, others with materials to conduct temperature, many with pipe cleaner handles–in case you need to carry the cooler from one side of the room to the other. No matter the design, each young scientist learned how different materials can insulate a cooler and keep a popsicle cool. They will find out more next week when they put their coolers to the test.

Starting Project Lead The Way in second grade offers strong academic, cognitive, and social-emotional benefits and it aligns with the 3-5 science curriculum and standards. This program builds foundational STEM thinking early. By introducing the Scientific Inquiry and Design Process as well as the use of a scientific journal earlier, students are better prepared for modules in third grade. The program increases academic and technological vocabulary, fosters innovation and collaboration, and enables students to be critical thinkers which all align with Vision 2026.