4th Grade: Unearthed!

Our 4th grade Idea Lab classes have been busy thinking like archaeologists! To get to know one another, each student created a personal artifact that represented something about themselves—along with a few clever clues. 

 

We “unearthed” these artifacts as a team and tried to figure out who each one belonged to. It was a fun and creative way to build connections while stepping into the role of archaeologists.

Next, we began our research phase, exploring four key topics: Archaeologist Tools, Types of Artifacts, Famous Archaeological Discoveries, and How Archaeologists Protect the Past. 

We discovered that we learn even more deeply when we teach others!

With our background knowledge in place, we began “digging in” to this year’s Unearthed Challenge. The 4th Grade First Lego League Challenge is more difficult than the younger teams. Students program and engineer robots to complete as many missions as possible on a Robot Table within a fast-paced 2½-minute match.



 
Some of the exciting missions on the Robot Table include a Mineshaft Explorer, Surface Brushing, Careful Recovery, Releasing Iron Ore Blocks, Moving a Heavy Artifact, and Rebuilding a Statue!  CLICK HERE to see our first successful mission on the Robot Table!

In addition to the Robot Game, students are working on their Innovation Project-- a team presentation, where they identify a real-world problem faced by archaeologists and propose a creative, research-based solution. This has been the hardest task so far! Our teams have been hard at work researching and refining innovative ideas to help archaeologists in the field. 

Stay tuned for more information about Unearthed! The kids are uncovering more and more exciting information each week! 

2nd Grade Idea Lab Update

 We started this quarter by getting to know one another in creative ways. Students shared their interests and hobbies, then used drawing and writing to “map out” their brains before sharing with classmates. It was a fun way to build connections and celebrate how we each think and learn.

After that, we launched into our First Lego League Explore: Unearthed unit. Students began researching what archaeologists do—learning about tools, artifacts, famous discoveries, and how archaeologists work to protect the past. To deepen understanding, students became teachers themselves, sharing their research with others. We quickly discovered that when we teach, we learn even more!

Next came a hands-on challenge: each student designed and built a unique “artifact,” then carefully took it apart. Their classmates were given only a photo and tasked with reconstructing the artifact. Just like real archaeologists, students had to piece together the mystery using limited clues, strong observation skills, and collaboration. 

     


Our Unearthed journey is off to an exciting start. Students have been putting their creativity to work by designing Lego models of archaeological tools. So far, they’ve built a Ground Penetrating Radar and an Excavation Model, and they’re brainstorming innovative ideas for new tool prototypes that could help real archaeologists in their work. We can’t wait to see what discoveries come next!

Big shout out to this crew for the majorly awesome Honeysuckle Clean Up in our Bird Restoration Area! 

 Check out the Before and After! Amazing teamwork! Thank you for sending all the garden gloves. That really helped!
 

3rd Grade Idea Lab: "Unearthed"

We’ve kicked off our First Lego League theme of “Unearthed”-- a journey into discovering what’s hidden beneath the surface. To start, students created their own artifacts and clues to represent who they are. Just like archaeologists, we “unearthed” these treasures to get to know our teammates better. It gave us a fun way to learn more about each other while also practicing how archaeologists use clues to figure out the people of the past.

We also introduced the 6 Core Values of First Lego League, which guide all of our teamwork and projects. To show their understanding, students built LEGO scenes where LEGO people acted out one of the values. We displayed these creations in a little LEGO Museum of Core Values—a fun reminder of the importance of teamwork, discovery, and innovation.

Next, we dug deeper into what unearthed really means by researching the fascinating field of archaeology. 

Students worked in teams to jigsaw their learning into four areas: 

Tools Archaeologists Use

Artifacts and What They Teach Us

Famous Archaeological Discoveries

How Archaeologists Protect the Past

Soon, each group will present their research to the class, because we believe the best way to retain our learning is by teaching others. If you would like to see the First Lego League sneak peek into the season, click HERE. 

New School Year-- New 1st Grade Members!

We’ve had such a fun couple of weeks in Idea Lab getting to know each other! Welcome to our new 1st grade members!

Another student will join us next week!
 
To start our time together, students created “brains” filled with our hobbies, interests, and talents so we could all learn more about what makes each of us unique. We shared our creations using a Kagan cooperative learning structure called Mix, Freeze, Pair. With music playing, students mixed around the room and, when it stopped, they paired up and traded their “brains” to peek inside each other’s minds.

We also built LEGO scenes to show something we love to do in our everyday lives. From arcades to playgrounds, swimming pools to skate parks, and even museums—our LEGO worlds gave us a glimpse of the places and activities our friends enjoy most.

Looking ahead, we’re excited to start meeting our P.E.T.S. (Primary Education Thinking Skills) characters. 
First, we’ll be introduced to Max the Magician, who helps us stretch our visual-spatial intelligence. 

It’s been a wonderful start to the year!