Design Your Dream Stadium

1. Prior to this exercise, students have investigated past and current practices in building public facilities. For this activity, students will research "green, high-tech, and humane" structures.
2. Students work in small groups to determine the purpose of their stadium, what sport or sports it will host. Members make a list of details they must address during the planning stages, such as how much space is needed for the playing filed, how many seats for fans to install, howmany bathrooms will be needed, food services, auto and walking accessibility, HVAC, elecators, speakers, television monitors, emergency exits, etc.
3. Students choose the scale for the model and build it. Figure out the size of the playing field and other areas. Construct an outer shell using recycled boxes or other materials. Build the infrastructure, perhaps cutting cardboard rolls with Crayola Scissors to house elevators and stairs. Bend recycled file folders into stadium seats. Add features such as a retractable roof or sliding entrance made with construction paper.
4. Cover the art area with recycled newspaper. Paint your stadium with Crayola Tempera Paint. Air-dry the stadium.
5. Add details such as signs, playing fields, or people with Crayola Gel Markers. Assemble your dream stadium with Crayola School Glue. Let the games begin!

LA: Gather relevant information from multiple print and digital sources, using search terms effectively; assess the credibility and accuracy of each source; and quote or paraphrase the data and conclusions of others while avoiding plagiarism and following a standard format for citation.

LA: Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas, concepts, and information through the selection, organization, and analysis of relevant content.

LA: Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions with diverse partners on grade level topics and texts, building on others' ideas and expressing their own clearly.

LA: Delineate a speaker’s argument and specific claims, evaluating the soundness of the reasoning and relevance and sufficiency of the evidence and identifying when irrelevant evidence is introduced.

LA: Integrate multimedia and visual displays into presentations to clarify information, strengthen claims and evidence, and add interest.

LA: Adapt speech to a variety of contexts and tasks, demonstrating command of formal English when indicated or appropriate.

SCI: Ask questions about the natural and human-built worlds.

SCI: Construct drawings or diagrams as representations of events or systems.

SCI: Construct original explanations of phenomena using knowledge of accepted scientific theory and linking it to models and evidence.

SS: Identify and describe examples in which science and technology have changed the lives of people, such as in homemaking, childcare, work, transportation, and communication.

VA: Intentionally take advantage of the qualities and characteristics of art media, techniques, and processes to enhance communication of their experiences and ideas.

VA: Select and use the qualities of structures and functions of art to improve communication of their ideas.

Invite a local town engineer to speak with the class about land development and the factors that are taken into consideration when developing space. Prior to the visit, students compose questions for the expert. After the visit, students post learning to a class blog.

In small groups, have students use online resources to investigate the design and building of well-known stadiums. During the research process, student groups take note of stadium features that would be usable in their design. A chart of features, approximate cost, materials needed for construction, etc. is kept by the team. Students will need to justify reasoning for incorporating selected features into the stadium design.

Student teams put together a proposal for their dream stadium. A blue-print is designed for presentation to "local authorities" to approve. A financial budget can be included as well as construction materials and land space necessary. The "local authority" team listens to the presentation and evaluates consideration of the plan using a class designed rubric.

Student teams organize an electronic presentation of their dream stadium once it has been reviewed by the "local authority" and revised as needed. This presentation will be seen by the entire class/community for approval. A rubric to evaluate each presentation will be developed by the entire class prior to presentations, reflecting the general interests of the community.

Students create an original logo for their sports team(s) that will use the dream stadiums. These logos can be incorporated into presentations.