Middle Grades Design Thinking: Mini Golf Course Almost Finished!

Friday, October 2, 2020 | By Beth Wardlaw | 1036 views

Ms. Bradshaw's middle grades design thinking class has been building a mini golf course over the past few weeks and today was their final design day. Each team of three was challenged with designing a challenging and creative hole for the indoor course. The students used lots of cardboard, glue guns, art supplies, turf, pool noodles, and anything else they could think of to bring their design to life.   

Here are the STEM project requirements that were given to the class: 

• Before you start building your hole you will need to draw it out, add color, dimensions, and will need to provide a list of supplies you will need. 
• The golf “ball” must travel from the “tee” to the “hole” and may not be directly touched by hand - all other forces are acceptable (air, hitting with another object, friction, gravity, etc.)
• The course may not be a straight shot from tee to hole. You must have a trap or an obstacle in between!
• There must be at least one obstacle
• Your hole must have a theme, and have multiple elements that show this theme.
• Each time you use the putter, it counts as a stroke.
• Your course must have at least 1 change of texture the ball touches
• Your course must have at least 1 incline / slope.
• The entire hole must be at least 3 feet (36inchs) width X 3 feet (36inchs) height X 4 feet (48 inches) long)  Your hole may be bigger. 
• You must make your own club