Great way to inspire research in a STEM environment

I have been wanting to delve into project based learning and this helped to create the structure and give me the tools to implement it in my 4th grade classroom. Even my students who have special needs such as ADHD and autism were activity engaged in the activities. I loved the creativity that my students showed when creating the projects.

I plan to do it again next year. I can't give a much better recommendation than that! As a teaching tool, I appreciate knowing what the reading level of the articles are so I can get things to my students who struggle, but they can still contribute. One thing I added was a jigsaw activity. I assigned each student in a group to read one of the articles provided. They then met with students from other groups who read the same article. After discussing the article the group came up with a list of important ideas from the reading. They took this back to their home group and shared what they learned from reading the article.

I would adjust the numbers for the budget part to real life situations and add the meals $, transportation in more detail and extra item lines on the budget for souvenirs and stops. The students really felt this could be a doable project for them in real life....