Watch Together: “Building Ramps” (PEEP live-action clip)

  • collide
  • obstacle
  • ramp

MA Standards:

English Language Arts/Speaking and Listening/SL.PK.MA.2: Recall information for short periods of time and retell, act out, or represent information from a text read aloud, a recording, or a video (e.g., watch a video about birds and their habitats and make drawings or constructions of birds and their nests).

Head Start Outcomes:

Language Development/Receptive Language: Attends to language during conversations, songs, stories, or other learning experiences.
Social Emotional Development/Self-Concept and Self-Efficacy: Identifies personal characteristics, preferences, thoughts, and feelings.
Social Emotional Development/Self-Regulation: Recognizes and labels emotions.

PreK Learning Guidelines:

English Language Arts/Language 2: Participate actively in discussions, listen to the ideas of others, and ask and answer relevant questions.
English Language Arts/Language 3: Communicate personal experiences or interests.

Watch Together: “Building Ramps” (PEEP live-action clip)

STEM Key Concepts: A ramp, or inclined plane, is a surface with one end higher than the other; An object placed on an inclined plane will roll, slide, or stay put; When a rolling ball hits an obstacle, it will stop or slow down and its direction may change

ELA Focus Skills: Active Viewing, Active Listening, Vocabulary

Watch the live-action clip PEEP and the Big Wide World “Building Ramps” together.

During the first viewing:
Set a viewing focus by having children watch what happens to the balls and the obstacles after they collide.

  • Discuss what materials the girls use to build a ramp and what types of balls they roll down the ramp.
  • Encourage children to identify the obstacles in the video.
  • Talk about what happens to the balls and the obstacles they hit.

Before the second viewing:
Review with children that the girls used obstacles to create a bowling game. Discuss what happens during the bowling game when the balls hit the paper towel tubes. Play the video again and pause to ask questions such as,

  • What happens to the ball when it hits, or collides, with the tube?
  • What happens to the movement of the ball?
  • What happens to the tube? Why do you think that happens? 
  • Ask children if they have any new ideas for ramp games after watching the video.

Educator Tip: Watching and discussing the selected PEEP stories and live-action video clips can spark and extend children’s interest and understanding of ramps. We suggest that children watch the video clips after they have had an opportunity to do their own initial exploration of ramps. That way your children can compare their experiences and discoveries with those shown on the video clip and think about what additional ramp explorations they might like to try.

PBS Learning Media
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