How Supporting a Neurodivergent Student Sparked a Hands-On STEM Challenge
The clatter of wood and excited student chatter filled the air as a small projectile arced across the courtyard. At the center of this commotion stood Maya as she demonstrated her handcrafted catapult to her delighted classmates and sparked an evolution in our physics unit.
As a science specialist, I’ve always believed in the power of hands-on learning. Devising an impromptu extension activity for Maya, a bright student on the autism spectrum, showed me how an accommodation for a neurodivergent student could take a good science unit to the next level. This is the story of how Maya’s extension activity led to creating the Catapult Project—a design-thinking challenge that became a highlight of our year in science.
In a previous blog post, I mentioned the Catapult Project, a design-thinking challenge I introduced to my class, which soon became a student favorite. [Link to previous post here.] In that post, I used this project as an example of giving students the chance to apply what they learned in science through hands-on engineering. Maya inspired and pioneered the Catapult Project.
One year, as we began our FOSS force and motion unit, which included a module on “flippers” (simple catapults), I divided the class into teams, while Maya worked independently with her aide, as usual. This module usually took about a week as students needed to experiment with three variables, record their data, graph it, and write up their results. Shortly after the class started on the fourth day, Maya came to me asking, “What should I do now?” Checking her work, I saw she’d done her usual great job. Knowing that Maya needed to engage in something interesting and challenging, I improvised. “Why don’t you try building your own catapult?” I gave her a handful of craft sticks, a hot glue gun, cardboard, and some pipe cleaners. By the end of the period, she showed me the bigger, better-built catapult she made. While I praised her work, she clearly wasn’t happy with it. “This could be better,” she asserted.
The next day, she came to class with wood and some hand tools from home. I set her up in a space just outside our garage-turned-science lab where she could work on her project with the oversight of her ever-present aide. She worked with her usual intensity and speed. By the end of the next day’s class, she’d finished a foot-tall catapult that could fling a soft projectile about twenty feet.
That was just about the time that the other teams finished up their work and everyone was curious about what Maya was working on. I asked her to share her work and demonstrate it to the class. The other students, captivated by Maya’s catapult, asked, “Can we make one, too?” There was the potential for engagement and deeper learning. This quickly improvised project turned into a yearly tradition, with the following year’s curriculum, including a dedicated space for it. Once students finished their hands-on module learning how different variables affected projectile flight, they applied this knowledge to design and build their own catapults.
The Catapult Project Takes Flight
What began as Maya’s individual project soon became a staple of our curriculum. By moving through each stage of the design thinking process—from initial concept to testing—students were experiencing the same engineering cycles used in real-world STEM fields. The project culminated in a field day where students showcased their catapults, an event that became one of the most anticipated of the school year.
Challenges and Triumphs
Adapting this design project into the physics unit wasn’t without its challenges. How could we find the time for this? How could we ensure equity among students with different resources at home? How could we balance the need for safety with the desire for creative freedom? And how could we assess learning in this format?
We tackled these challenges one by one. I found time by making the FOSS experiment phase more efficient and trimming other parts of the course over the year.
We established a small budget for materials for all the students and used everyday items to keep costs down. An unintended side effect was that students got creative with the materials they had. I booked our school’s Innovation Lab, where students could work safely with tools under supervision. Each year, one or more parents were eager to volunteer for this project. And we developed a rubric that assessed not just the final product, but the entire design process.
Learning Outcomes and Lasting Impact
The Catapult Project yielded remarkable results. Students showed improved understanding of physics concepts, such as force and motion. They developed critical thinking and problem-solving skills. Most importantly, they experienced the joy of bringing their ideas to life by working with their own hands.
For Maya, the project became a moment of connection and recognition. Her classmates now saw her as a skilled designer engineer. This experience aligns with the research highlighted in books like “The Dyslexic Advantage,” which emphasizes how different ways of thinking can lead to unique strengths and innovations.
Your Own Design Thinking Project
Want to implement a similar project? Modify the standard curriculum when you see an opportunity for deeper learning. You may have more latitude with your curriculum than you assume. Start small and inexpensive. Listen to your students and see what excites them. Be open to unexpected sources of inspiration. You’ll never know what you can do until you try. Even with the pressures of time and standardized content, making small, meaningful curriculum adaptations can create profound learning experiences.
The Catapult Project taught me that sometimes, the best teaching moments come from letting students lead the way. It reminded me of the power of hands-on, project-based learning to engage all types of learners. Most of all, it reminded me that every student, regardless of their learning differences, has the potential to inspire and innovate.
What untapped potential is in your classroom? A Maya may sit in your class right now, waiting for the opportunity to excel.
Interested in more stories of design thinking project? See my book Teen Innovators: Nine Young People Engineering a Better World with Creative Inventions. Also, my new book Design Thinking: A Guide to Innovation will come soon.