Empathize
Students will launch the marble maze challenge, learn how engineers use the engineering design process, and conduct firsthand user research through observation and interviews. They will create an empathy map grounded in real quotes and timing data to understand what makes a marble maze challenging yet solvable.
Day 1
Define
Students will synthesize their individual marble maze user research into shared insights, identify patterns across interviews, and craft an evidence-based How Might We statement that clearly defines the user, need, and design insight guiding their maze design.
Day 2
Ideate
Students will generate a wide range of marble maze design ideas grounded in real user needs, apply force and simple machine concepts to their thinking, and select top concepts using user-centered criteria to prepare for prototyping.
Day 3
Prototype
Students will build and refine low- and medium-fidelity LEGO marble maze prototypes, test them with real users, and document feedback-driven revisions using the engineering design process.
Day 4
Test/Present
Students will validate their refined LEGO marble mazes with new users, analyze final feedback, and present their complete engineering design journey to an authentic audience during Marble Maze Challenge Day.
Day 5