Pedal Power: Hearts, Lungs, and Bike Buses!

Products & Rubric

3rd Grade Project 4 weeks

Pedal Power: Hearts, Lungs, and Bike Buses!

Olivia J

Mar 31, 2026

Updated Jun 17, 2026

Critical Thinking & Problem Solving

Effective Communication

Collaboration

Content Expertise

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Purpose

The purpose of this learning experience is to explore the impact of biking on health and foster community wellness through active engagement. Students will gain a deeper understanding of how exercise benefits the heart and lungs while developing critical skills in collaboration, communication, and problem-solving.

Learning goals

Students will understand how biking impacts cardiovascular health by exploring the functions of the heart and lungs during exercise. They will develop skills in data collection and analysis by tracking changes in heart rate and energy levels. Through collaborative projects, students will enhance their communication and problem-solving abilities, while also fostering a sense of community engagement by promoting biking as a healthy lifestyle choice.

Competencies

Critical Thinking & Problem Solving - Students consider a variety of innovative approaches to address and understand complex questions that are authentic and important to their communities.
Effective Communication - Students practice listening to understand, communicating with empathy, and share their learning through exhibiting, presenting and reflecting on their work.
Collaboration - Students co-design projects with peers, exercise shared-decision making, strengthen relational agency, resolve conflict, and assume leadership roles.
Content Expertise - Students develop key competencies, skills, and dispositions with ample opportunities to apply knowledge and engage in work that matters to them.

Products

Students will create a model of the human heart and lungs with moving parts to demonstrate their function during biking. They will also develop visual presentations or posters illustrating the effects of biking on heart and lung health, using data from their biking experiences. These products will be showcased during the 'Pedal Power Parade', where students will also decorate their bikes and share health insights with the community.

Launch

Kick off the project with a 'Heart & Pedal Kickoff' event where students participate in a short, supervised bike ride around the school grounds. After the ride, gather students to measure their heart rates and discuss the immediate effects of biking on their bodies. Conclude the launch by introducing the essential question and encouraging students to share their initial thoughts and curiosities about biking and health.

Exhibition

Organize a 'Pedal Power Parade' where students decorate their bikes and ride in a procession around the school or local park. During the event, students can present their models of the heart and lungs, explaining how biking benefits these organs. Invite community members to join and learn from students' visual presentations or posters that highlight the health benefits of biking, fostering a community-wide appreciation for exercise and well-being.

Plan

By Phase By Day Calendar

Empathize

Students will investigate how biking affects the body and their community by experiencing changes in their own heart rate, interviewing real users about biking habits and challenges, and creating empathy maps grounded in direct quotes and observations. They will begin connecting cardiovascular science to real community needs that will guide later design decisions.

Days 1 - 3

🚴 Heart & Pedal Kickoff Ride

Launch 45m

🎤 Biking Interviews with Real Users

Community Experience 45m

🧠 Empathy Maps from User Quotes

Deliverable 45m

Define

Students will synthesize their biking and health user research into clear, evidence-based problem statements that identify specific community needs and guide future solution design.

Days 4 - 6

🧠 Clustering Bike Bus Interview Insights

Knowledge/Skill Building 45m

📝 Writing Our How Might We Statement

Deliverable 45m

✅ Problem Statement Checkpoint

Assessment 45m

Ideate

Students will generate a wide range of creative, user-centered ideas to encourage biking and model heart and lung health, then narrow their concepts using evidence from real user research to select solutions for prototyping.

Days 7 - 10

💡 15+ Bike Bus Idea Burst

Deliverable 45m

✏️ Crazy 8s Health Sketches

Knowledge/Skill Building 45m

📊 User-Needs Decision Matrix

Knowledge/Skill Building 45m

🗺️ Concept Storyboard Blueprint

Deliverable 45m

Prototype

Students will build and improve testable heart–lung models and bike bus health solutions by creating low- and high-fidelity prototypes, gathering real user feedback, and documenting how their designs change based on evidence from peers and community partners.

Days 11 - 15

🧪 Rapid Heart–Lung Model Build

Project Work 45m

📝 Prototype Testing With Gym Teacher

Community Experience 45m

🔄 Revision Plan & Iteration Log

Deliverable 45m

🔧 Build Version 2 Model

Project Work 45m

✅ Prototype Milestone Demonstration

Assessment 45m

Test/Present

Students will validate their refined bike bus and heart–lung models with new users, document feedback, and present a clear design story that connects user research, data, and iteration to their final solution at the Pedal Power Parade.

Days 16 - 20

🧪 New User Prototype Test

Community Experience 45m

🔧 Final Model Revisions

Project Work 45m

🗣️ Design Story Rehearsal Circle

Deliverable 45m

🚴 Pedal Power Parade Exhibition

Community Experience 45m

🎤 Bike Bus Design Presentation

Assessment 45m

Empathize Days 1–3

Day 1

🚴 Heart & Pedal Kickoff Ride

Launch 45m

Day 2

🎤 Biking Interviews with Real Users

Community Experience 45m

Day 3

🧠 Empathy Maps from User Quotes

Deliverable 45m

Define Days 4–6

Day 4

🧠 Clustering Bike Bus Interview Insights

Knowledge/Skill Building 45m

Day 5

📝 Writing Our How Might We Statement

Deliverable 45m

Day 6

✅ Problem Statement Checkpoint

Assessment 45m

Ideate Days 7–10

Day 7

💡 15+ Bike Bus Idea Burst

Deliverable 45m

Day 8

✏️ Crazy 8s Health Sketches

Knowledge/Skill Building 45m

Day 9

📊 User-Needs Decision Matrix

Knowledge/Skill Building 45m

Day 10

🗺️ Concept Storyboard Blueprint

Deliverable 45m

Prototype Days 11–15

Day 11

🧪 Rapid Heart–Lung Model Build

Project Work 45m

Day 12

📝 Prototype Testing With Gym Teacher

Community Experience 45m

Day 13

🔄 Revision Plan & Iteration Log

Deliverable 45m

Day 14

🔧 Build Version 2 Model

Project Work 45m

Day 15

✅ Prototype Milestone Demonstration

Assessment 45m

Test/Present Days 16–20

Day 16

🧪 New User Prototype Test

Community Experience 45m

Day 17

🔧 Final Model Revisions

Project Work 45m

Day 18

🗣️ Design Story Rehearsal Circle

Deliverable 45m

Day 19

🚴 Pedal Power Parade Exhibition

Community Experience 45m

Day 20

🎤 Bike Bus Design Presentation

Assessment 45m

June 2026

Mon

Tue

Wed

Thu

Fri

22 Day 1

Empathize

🚴 Heart & Pedal Kickoff Ride

23 Day 2

🎤 Biking Interviews with Real Users

24 Day 3

🧠 Empathy Maps from User Quotes

25 Day 4

Define

🧠 Clustering Bike Bus Interview Insights

26 Day 5

📝 Writing Our How Might We Statement

July 2026

Mon

Tue

Wed

Thu

Fri

29 Day 6

✅ Problem Statement Checkpoint

30 Day 7

Ideate

💡 15+ Bike Bus Idea Burst

1 Day 8

✏️ Crazy 8s Health Sketches

2 Day 9

📊 User-Needs Decision Matrix

3 Day 10

🗺️ Concept Storyboard Blueprint

6 Day 11

Prototype

🧪 Rapid Heart–Lung Model Build

7 Day 12

📝 Prototype Testing With Gym Teacher

8 Day 13

🔄 Revision Plan & Iteration Log

9 Day 14

🔧 Build Version 2 Model

10 Day 15

✅ Prototype Milestone Demonstration

13 Day 16

Test/Present

🧪 New User Prototype Test

14 Day 17

🔧 Final Model Revisions

15 Day 18

🗣️ Design Story Rehearsal Circle

16 Day 19

🚴 Pedal Power Parade Exhibition

17 Day 20

🎤 Bike Bus Design Presentation

Pedal Power: Hearts, Lungs, and Bike Buses!

Purpose

Learning goals

Competencies

Products

Launch

Exhibition

Edit Phase

Edit Phase

Edit Phase

Edit Phase

Edit Phase

June 2026

July 2026