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Chinampa Engineering Challenge:
Ancient Agriculture Meets Modern Hydroponics
Teacher Guide (continued)
Part 1: Explore the Agricultural Problem
Introduce students to chinampa agriculture and discuss why farmers throughout history have needed to adapt growing
methods to their environments.
Ask:
• What resources and conditions do plants need to grow successfully? Which of these will we be able to observe or
control in our model?
• What challenges might farmers face when available land or water conditions make conventional farming difficult?
• How could access to water become an advantage rather than simply an obstacle?
• What decisions do modern growers make when designing systems to produce food efficiently?
Explain that students will use some of the same problem-solving skills agricultural innovators use: identifying a challenge,
working within constraints, testing a solution, and making improvements.
Part 2: Define the Challenge:
Review the design criteria with students.
Your system must:
• Fit within the provided growing container
• Support the provided growing medium and seeds
• Remain reasonably stable during the observation period
• Allow the growing area to receive moisture
• Support observable seed germination and early plant growth during the observation period
Note: Seeds contain stored nutrients that can support germination and early plant growth. Sustained plant growth,
however, requires an ongoing supply of mineral nutrients as well as adequate water, light, carbon dioxide, oxygen, and
suitable environmental conditions. Because this activity does not provide fertilizer or a nutrient solution, focus observations
on germination and early growth rather than sustained plant growth.
Your team must:
• Use only the materials provided
• Stay within the established material limits
• Complete the initial design within the available build time
Students should use their Student Activity Guide to sketch and label their proposed design before construction begins.
Encourage teams to explain why they think their design will work.
Part 3: Build and Test
Have students construct their systems according to their own designs.
Before planting, add water to the system and conduct an initial test.
Ask teams to observe:
• Does the structure remain stable?
• Can it support the growing medium?
• Does the growing area receive both moisture and oxygen?
• Are any parts sinking, tipping, separating, or becoming waterlogged?
• Does anything need to change before planting?
Allow teams to make simple adjustments based on their initial test.
There's More Than One Way to Solve the Challenge
