Today I am taking a look at the third badge in the new Automotive group, Automobile Manufacturing, and I'm looking at the Brownie plan.
Requirements:
According to Badge Explorer, with this badge girls will: Experience the importance of having a plan and discover how manufacturers build lots of vehicles that are safe and well made!
1. Experience the manufacturing process
2. Learn about the automotive manufacturing process
3. Plan your own automotive manufacturing process
4. Manufacture a set of vehicles
5. Share your automotive manufacturing process
When you've earned this badge, you'll know how vehicles are manufactured in a factory. You’ll also know how to make and test products for people to buy.
1. Experience the manufacturing process
2. Learn about the automotive manufacturing process
3. Plan your own automotive manufacturing process
4. Manufacture a set of vehicles
5. Share your automotive manufacturing process
When you've earned this badge, you'll know how vehicles are manufactured in a factory. You’ll also know how to make and test products for people to buy.
Meeting 1:
Puzzle Assembly:
As girls arrive, they are told to pretend that they work in a factory where puzzles are assembled and to work at assembling the provided jigsaw puzzle.
Opening Ceremony:
In the opening part of the meeting, the leader points out the comparison between assembling a puzzle and manufacturing automobiles. She discusses the term "efficient" and asks the girls how they could have assembled the puzzle more efficiently.
Experience the Manufacturing Process
Assembly Line Game:
The purpose of this game is to show girls the efficiency of an assembly line. Before the game the leader puts together labeled bins. Each bin holds 15 of the same items. The bins are: pencils, markers, paperclips, and crayons. Girls are divided into teams of 2 (with one team of 3 if necessary) and given a ziploc bag and an "order" to fill. The leader tells them nothing but to fill the bag, per the instructions--that it is like they are working in a factory getting things to ship.
After the first trial the leader gets the girls to brainstorm about how they could do it more efficiently. Then she talks about assembly lines and how they work. Then the girls come up with how to set up an assembly line and try a couple of variations. If the girls don't come up with the most efficient solution--putting a girl at each bin and passing the orders and bags down the line--after they have tried their ways, the leader should suggest it.
The leader then talks about how assembly lines give each worker one job to do over an over again to make manufacturing efficient.
Learn About the Manufacturing Process
Learning about the Die Press
The leader points out that many components of cars are made from die presses which can be compared to cookie cutters for steel. They can cut sheets of steel from one side or two. They make many parts, all alike. The leader points out that the goal is to make many parts, quickly without wasting time or material, to do so safely and to make quality parts. She uses and defines the words "criteria" and "features" and then divides the girls into teams of three or four and gives each some play doh and a cookie cutter. The goal is for the girls to cut as many quality shapes as they can in two minutes. After two minutes are up, they discuss whether the shapes are quality and how they could have done more.
Learning about the 5S System
The 5 S's are
- Sort
- Set in Order
- Shine
- Standardize
- Sustain
The leader begins by asking the girls what they would do if they needed 100 shapes. After soliciting their ideas, she points out that when manufactures have a big job like assembling cars, they use a system called 5 S to organize people, machines and materials. She defines each of the words above (VTK gives a script) and then asks again how they should organize cutting out 100 shapes. After the girls answer, the leader fills in any blanks.
Apply 5S to Manufacture a Set of Products
The girls are asked to use the 5S knowledge they have to set up a process to cut out more shapes. The leader times them for two minutes and they cut out shapes. They then compare the number and quality of shapes made with this system vs their first set of shapes.
Meeting 2
Hooray for 5S
As girls arrive they break into groups to come up with songs or cheers about 5S
Opening Ceremony
In the opening circle the leader reviews 5S and its purpose. She lets the girls perform their songs and cheers. The leader then discusses the term "quality" and why it is important. She tells the girls that they will be assembling a set of vehicles and asks how they can be checked for quality, and how 5S helps with quality control.
Plan Your Own Automotive Manufacturing Process
During this step the leader show the girls a car she made from a toilet paper roll, toothpicks, straws, cardboard wheels and a sponge. She has each girl pick out the materials needed to make a car. She talks about how factories make many things quickly and with high quality.
The girls are divided into groups of about four girls. Their first task is to reverse-engineer the leader's car to determine how to make it. The girls are asked to write down a step for each girl to do. The group comes back together and the leader makes sure everyone has the right steps written down. She then passes out an instruction sheet and talks about how industrial engineers put together an assembly sequence. She then has the girls organize their materials and points out that the most efficient way to do so is in the order in which they will be needed. Girls organize their materials and draw a map of their assembly line. The leader guides the girls to realize that the most efficient way to run the assembly line is for each person to take one job and to do it over and over. Next she has them add someone to do quality control to their plan.
Manufacture a Set of Vehicles
Girls use the plans they made to set up an assembly line and to manufacture a car for each girl. The talking points for the leader include defining a launch engineer. After they are made, the leader talks about doing quality control checks and then the troop discusses any problems they have. The leader points out that manufacturers are always looking for ways to do things better.
Share Your Automotive Manufacturing Process
After making the vehicles the leader talks about design quality reviews--meetings at which manufacturers share their work and try to make the process better. The leader goes through a list of questions with the girls dealing with what worked well and what did not.
Wrap-up
As with much of the recently produced STEM programming, GSUSA asks the girls to complete a survey after completing the badge. It is pretty much the same survey as for the other STEM programming, which, in my opinion, is way too long for Daisies and Brownies.
In the closing circle, the leader talks about the careers that have been mentioned in this badge. She also asks them to think about things they could use an assembly line or 5S for in their lives--like packing backpacks. The VTK plans recommend handing out a family guide but I checked all three badges in this series and I did not find the family guide.
Resources Provided
VTK provides a lot of resources for leaders. They include:
- Notes to Volunteers: This document summarizes all three of the badges in this series in a manner similar to this post. In seven pages it gives a good high level view of all three badges and what is done to earn them. I'd recommend reading this as a good first step to decide which of these badges to do.
- Glossary: Three pages of words to know from these three badges, plus a diagram of vehicle parts.
- Labels for the Assembly Line game
- Materials List: This is not only a list of materials but also instructions on how to prepare for the meeting activities.
- 5S poster: Lists the 5 S's.
- Assembly Game Cards: Tell the girls what to gather in the Assembly Game
- How to Assemble a Vehicle: Step by Step illustrated instructions
- Vehicle Parts Checklist
- Wheel Template
My Comments
When this badge first came out, a comment was made on one of the Facebook groups I read that working an assembly line was the last thing that leader wanted for her girls. I agree, though this badge is focused more on engineering the assembly line than working it.
I think the badge is a lot of leader talk and a page full of vocabulary words per badge means a lot of unfamiliar terms. While I think the girls will enjoy cutting out play doh shapes and making the cars, I also think that they aren't going to be real excited about the cars they built.
All things considered, I do not think I'd recommend this badge to my girls.
No comments:
Post a Comment