Finding Out About Fasteners

• Put a basket or bin of a variety of fasteners on a table in the classroom.
• Think about a learning strategy such as Sorting Mats to support students’ development of the skill of sorting and classifying.

Students develop the skills of Comparing & Contrasting and Predicting as they learn about different kinds of fasteners and how they are used. 

Students:

• explore the materials in the bin individually and/or in small groups.
  • Educator engages with students during this inquiry, noticing and naming what students have done and asking questions that provoke further development of the skills of sorting, classifying, comparing and contrasting.
  • Educator observes and documents students’ initial interactions with the materials. This documentation should include questions raised by the students to determine the direction for future learning.

Using anecdotal comments, photos and/or video recordings, observe and document students’ ability to:

• Sort - students sort objects into piles on the basis of a common attribute (e.g., red buttons; fasteners with pointy ends, fasteners made of metal, etc.)
• Classify - students classify objects according to self-determined and given criteria (e.g., “I sorted all the red buttons because red is my favourite colour.”; “Find all of the fasteners that might be used to hold papers together.”)
• Classify - students classify objects according to multiple attributes (e.g., red buttons, red buttons with 2 holes or 4 holes, red buttons that are big, red buttons that are small, fasteners with pointy ends, fasteners with pointy ends that are used in the workshop, fasteners that are used in the workshop that are made out of metal)
• Classify - students find different ways to classify the same objects (e.g., red buttons with sparkles vs. red buttons that are plain; clothing fasteners that are made of metal vs. clothing fasteners that are made of plastic or cloth)
• Compare & Contrast - students compare and contrast fasteners and their uses (e.g., “These fasteners are all the same because they are made out of metal. These fasteners are different because they are all made out of plastic. But they are all the same because they are all used to join our clothes together.”)
• Communicate - students describe the rule (criteria) they used to classify the fasteners. (e.g., “I sorted by colour - these buttons are all red.” “These fasteners are all ones that are made of metal and that are used in a workshop.”)

Literacy

• communicate orally in a clear, coherent manner (e.g., explain criteria for sorting, describe how fasteners are used)

Mathematical Thinking

• sort and classify by attributes (e.g., how fasteners are used, what fasteners are made from, etc.)
• organize objects into categories by sorting and classifying objects using one or multiple attributes (e.g., organize fasteners by type, by where they are commonly used and the material from which it is made)
• collect and organize primary data and display the data (e.g., collect and organize data about which fastener is used more on shoes in the classroom, laces or Velcro^TM)

If your students are interested in learning more, the following may provoke their curiosity:

• At some point, children will likely have noticed the fasteners on their own clothes/shoes and the clothes/shoes and of others. Post the question: “Which is more common: Laces or Velcro™?” and show interested children how to do a survey of the other children in the class, using a T chart as one way to document their findings.

• Share your fasteners inquiry with families. Ask them to do an at-home hunt to see what kinds of fasteners they can find in different parts of the home, who uses them and why they are used. This could include looking for examples of fasteners being used in ways other than their intended purpose (e.g., opening up a paper clip provides a hook for hanging light objects).
• At school, have children share their at-home findings, comparing and contrasting what was discovered (e.g., What fasteners are found in only one place? What fasteners are found in many places? What fasteners are hidden [like those that keep fridge and cupboard doors closed] and why?).

• Before the fasteners in our basket were designed and created, how did people put clothing and other things together?

 Fasteners (20 March 2007) How Stuff Works -- Short article outlining different kids of fasteners. 

The Evolution of the Screw and Screwdriver (2019) ThoughtCo. -- A brief history of the screw and screwdriver.

"Uncovering Clever" Feature: Who Invented VELCRO Brand Fasteners? (2017) VELCRO® Brand -- Short video (0:59) discussing how VELCRO® was invented  and used.  

The Zipper: Where did it come from? | Stuff of Genius (2015) How Stuff Works -- Video (1:33) about how the invention of the zipper.