Part 2

A specific anticipatory set that comes to mind, was a part of an engineering design challenge launch. This challenge/unit was titled The Water Princess. The objective for this day's learning, and for the engineering design challenge, was for students to Identify question/problem statement of: “How can we better clean Gie Gie’s polluted well water?” To do this, they would be involved in an interactive read aloud lesson, and then complete a problem scoping worksheet. See a snippet of the plan below:

• Anticipatory set: “What do you do when you are thirsty?” Have students preview pictures I have taken from Ghana  (Make connections to SS unit of oceans/continents), of people pumping water from a well. What do you notice? 
• Story Introduction: Remember, engineers (like you) identify real world problems and design and create solutions. This is a story about a child like you who lives in a rural african village, much like the places I visited in Ghana! As we are reading, let’s listen for what real world problem the character is experiencing.
• Ask: What is the problem? Gie Gie, living in a rural African village, has to walk far to get water. The water is not clean.  (Problem Scoping Worksheet, only complete first half)

What made the anticipatory set here, was that it was access for all in asking about thirst and water, concepts that are within their schema. I was able to begin to make that empathetic and multidimensional, real-world connection by showing pictures from my recent Ghana trip and videos of real people from Africa pumping and getting water in a way that is much different than what the students know to be their norm. 

If I taught it again, I might scaffold students a bit in identifying the challenge further; probing students to openly discuss the hardships associated and how it makes them feel.