Educating Our Eagles - Volume 6

HIGH SCHOOL:
Marble Run
Applying the concepts of friction and gravity
After the completion of our Physical Science unit on energy, students used their knowledge
of gravity, friction and the design process to build and test a marble run. Their challenge
was to create a run that would slow the marble enough to last within the run for a
minimum of 3 seconds. Students brainstormed ideas, blueprinted a prototype, built their
design and tested their final product.
As a result of instruction, students will be able to:
• apply their knowledge of gravity and friction to manipulate the length of time their marble takes
to complete its run.
• use the design process to create a prototype.
• analyze their test results to make improvements to their design.
Observations:
Students took this design challenge to a new level! During the brainstorming phase they envisioned
different ways of using friction to slow their marble down, as well as create ways to use the cardboard
to extend the length of time their marble made its way from start to finish. And there was definitely
excitement in the air on the day we all came together to test our designs. The students were very
supportive of each others successes and failures, all of which are part of the invention process!
MA Frameworks:
-Support an argument with evidence that the gravitational force exerted by Earth on objects is
directed toward Earth’s center.
-Ask questions and predict outcomes about the changes in energy when objects collide;
distinguish between scientific (testable) and non-scientific (non-testable) questions; define a simple
design problem, including criteria for success and constraints on materials or time.
-Provide evidence to explain the effect of multiple forces, including friction, on an object.
Include balanced forces that do not change the motion of the object and unbalanced forces that do
change the motion of the object.
EDUCATING OUR EAGLES
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