This year my students have struggled to collect consistent data during our motion lab. While using Hot Wheel cars and lab shelves as ramps, the students could not document any good speeds due to the cars running off the shelves and interrupted motion from the cracks between them.
My students are in grades 9-12.
They tend to be weak in math and science skills and struggle with the physical science concepts that I teach them. In an effort to help them better understand the motion concepts of speed, velocity, and acceleration, I bought some cars and took them to the lab.
The lab was not successful because the cars ran off the make-shift ramps that we made using lab shelving. There were cracks between the shelves and this caused the cars to veer off. The students were really frustrated. Being resourceful, they used books to block the cars, keeping them on the shelves. However, this changed the speeds of the cars.
My Project
With three BluTracks, students would not only collect consistent data for their own cars, but they could also race other cars from fellow lab groups. The tracks are similar to Hot Wheels tracks which have edges on either side of the track, guiding the car and keeping it moving straight forward. They are also reusable each semester reaching about 170 students each year.
The tracks are listed as a STEM item encouraging Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics in education. This motion lab would allow students to more efficiently measure distance and time, and calculate speed, velocity, and acceleration. With this data, students will be able to graph and interpret the overall motion of the cars utilizing graphing skills.
My project is important because the Physical Science class that my students are taking is typically the only exposure to chemistry or physics concepts that they will have.
I have a passion about teaching them about the physical world around them and how it works. I know many students don't learn concepts until they experience the concepts. Help me provide ways to help these students' learn!
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