Materials:
- 16 oz paper or Styrofoam cups
- 12" balloons or latex gloves*
- Masking tape
- Scissors
- 3 Different sizes of Pom Poms
Students will work in pairs to construct and test their own modified torus cannons. To construct their pom pom cannons, students will cut a small hole in the bottom of the cup. The hole will need to be about the size of an M&M and students can even trace one before cutting to get the right approximate size. (It's sometimes too difficult for students to safely cut the hole in the bottom of a plastic cup, so I that's why I prefer the paper or Styrofoam ones.)
Then, students will cut the "stem" off the balloon (or cut the "palm" out of the latex gloves) and stretch it across the lip of the cup and tape the edges with masking tape. It's difficult to do alone, so that's where having a partner comes in handy. Each student should make their own cannon and use their partner when they need help.
When the cannon is complete, students should select one of each size pom pom for testing. Starting with the smallest pom pom (because students may need to cut a larger hole to accommodate the larger pom poms), students will conduct a series of trials and measure the distance of each pom pom launched. Then, students will find the average distance each pom pom traveled and compare their answers with the class.
Once students have calculated their averages and shared their results, the teacher will conduct a demonstration launch with each size pom pom to determine how closely students calculated their results.
So, what did we learn? National Science Standards: Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry, understanding about scientific inquiry, position and motion of objects, motions and forces, transfer of energy, Understanding science and technology. NCTM Standards: Build new mathematical knowledge through problem solving, Solve problems that arise in mathematics and other contexts, Apply and adapt a variety of appropriate strategies to solve problems, monitor and reflect on the process of mathematical problem solving. Other Skills: Communication, collaboration, problem solving, observation, data and recording.
