Materials
Tissue Paper, Paper Napkins, Newspaper, Wax Paper etc.
Kite String, Yarn, etc.
Masking Tape, Transparent Tape, etc.
Scissors
Stopwatches
Meter Stick, Seamstress Tape, or other
Individually Wrapped Candies
Students will work individually or in partners to design a parachute using the available materials. I like to provide different types of paper, string, and tape so that students can learn about how weight and other different characteristics (like canopy size, shroud length and apex vent) affect a parachute. (Note though that using really thin string like fishing line or embroidery thread provides frustration for students as it tangles and knots easily.)
In this challenge, students will need to keep their cargo (one piece of individually wrapped candy) aloft the longest, so be sure to provide a surplus of materials to support multiple parachutes per student or pair.
Once students have finished a design they should test it and collect data. I want my students to test their designs safely, so I don't allow them to stand on anything but their own two feet. As a result, I specify that they test from the height of 48" (which is about how far my students can reach without standing on anything). I tape the seamstress tape to the wall and let them line up the top of the parachute with the correct height.
If you'd like to test these from a greater height, and don't have a handy stairwell or balcony, you can make or purchase a parachute dropper like this one. This particular one clips to the ceiling matrix in most classrooms or can be attached to a basketball hoop.
So, what did we learn?
Next Generation Science Standards: SEP- Asking Questions and Defining Problems, Planning and Carrying out Investigations, Analyzing and Interpreting Data, Obtaining, Evaluating and Communicating Information CCC- Patterns, Systems and System Models
CCSS Math:Number and Operations, Measurement and Data, Geometry, Rations and Proportional Relationships
