Project Title: Egg Drop (45 mins)
Description: Students learn the basic science of air resistance, gravity, and impact
Author: Olly Liu
Grade level or Target Age Range: Elementary and Middle School
Materials: plastic bags, newspaper, eggs, straws, strings, bottles, cardboards, tapes, scissors
Anticipatory Set: Talk about the science behind the egg drop and what makes a good parachute (5min)
Demo/Directions: Roughly plan amount of time it takes to do each procedure. (5min)
Demonstrate an egg drop design that might work, briefly introduce each steps and encourage the students to be creative in their own designs.
- cut the bottom of the water bottle to make a base for the egg.
- use straws to surround the base of the egg, make a little house for the egg
- cut up the parachute and tie it to the base to create the parachute.
- add other elements like strings and cardboard to make the parachute pretty.
Divide into groups of 3-4. Each group will have a set of materials to use to build the parachute. (20mins) If there is more time, they can design a logo on their parachute.
Each group will take turns dropping their eggs to the ground. Winning teams get a reward. (10mins)
Discussion: What do you think are some good designs that prevent the eggs from breaking? How would you use the materials? (5mins)
Instructional Reflection: Which instructional tools or strategies held the students’ interest the most? What additional techniques, tools or materials could be used to better support student learning? What adaptations could be made to this lesson for students with different needs levels or skill sets?