Data Challenge: 10-12 days, 50 min each day
Systems Challenge: 13-15 days, 50 min each day
Visualization Challenge: 5-10 days, 50 min each day
Design Challenge: 13-15 days, 50 min each day
Carnival Tycoon Curriculum Overview
Students engage in four sequential challenges that guide them through an exploration of the engineering design process and entrepreneurial thinking in the context of a carnival. The course begins with students making a sales pitch for a new carnival food stand based on market research. Students then run experiments using a pneumatic catapult and design a new carnival game board with appropriate odds of winning. After developing skills in engineering drawing, students re-design the catapult cradle to change the performance characteristics of their carnival game. During Carnival Tycoon, students incorporate and practice multiple math and science skills, including data visualization, probability, experimental design, profit calculations, drawing, and measurement.