Week 9 & 10

Investigation skills

Rules and Instructions

• • • • • • • Students can make a trebuchet or a catapult.

            • Each group will have 2-4 people in it.

            • Each group will be given: paddle pop sticks, hot glue gun and glue sticks, sticky tape rubber bands, wire, paper, weights (for counterweight). You can provide your own equipment as well.

            • Each group will have 4 lessons to research a design, build it and test it. 

Part C: Competition Time allocation: (maximum 1 lesson)

On the fourth day the machine will be fired (using a marshmallow) and the furthest distance of three attempts will be recorded. This distance will be officially recorded against the corresponding group.

All students will need to wear eye protection when they are firing their machine.

• • • • • • • The machine can be repaired if broken during firing and once repaired it can be fired again. If it breaks again then it will have to be removed from the competition.

            • All machines remain property of the School unless a note from parents of students can be provided giving the student permission to take the machine home.

            • The group with the furthest recorded distance will be declared the winner. Each member of the group will receive a prize.

            • The judge’s (your teacher) decision is final. The winners (if they survive) may compete with other classes)

Tips for Success

Have all members in your group help with the construction. So allocate the different parts of the build to each person in your group and then put all the different parts together to build the final machine.