We are excited about our new PBL unit that we recently began! After watching Caine’s Arcade, students were instantly excited about the idea of building their own arcade by the end of the unit.  Our driving question is “How can we as engineers create an arcade while learning about forces?”

The first step to any project is to make a list of questions that we would need to figure out in order to make this happen. They sorted these questions into groups to find duplicate questions.  We have a lot to find out!

One of the goals throughout this science unit is to learn about forces and motion. This week, students explored how changing the height, mass, and distance of objects affects their motion. They conducted experiments and collected data in a variety of learning stations that answered these questions:

• How does the height of a ramp affect the distance a car travels?
• How far does a cardboard box move after being hit with 2 spheres with different masses?
• Is there a pattern with the length of a pendulum and the number of times it swings before it stops?
• How does rolling a marble from different heights affect how far it rolls up the other side?

These stations challenged students to talk through the entire process. It was great to hear them discussing surprising findings, correcting each other to make sure the experiment was set up right, and troubleshooting together. What I love about PBL is the opportunity for students to grow socially and practice communication skills as they learn key science standards. ​