This lesson has a quick review of what was taught at the beginning of the Straw Rocket lesson - what a rocket is, how they work and connections to Newton’s Laws. Students will also review the important parts of a rocket. As in the Straw Rockets lesson, they will build their own straw rockets and launch them using our straw rocket launchers. This lesson has students building different rockets for each test, while changing variables and hypothesizing how launch flights will be affected.
They will need space around the room to safely test/launch their straw rockets. (Other large rooms like a gym or cafeteria are ideal, as well as the hallway if other classes won’t be disturbed.)
Science Standards:
4.PS.2: Energy can be transferred from one location to another or can be transformed from one form to another.
5.PS.1: The amount of change in movement of an object is based on the mass of the object and the amount of force exerted.
6.PS.3: There are two categories of energy: kinetic and potential.
6.PS.4: An object’s motion can be described by its speed and the direction in which it is moving.
7.PS.3: Energy can be transformed or transferred but is never lost.
7.PS.4: Energy can be transferred through a variety of ways.
8.PS.2: Forces can act to change the motion of objects.
High School Standards:
P.F.1: Newton’s laws applied to complex problems
P.F.5: Air resistance and drag
PS.FM.2: Forces • Force diagrams • Types of forces (gravity, friction, normal, tension) • Field model for forces at a distance PS.FM.2: Dynamics (how forces affect motion) • Objects at rest • Objects moving with constant velocity • Accelerating objects
STEM Emerging Technology Connections:
Hypersonics and Space Technology: This "Straw Rockets with More Variables" lesson, focusing on experimentation with force, pressure, momentum, and design variations, connects to both Space Technology and Hypersonics. The iterative process of building, launching, and modifying rockets based on observed results directly mirrors the engineering design cycle used in developing aerospace vehicles, including those for space travel and hypersonic flight. The exploration of how different variables affect rocket performance, such as fin design and nose cone shape, aligns with the challenges of optimizing aerodynamic performance in both space and hypersonic regimes.