On Monday students worked in groups of 4 or 5 to design Rube Goldberg machines. A Rube Goldberg is a machine that uses a chain reaction to accomplish a simple task in a very complicated matter.
Our Rube Goldberg machines had to include at least three chain reactions that involved rolling, spinning, pushing, pulling and balancing in order to knock over a cup.
Parent volunteers were on hand to ask questions and give input but did not help build the machines. These Rube Goldberg machines were 100% created by students. Through this process students persevered and collaborated while having fun.
Each group gave a presentation explaining how their Rube Goldberg machine worked before testing it in front of a live audience. Even though it was great that some of the machines worked in the end, it was the process that was important. It was interesting to see students learn from trial and error. Students also had to deal with failure.
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| Start high so gravity can pull. |
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| Off to a great start! |
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| Scientists at work. |
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| Ramps and rolling. |
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