Jon Mayes
Egg Catapult
NJ Core Curriculum Content Standards
5.1 Science Practices: Science is both a body of knowledge and an evidence-based, model-building
enterprise that continually extends, refines, and revises knowledge. The four Science Practices
strands encompass the knowledge and reasoning skills that students must acquire to be proficient in
science.
A. Understand Scientific Explanations: Students understand core concepts and principles of
science and use measurement and observation tools to assist in categorizing, representing, and
interpreting the natural and designed world.
B. Generate Scientific Evidence Through Active Investigations: Students master the conceptual,
mathematical, physical, and computational tools that need to be applied when constructing and
evaluating claims.
C. Reflect on Scientific Knowledge: Scientific knowledge builds on itself over time.
D. Participate Productively in Science: The growth of scientific knowledge involves critique and
communication, which are social practices that are governed by a core set of values and norms.
5.2 Physical Science: Physical science principles, including fundamental ideas about matter, energy,
and motion, are powerful conceptual tools for making sense of phenomena in physical, living, and
Earth systems science.
A. Properties of Matter: All objects and substances in the natural world are composed of matter.
Matter has two fundamental properties: matter takes up space, and matter has inertia.
D. Energy Transfer and Conservation: The conservation of energy can be demonstrated by
keeping track of familiar forms of energy as they are transferred from one object to another.
8.2 Technology Education, Engineering, and Design: All students will develop an understanding of
the nature and impact of technology, engineering, technological design, and the designed world, as
they relate to the individual, global society, and the environment.
B. Design: Critical Thinking, Problem Solving, and Decision-Making: The design process is a
systematic approach to solving problems.
Equipment
1 roll of tin foil [per group], 1 meter stick preferably bendable plastic [per group], 5 feet of 2X4
[per group], 5 feet of twine [per group], eggs, various tools [for teacher use only]
What Students Should Know Before The Lesson
Students should understand conservation of work-energy in that they need to know the elastic
potential energy of the catapult will be converted into kinetic energy as the catapult throws the egg.
Students should also understand the establishment of a system. When they design their catapult, they
must understand that if the egg is their system, work is done on the egg, but if the entire catapult is the
system then the only work done is in the initial cocking of the machine.
Lesson Objectives, Goals, Important Ideas, and How I Will Assess Them
The objective of this lesson is for students to work collaboratively in the creation of a machine
which will throw an egg by converting elastic potential energy into kinetic energy. They must design,
create, and test a machine which will launch an egg. They will be judged based on hang time, range
distance, and whether or not the egg remains intact.
The procedural goal achieved in doing this is a review, reinforcement, and application of the
engineering process. They need to design a method and process for creating the catapult, implement
the design, test the design, evaluate faults and redesign improvements, implement the improvements,
then test their new design. They must understand the forms of design associated with this project and
the types of engineers who would work on such a project.
They must meta-cognitively reflect on how the science and engineering aspects of such a
project. How are the scientific method and the engineering design process related, and how do they
work together to achieve this desired goal.
Epistemologically, students should be able to reason how and why certain types of engineers
are chosen for such a project, and how the engineers work together to complete the project. Students
should discuss the social impact and importance of engineers and their work on societal values and
solutions to societal problems.
I will formatively assess them by making rounds in the room and asking them questions which
will guide and broaden their thought processes during the activity. Also, I will read and make comments
on their reports so they can read my comments, reflect on them, and revise the report for resubmission.
Potential Student Difficulties
Students may have trouble with completing all aspects of the engineering design process to
design and create a system which will eject the egg intact. They may have trouble making the power of
the catapult small enough to not shatter the egg during ejection, yet large enough to make the egg
move a sizable distance.
To help them with this, I will facilitate their cooperation and recollection of conservation of
energy and Newton’s laws with guiding questions. Also, I will scaffold them in their implementation of
the engineering design process in a similar way.
The Lesson
Design: Egg Catapult
Equipment: 1 roll of tin foil [per group], 1 meter stick preferably bendable plastic [per group], 5 feet of
2X4 [per group], 5 feet of twine [per group], eggs, various tools [for teacher use only]
Experiment: Design and build a system to throw an egg as far as you can while keeping it intact. Each
group receives one point for every second the egg is airborne, one point for every meter the egg moves
downrange, five points for the egg being released from the catapult intact. You may only touch the
catapult to do work on it to increase the elastic potential energy, and you may be the trigger which
initializes the conversion of potential energy to kinetic energy.
Time
Activity
What students are doing
What I am doing
Before bell Prep and sit down.
Reading and mentally preparing for Greeting and finishing set up for
the activity.
equipment.
0-5 min
Activity Intro
Listening
Explaining and introducing the
activity
5-30 min
Design and build
Design, build, and test the
catapult
Walking around monitoring the
students, helping them, and
keeping them motivated.
30-40 min
Evaluate and
redesign
Evaluating how to improve their
design, redesigning, improving,
and testing
Walking around monitoring the
students, helping them, and
keeping them motivated.
Listening
Explaining to them what they
must write up in the lab report
for homework.
40-45 min
HW
Homework: Create a formal lab report for this experiment. Include the full scientific method for this
type of experiment. Also, include a description of the reason why you chose a given design for your
system. Why did you choose certain shapes and structures and how are they superior for supporting
delivery than others. Lastly, discuss the similarities and differences of the engineering design process
and the scientific method, and how did you use both in your design. What kinds of engineers are
required for a project such as this? What kind of social responsibility are these engineers burdened with
and how will their work impact society?
Modifications for Different Learners
This activity incorporates creating, design, building, measuring, analyzing, applying, and
performing so it has a desirable aspect for most types of learners.