Lesson 2
Ahead of the Game
OVERVIEW
In this lesson, students will investigate the effects of repetitive head trauma due to sports
injuries. Students will conduct simulations using a cantaloupe as a model for a player’s skull.
Based on their findings students will design protective headgear using readily available
materials. Designs will be evaluated by their efficacy in limiting the effects of head impacts.
Note: This lesson is intended for classroom activity, and students who wish to create videos
for the 2013 Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge may consider any subject
within the broader categories of How We Live, How We Work and How We Play, as
presented in the official rules.
Length of Lesson: 1-2 class periods
Grade Level: 5-8
Subject Area(s): Science, Technology, and Health
OBJECTIVES
Students will:
Recognize the importance of head trauma to short and long-term brain injury
Investigate different approaches to testing shock absorbing materials
Use systematic methodology to compare the efficacy of materials in absorbing shock
Interpret results to propose the optimal materials to use in a football helmet that
minimizes the impact of shock
STANDARDS CORRELATION
The National Science Teachers Association provides guidelines for teaching science in grades K12 to promote scientific literacy. To view the standards, adapted from the National Research
Council (NRC) framework (A Framework for K–12 Science Education: Practices, Crosscutting
Concepts, and Core Ideas, NRC 2011) download this PDF:
http://www.nsta.org/about/standardsupdate/resources/201112_Framework-Bybee.pdf
© Copyright 2013 Discovery Education, Inc. All rights reserved. Discovery Education Inc. is a subsidiary of Discovery Communications, LLC.
Standards addressed in this lesson include:
1. Scientific and Engineering Practices
Asking questions (for science) and defining problems (for engineering)
Developing and using models
Planning and carrying out investigations
Analyzing and interpreting data
Using mathematics and computational thinking
Constructing explanations (for science) and designing solutions (for engineering)
Engaging in argument from evidence
Obtaining, evaluating, and communicating information
2. Crosscutting Concepts
Cause and effect: Mechanism and explanation
Scale, proportion, and quantity
Systems and system models
Structure and function
MATERIALS
Cantaloupe (two or three would be ideal)
Clean-up materials (wipes, sponge, etc.)
Cushioning materials, various types
Ruler
Scissors (or box cutter) to cut the materials as needed.
Several plastic grocery bags
Shallow plastic container about 40 x 40 cm
Twist-ties
Two or three raw eggs (optional)
Teacher Prep
Collect various cushioning or shock absorbing materials, such as can be obtained from a
packing company. These could include materials such as foam, down feathers, egg
cartons, bubble wrap, scrap polystyrene as used to pack electronic goods, packing
peanuts, etc.
Ensure the activity is conducted on a solid surface that is easily cleaned (such as a
linoleum floor).
© Copyright 2013 Discovery Education, Inc. All rights reserved. Discovery Education Inc. is a subsidiary of Discovery Communications, LLC.
PROCEDURE
Note: This activity works best if students are organized in small groups.
1. Ask the class, who enjoys sports? Then do a spot survey of the most popular sports.
Explain that football is one of the nation’s most popular sports. It is also a big business,
worth billions of dollars a year. Players are paid a lot of money, so they play to win. This
means that players are often subjected to severe head blows.
2. Ask students if they have ever suffered a blow to the head. How did it feel? Did they
have to go to urgent care, or even be admitted to hospital? Explain that even minor
blows to the head repeated over extended periods can cause permanent injury.
3. Have students create a K-W-L chart and complete what they may already know about
the effects of repeated blows to the head.
4. Tell students that they will form groups to work on a sports equipment design team to
improve a football helmet’s capacity to absorb shock.
5. Explain to students that the teams will experiment to learn how different materials offer
more or less protection to the head. They will use an experimental approach to
systematically test different materials. Their job is to recommend the ideal material to
the sports equipment company for a new helmet.
6. At this stage, do not show them the various test materials you have collected.
7. Have students brainstorm different kinds of materials that would be needed to absorb
shock. Remind students that brainstorming is an open process, where any idea is
appropriate. Criticism and evaluation comes after the initial stage.
8. Have students consider how they would test different materials. Lead them to conclude
that they need to use a systematic approach. Since they cannot use live test subjects,
they will need to simulate effects of impacts to the head on a delicate object, such as a
cantaloupe.
9. Depending on the class size and range and quantity of materials available, you can
assign a specific material to each group, or give groups several types of materials to
experiment with.
10. Have the groups propose different ways to arrange materials or a combination of the
materials. These are placed in the plastic bag. The plastic bag is tied with a twist tie and
laid flat in the plastic container. This will provide a layer of cushioning. Have students
record the thickness of the layer of cushioning. Have students then drop the cantaloupe
into the cushioned layer. They can vary the height to drop the cantaloupe from
successively greater heights. Explain that they are working on an engineering principle
of testing something to its breaking point. In this case, the height from which the
© Copyright 2013 Discovery Education, Inc. All rights reserved. Discovery Education Inc. is a subsidiary of Discovery Communications, LLC.
cantaloupe is dropped will determine its breaking point. However, this procedure is
being used to test the cushioning materials.
11. Lead them to understand that the higher the cantaloupe can be dropped without
breaking, the higher the capacity of the materials to absorb shock.
12. Once students have tested their materials, they can chart their results and share with
the class.
13. From their results, they can recommend a material to be used in the new helmet.
EXTENSIONS
For an extension, have students further consider interpretation of their results. For
example, if a material absorbs a shock 40 percent better, will this result in 40 percent
less damage from a blow to the head. (See NFL article.)
More advanced students can investigate the physics of their experimental system. For
example, they can calculate the force on the cantaloupe being dropped at different
heights, by calculating initial potential energy and final kinetic energy. (See
livephysics.com website for equations and an online calculator.)
Have students create individual videos for the 2013 Discovery Education 3M Young
Scientist Challenge! To learn more about the 2013 Challenge, go to
YoungScientistChallenge.com.
Additional Resources
CDC: Brain Injury in the NFL
http://blogs.cdc.gov/niosh-science-blog/2012/09/nfl-brain-injury/
NFL News: NFL looks to player safety with helmet study, possible rule changes (Teacher use
only)
http://www.nfl.com/news/story/09000d5d8157312d/article/nfl-looks-to-player-safety-withhelmet-study-possible-rule-changes
Live Physics Calculator (Teacher use only)
http://www.livephysics.com/tools/mechanics-tools/solve-problem-related-impact-force-fallingobject/
A Century of Innovation: The 3M Storybook
http://multimedia.3m.com/mws/mediawebserver?OOOOOQqV2&BoHTPphtipItPOArqMA&qV1
r5OAr5OAOOOOOO-3M/Discovery Education Science of Everyday Life
http://scienceofeverydaylife.com/
3M Innovation
http://solutions.3m.com/innovation/
© Copyright 2013 Discovery Education, Inc. All rights reserved. Discovery Education Inc. is a subsidiary of Discovery Communications, LLC.
EVALUATION
Have students review other groups’ test process and the documentation of their design results.
Even if a specific test did not result in an effective cushioning material, good experimental
procedures and documentation of the test process should receive recognition.
You can assign students scores as indicated by the following criteria.
Three points: Thoroughly researched factual information about head injury using
credible sources; good use of imagination to brainstorm wide range of ideas; excellent
documentation of the results of observations; correctly interpreted observations to
provide a sound recommendation.
Two points: Adequately researched factual information about head injury using credible
sources; fair use of imagination to brainstorm limited range of ideas; adequate
documentation of the results of observations; difficulty in correct interpretation of
observations to provide a sound recommendation.
One point: Unable to research factual information about head injury using credible
sources; unable to use imagination to brainstorm ideas; unable to correctly interpret
observations to provide a sound recommendation.
© Copyright 2013 Discovery Education, Inc. All rights reserved. Discovery Education Inc. is a subsidiary of Discovery Communications, LLC.
Student Activity Sheet: How we Play
Stay Ahead of The Game
In this lesson, you learn the importance of head injury during common sports activities such as
football. Your challenge is to test various materials to find how effectively they absorb shock.
Since you can’t use a real head, you will use a cantaloupe as a model. When you have made your
observations, you will recommend materials that would make a safer football helmet. To help
you think about the problem and the solution, answer the following questions.
Why is even a mild blow to the head potentially dangerous?
Write down your brainstorm ideas for different kinds of materials that would be needed to
absorb shock.
List the kinds of material(s) you will be using to test for their shock absorption capability.
Document the results of your experiments.
Which materials (or combination) would you recommend for making the new helmet?
© Copyright 2013 Discovery Education, Inc. All rights reserved. Discovery Education Inc. is a subsidiary of Discovery Communications, LLC.