Q4 STEAM Roller Coaster: Improve
IMPROVE your design
1. Your challenge is to apply what you have learned about potential and kinetic energy and try to complete a successful and safe coaster run, changing the options as you go through the test runs. Remember to refer to the notes document in Step 3 as you plan and carry out your trial tests.
2. Open, copy, or download, and complete the four-part Coaster Testing Document.
3. One team member should open the Design a Roller Coaster website and select the BEGIN button to complete your planned design.
4. At the end, you will receive a report with a thumbs-up or thumbs-down. Fill this in your coaster testing document. On the last step, select "Your Safety Inspection" to learn about your coaster design from the experts.
(Note this interactive only provides a report and no longer functions to show your coaster run). See the interactive ones in the following content block.
Reflection: Can you improve your design? Change some of your design and complete two more design trials and document your choices and the results.
Competencies & Standards
MITECS Michigan Integrated Technology Competencies for Students, and
3. Knowledge Constructor
c. Curate information from digital resources using a variety of tools and methods
4. Innovative Designer
a. Know and use a deliberate design process for generating ideas, testing theories, creating innovative artifacts or solving authentic problems
b. Select and use digital tools to plan and manage a design process that considers design constraints and calculated risks
c. Develop, test and refine prototypes as part of a cyclical design process
d. Exhibit a tolerance for ambiguity, perseverance and the capacity to work with open-ended problems
5. Computational Thinker
b. Collect data or identify relevant data sets
Websites and Documents
Websites
- Amusement Parks Physics
- ck-12 Physics Simulations
- Design a Roller Coaster
- Five-step Engineering Process
- How Roller Coasters Work
- How Stuff Works - Roller Coasters
Videos From Outside Sources
- Dad Builds Backyard Roller Coaster YouTube 11:30
- How Can a Roller Coaster go Upside Down without Falling? PBS Kids Video
- I Built a Huge Lego Roller Coaster Floor to Ceiling YouTube (10:53)
21t4s Videos
21t4s Documents & Quizzes