Build It, Launch It
Egg drops, paper planes and balloon rockets, done properly at home. Three engineering challenges where kids build, test, fix and explain the pushes and pulls behind what happened.
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3 lessons in this unit
Lesson 1 · 60 minCan you drop an egg without breaking it?Kids design an egg protector on a materials budget, test it from a low height first and work up, and fix what fails. They finish able to explain why a soft, slow stop saves the egg.
Lesson 2 · 45 minWhat makes a paper plane fly farthest?Kids fold two different paper planes and run a fair test, changing one thing at a time: first the design, then the throw. They measure three throws each and explain the flight using lift, drag, thrust and gravity.
Lesson 3 · 45 minHow does a rocket push itself into space?Kids build a balloon rocket that zooms along a string between two chairs, then run a fair test on how much air goes in the balloon. They finish able to explain action and reaction: the balloon pushes air back, and the air pushes the balloon forward.
Your kids will protect an egg from a fall, find out what really makes a paper plane go farther, and send a balloon rocket zooming along a string between two chairs. Each lesson uses things from the kitchen drawer or the dollar store, and each one tells you, the grown-up, exactly what usually happens and what to do when it doesn’t.
These are engineering challenges, so a “failed” design is part of the fun. A cracked egg or a plane that nose-dives is information: kids look at what went wrong, change one thing and try again, just like real engineers. By the end they can explain, in their own words, how pushes and pulls start and stop things, why a soft landing works, and how a rocket pushes itself forward.