Read this aloud:
A team of scientists needs to send a delicate package down to the ground without it breaking. They can't use a magic cushion or an endless pile of supplies. They have a small budget and a short time. The package is about as fragile as anything gets: an egg. The job: build something that lets an egg fall and land without cracking, using only what your budget can buy.
Jobs for one child: you do everything, and the grown-up is your helper. Two children: a Builder and a Tester (who checks the egg and records results), then swap. Three children: add a Shopkeeper who hands out materials and keeps track of the budget.
Set up a "shop": each child gets 10 coins (real coins, buttons or paper squares). Straws cost 1 coin for 2, tape costs 1 coin for an arm's length, a plastic bag costs 2, a handful of cotton balls costs 2, paper costs 1 a sheet, a cup or box costs 3. The budget is the point: real engineers never get unlimited stuff.
In the full lesson PDF
- Bet (5 min)
- Hunt (30 min)
- Reveal (10 min)
- Act (10 min)
- The science, for grown-ups
- Questions they'll ask (and what to say)
- Make it easier, make it harder
- Go further
- Student sheet
Written for parents: no science background needed. US Letter, prints cleanly in black and white, with a kids’ sheet on its own page.