Materials:
- marbles (preferably one small and one large),
- extra large mailing tube,
- measuring tape (or ruler),
- blocks/books/VHS cassettes for propping up one end of the tube,
- a pencil and paper for recording your results.
To learn a little bit about math and physics, our goal was to record how far each marble traveled each time we raised one end of the tube. We started out by laying the tube flat on the ground and placing a marble in one end. This was our control. Then we raised it one inch at a time, and again placed the marble in the opening of the raised end. Each time the marble rolled out the other side, we measured how far from the tube it rolled before coming to a stop.
After we had performed our "experiment" 8 times, we changed out our small marble for a larger one and did the same thing, recording the results.
Afterward, I showed my kids how to make a line graph using the data we had collected.
Here's what our results looked like:
Ways to extend the learning:
- Before you begin the experiment, ask your kids what they think the marble will do if you raise one end of the tube.
- Before using the second marble (bigger or smaller, it doesn't matter), ask your kids if they think it will roll farther or not as far as the first marble.
- Afterward, ask your child too look at the results and tell you which one rolled the furthest. Then ask them why that happened.
- You can continue this experiment until the mailing tube is perfectly vertical and see how this affects how far the marbles will roll.
Happy learning!