Overview
The children were working with levers and other simple machines. The children wanted to know if water could be used as a machine to lift a load. The whole class talked about machines and possible ideas were encouraged and once the ideas were presented to the whole class, a design for a machine was created.What We Thought We Knew
- They are simple to make. -Rachel
- They can be used to make work easier. -Berthony
- A seesaw is one. -Eugene
- A lever is a simple machine. -Toni
- They can lift a load. -Ryan
- After the hurricane, we used a plank of wood to move a big old trailer
that was in front of our house and we moved it. -Anthony
- My dad's truck was up against the wall and we stuck a wheel jack to
lift up the truck. It was up against the garage door and we couldn't
move it. Once we jacked it up we moved it 2 feet away from the garage
and then we could use the door. -Austin
- A crowbar is a simple machine. I have never used one for anything. I think it is used to change a tire. -Patty
Questions We Had
- How can a lever lift a load? -Antonio
- Can water lift a load? -Ryan
- Can rocks lift a load? -Austin
- Can water lift rocks? -Patty
- Can we build a working simple machine in this class? -Toni
- If a fulcrum is closer to a load, can a child lift an adult? (In Ms.
Olson's class they found out that the answer is yes.) -Eugene
- What is the best kind of machine to use to lift loads? -Brigette
What We Found Out from Books, the Internet, and Experts
We found simple machines in the book, "101 Great Science Experiments" by Neil Ardley, Dorling, New York, 1993The problem statement, "Can water be used to lift a load?" will be expanded on by each student in the class.
What We Found Out from Experimentation
They found out that water could be used to lift and load and they found out the importance of water pressure. Where there were leaks, the water failed to lift objects, and the class concluded that tight fitting joints that did not leak worked because you needed water pressure to lift objects.How We Showed What We Learned
Pictures were taken of the actual experimentation in the class. Students made diagrams of the simple machines we created.
