3Doodled Tops (Force & Motion)
In this activity, students will work in pairs to design and construct a top with a 3Doodler. A top must spin for, at least, 10 seconds within a 30. x 30 cm. space before dropping. Students will test and retest their designs to make adjustments before entering a class competition.
The top that spins the longest amount of time over three attempts is the winner!
Knowledge
Students have
explored a unit on force and motion.
had practice with the 3Doodler.
explored a unit on force and motion.
had practice with the 3Doodler.
Objectives
Students will
Design and build a spinning top.
Test and refine their designs.
Communicate the design process and their results in writing and discussion.
Design and build a spinning top.
Test and refine their designs.
Communicate the design process and their results in writing and discussion.
Materials
Students will need
3Doodler START (1 per group)
pencil (1 per students)
scrap paper (1 per student)
metal lids of different shapes and sizes
recycled materials: coffee stirrer, metal washers, pennies, worn down tiny pencil, toothpicks, etc.
[Optional] various types of tops
stopwatch or timer
3Doodler START (1 per group)
pencil (1 per students)
scrap paper (1 per student)
metal lids of different shapes and sizes
recycled materials: coffee stirrer, metal washers, pennies, worn down tiny pencil, toothpicks, etc.
[Optional] various types of tops
stopwatch or timer
Lesson Plan
Instructions
Step 1
PREPARATION
Drill or cut a small hole through each lid. The crown (the stick you hold to turn a top) will go through this hole.
Optional: Watch videos to familiarize students with different types of tops:
Spinning Top Tutorial
About Spin Tops
Step 2
Share the goal: To create a twirl top that spins for, at least, 10 seconds within a 30 x 30 cm. space.
Step 3
Review the basic parts of a top: crown, shoulder, body and point.
Step 4
Discuss "torque" as the force which sets the top in motion.
Step 5
Demonstrate how to create a top using a selected lid. Test your top. Make adjustments.
Step 6
Note that testing is an important part of design. Prompt students to share ways to improve designs.
*Adding and adjusting weights for balance, adjusting or sanding the point, adjusting the length or the crown and/or tip. Students can either create their own crown and point using the 3Doodler or use a recycled element as a point, e.g., screw, pencil point, crayon point, coffee stirrer, etc.
Step 7
Divide students into groups of 2-3. Each group selects a lid. Instruct students to draw a plan for their top. Include the materials needed. Each part of the top should be labeled.
Step 8
After approving students' plans, hand out materials. Circle to assist and assess.
Step 9
Hand out stopwatches for students to test their tops.
Step 10
Encourage students to make adjustments where needed.
PREPARATION
Drill or cut a small hole through each lid. The crown (the stick you hold to turn a top) will go through this hole.
Optional: Watch videos to familiarize students with different types of tops:
Spinning Top Tutorial
About Spin Tops
Share the goal: To create a twirl top that spins for, at least, 10 seconds within a 30 x 30 cm. space.
Review the basic parts of a top: crown, shoulder, body and point.
Discuss "torque" as the force which sets the top in motion.
Demonstrate how to create a top using a selected lid. Test your top. Make adjustments.
Note that testing is an important part of design. Prompt students to share ways to improve designs.
*Adding and adjusting weights for balance, adjusting or sanding the point, adjusting the length or the crown and/or tip. Students can either create their own crown and point using the 3Doodler or use a recycled element as a point, e.g., screw, pencil point, crayon point, coffee stirrer, etc.
Divide students into groups of 2-3. Each group selects a lid. Instruct students to draw a plan for their top. Include the materials needed. Each part of the top should be labeled.
After approving students' plans, hand out materials. Circle to assist and assess.
Hand out stopwatches for students to test their tops.
Encourage students to make adjustments where needed.
Wrap Up
Assessment
Possible Extensions
Resources
How Does a Spinning Top Work? (Good resource for teacher):
Reflections for Top-Designers (1 per group):
Reflections for Top-Designers
Names of Top-Designers_______________________________________
Testing Rounds / Time Spun within 30 x 30 cm space in seconds / Time Spun in Total in seconds
Test 1
Test 2
Test 3
Total Time __________
Questions:
1. What was the most challenging part of designing a top?
2. What was something interesting that you learned during the process?
3. Did you need to make any changes to your group's original design? Explain.
4. Were there any materials that we did not have in our classroom that would have improved the design and effectiveness of your top? If so, please, share.
4. What did you observe other groups doing that you'd like to try next time?
5. How did you overcome difficulties during the process?
6. Share a mistake you made and how you learned from it.
7. Observe and describe how your top looked shortly before it fell.
8. What were some things that your group did well when working together?
9. What are some things you could do next time to work together better?
10. How do friction and gravity affect your top? Explain.
Top-Tops
Twirling top - A twirling top is spun by manually twisting the crown.
A dreidel is a common example of a twirling top.
Supported top – A top which is spun with a string while the top is held upright by a support.
Whip top - A whip top is set into motion and kept spinning by whipping it with a whip.
Throwing top - A throwing top has a string wrapped around its body which is attached to a stick. When the top is thrown causing the string to be rapidly released from its body, the top spins.
Pump top - A pump top has a crown that is pushed down or pumped several times to create the spin.
Vocabulary
gyroscopic effect - the difficulty to change a spinning object's axis of rotation due to forces of physics.
kinetic energy - energy of an object in motion, due to motion.
potential energy - the energy possessed by a body by virtue of its position relative to others, stresses within itself, electric charge, and other factors.
torque - a twisting force.
Educational Standards
Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 4 topics and texts, building on others' ideas and expressing their own clearly.
Students will work in small groups to brainstorm, design and create a top.
Pose and respond to specific questions to clarify or follow up on information, and make comments that contribute to the discussion and link to the remarks of others.
Each group must respond to questions to clarify or follow up on information about the process of designing a topt. Students must ask specific and relevant questions about other group's tops.
Solve problems involving measurement
Students will use measurement to design tops and to keep the top within the measured testing area, i.e., 30 x 30 cm.
Engineering Design Define a simple design problem reflecting a need or a want that includes specified criteria for success and constraints on materials, time, or cost.
Students will recognize the goal/problem of this task and meet specified criteria to solve this problem.
Engineering Design Generate and compare multiple possible solutions to a problem based on how well each is likely to meet the criteria and constraints of the problem.
Students will consider various designs, test and make adjustments to solve a problem, i.e., create the longest spinning top.
Engineering Design Plan and carry out fair tests in which variables are controlled and failure points are considered to identify aspects of a model or prototype that can be improved.
Students will test their tops and make adjustments to identify aspects of design that can improve the duration of the spin.
Plan and create a design document to illustrate thoughts, ideas, and stories in a sequential (step-by-step) manner (e.g., story map, storyboard, sequential graphic organizer).
Students will brainstorm ideas and sketch a design to illustrate their group's thoughts and ideas.
Decompose (break down) a larger problem into smaller sub-problems with teacher guidance or independently.
Students will break down the process into brainstorming, designing, building, testing, presenting to group.
Use technology to seek feedback that informs and improves their practice and to demonstrate their learning in a variety of ways.
Students will use the 3Doodler to construct the longest spinning top.
Exhibit a tolerance for ambiguity, perseverance and the capacity to work with open-ended problems.
Students will demonstrate willingness and competency within an open-ended task with more than one possible outcome.
Create original works or responsibly repurpose or remix digital resources into new creations.
Students will create original top-designs from recycled materials and the 3Doodler.
Use collaborative technologies to work with others, including peers, experts or community members, to examine issues and problems from multiple viewpoints.
Students will seek feedback from peers before and during design phase of this project.
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