Grouping: Individual
Take-home: Paper rocket; launch straw handed out at end
Key ideas: Flight, fins, drag, stability, launch angle, measurement.
Start with: Launch two rockets with different fin arrangements.
Success check: Students make repeated launches and measure distance or accuracy.
Try changing: Fin size; fin position; nose mass; launch angle.
Preparation: Print/cut templates; keep launch straws until the end to reduce distraction.
Lesson flow: Day 1: Build rockets first → teacher releases straws for controlled test rounds → measure → redesign fins
Video:
Learning Space: Make a Straw Rocket
Safety and cleanup: Launch only toward marked targets; never toward faces; collect/release straws at controlled times.
https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/edu/learn/project/make-a-straw-rocket/
https://docs.google.com/drawings/d/1NKogXxE51wU8ePkYvRBAH1bhrAqwxxsoRCCcae0dNko/edit
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aTd2f59TSVo