Pre-Launch: A Preview
The Rocket Teams Project
Ray Bradbury, Author of The Martian Chronicles
“It is good to renew one’s wonder,” said the philosopher. “Space travel has again made children of us all.”
The Rocket Teams Project is a Project Based Learning (PBL) endeavor. It brings together a variety of disciplines – physics, engineering, filmmaking, literature, team building, analysis, and essay writing – under a single umbrella. In addition to highlighting a number of core academic studies, it also aims to focus students on real-world applications.
Students will learn the basic fundamentals that underpin modern physics and then apply those concepts to hands-on build projects. They will document this process through documentary filmmaking, and along the way they will delve into the world of science fiction to hone their analytical writing skills.
The Rocket Teams Project Purpose
In the Rocket Team Project, students will form Rocket Teams in order to explore both the engineering process and the underlying physics of motion. Rocket Teams will compete with each other to design, construct, test and launch a series of machines -- Co2 Race Cars, Water Bottle Rockets, and Model Rockets -- in a test of both the mastery of underlying physics principles (Newton’s Laws, Boyle’s Law, etc.) and exceptional engineering prowess.
Along the way, Rocket Teams will explore the history of flight, record and analyze experimental data, and demonstrate an understanding of how to build and work within a team to achieve specific targets and goals.
The Components of the Project
The Rocket Teams Project is comprised of the following components:
The Study of Fundamental Physics
Teambuilding
The Study of Documentary Filmmaking
The Study of Science Fiction & Literary Analysis
Studying Fundamental Physics
The core of this project is the understanding and application of fundamental physics. Historically, physics is taught from a textbook straight through with a range of different experiments thrown in to illustrate particular concepts. In the case of the Rocket Teams Project, the physics lessons are tied directly to the core builds: CO2 Race Cars, Water Bottle Rockets, and Model Rockets.
This means that certain concepts such as Newton’s Laws of Motion are delved into while others, such as magnetism, are not. The purpose of the project is to tie learning directly to the practical challenges presented by the project.
Physics Concepts Covered:
Newton’s Laws of Motion
Speed, Velocity & Acceleration
What is a Force?
Mass vs Weight
Form Drag vs Skin Drag
Principles of Engineering
Rocket Structure
Understanding Thrust
Understanding Roll, Pitch & Yaw
Kinetic vs Potential Energy
Center of Gravity vs Center of Pressure
Kepler’s Laws of Planetary Motion
Teambuilding
The Rocket Teams Project, as its name indicates, is team based. Students are divided into teams, and it is within those teams that they will design and build various machines, create a documentary film, and study the field of physics.
To enhance the team experience, the Rocket Teams Project includes a range of team activities designed to build cohesiveness and encourage teamwork. These include:
Selecting a Team Name
Creating a Team Logo & Motto
Designing a Team T-Shirt
Acquiring Team Sponsors
Forming a Team Playlist
Documentary Filmmaking
In a classical classroom, students would study physics and then take a test to demonstrate their learning and understanding. The Rocket Teams Project shifts this demonstration into a different sector altogether by requiring students to illustrate their learning through the creation of a documentary film.
Throughout the project, students will examine a range of short documentary films found on YouTube, as well as work through lessons designed to illuminate how films are planned and executed. Basic filmmaking techniques are examined so students will have a foundational grasp of sound moviemaking concepts.
The goal of the documentary is three-fold. One, to teach students about the art of filmmaking. Two, to allow students a creative outlet in an otherwise science-heavy project. And three, to give students a more engaging and compelling framework for demonstrating their learning.
Documentary filmmaking lessons include:
Writing a Film Treatment
Storyboarding
The Rule of Thirds
Leading Lines
A Frame Within a Frame
Selecting a Soundtrack
To film their documentaries, we will use a combination of mobile phones and HD camcorders. Footage will be uploaded to the cloud and edited with the free version of Davinci Resolve. We also invested in professional but relatively inexpensive sound recording devices.
To help students gain an understanding of what good short documentary films look like, we will be watching a handful in class. These titles include:
Reading Science Fiction
The Rocket Teams Project provides an ideal opportunity for a deep dive into the world of science fiction. There are two compelling reasons for studying science fiction with this project. First, it naturally pairs well with a project devoted to the study of physics, rocketry and space. And second, it is the field of science fiction that inspired so many of the physicists, pilots and astronauts who developed the fields of space flight and atomic energy that our world now relies upon.
In reading science fiction and writing about it, the Rocket Teams Project follows closely with the Lucy Calkins curriculum for Essay Writing. This curriculum is adapted for the specific needs of our students, but the fundamentals are the same.
Students will focus on:
Notetaking
Crafting a Claim Around Which to Build an Essay
Identifying Textual Evidence to Support Their Claim
Drafting Clear, Concise Essays About Their Readings
Peer Review & Editing
While science fiction is a huge field, we have narrowed it down in this project to the following short stories:
Third From the Sun by Richard Matheson
Stories are read and then students are given a two-week period in which to take notes, craft a claim, and draft their essays.
The Builds: CO2 Race Cars, Water Bottle Rockets, & Model Rockets
At the center of the Rocket Teams Project are the three builds. Each of these machines is based upon the fundamental physics concepts explored within the project. It is through these builds that students gain a pragmatic understanding of how to apply their theoretical learning to the real world as well as how to work through the engineering process.
CO2 Race Cars
To build the CO2 Race Cars, we ordered materials from Pitsco, one of the leading manufacturers of CO2 car kits (and a major STEM education company).
We utilized their CO2 car kits and their EZ Track Raceway. You can find the full line of their CO2 car products here.
Water Bottle Rockets
Water bottle rockets are not overly complicated. You use basic two-liter plastic bottles to form the rockets and cardboard to craft the fins. However, you do need something to launch them with. We purchased:
For an in-depth dive into constructing water bottle rockets, check out this guide.
Model Rockets
To construct model rockets, we turned to the folks at Apogee Components. Apogee has been a leader in manufacturing model rockets and supporting the study of rocketry for years. Students ordered rocket kits from Apogee, but we also utilized their software: RockSim.
RockSim allows students to design their own model rockets and digitally test how those rockets will fly when launched. This gives students the opportunity to get deep into the engineering process and immediately visualize their results before construction…exactly how rocket engineers do it in the real world.
Showcase Events
To showcase student achievement, we are looking at two events. Please note that neither has been scheduled and thus both may change. But at this time, we are considering a Launch Day Event for the launch of each team’s model rocket. And we are looking at a Film Day Event where each of the student documentaries would be shown. Because footage of Launch Day will need to be filmed and then edited, a Film Day Event would occur after the end of the Rocket Teams Project.