Get Your Motor Running
Harness magnets and electricity to build and race a car against your friends.
Do you have a need… a need for speed? Join Science Gallery as we explore the mechanics of how to make things go fast. Specifically, how does an electric motor work, and how can we use one to create our own speedster?
Students act as engineers, gaining and using knowledge of electric motors to design a battery-operated vehicle from a selection of odd materials. They will have to combine their knowledge with innovative solutions to make these materials work on our drag strip.
Details
Available: All school yearDuration: 1 module (75 minutes)
2 modules (3 hours)
Capacity: 50 students
Delivery: Excursion; Incursion
+ Students will…
Investigate motors and electromagnets as they construct their own simple electric motors using household materials.
Understand the various kinds of energy and forces that are at work in moving vehicles.
Work together in teams to design, build and race a simple electric vehicle from a variety of unusual materials.
Test material properties and observe how they impact the speed and accuracy of their vehicle.
+ Industry Focus
Design & Engineering
Science
+ STEAM Skills
Collaboration
Communication
Creativity/Creative Thinking
Engineering Skills
Problem Solving
+ Curriculum Links
Design and Technologies
Science
+ Pairs well with...
For those students interested in how we get around, our Drones module Take Flight or our Future Transport module are great choices.
If you want to extend the fun, and give students more time to create the Mad Max race cars of their dreams, why not add on Make it Work, our Design Thinking module? Let students really let their imagination fly as they test and iterate their designs using our ‘unique’ selection of materials.