Introduction
Catapults have been around for a long time, but have you ever thought about the science and math that was used to create them? This Webquest was designed to help you learn about the history, science, and math that are all a part of catapults! At the end, you will be able to make one of your own at home with items around your house.
If youtube is blocked for you, remember you can do the following:
Student YouTube usernames are their official OCS Microsoft Outlook email address. Not to be confused with their OCS Office365 Username which unfortunately looks like an email address. 😕
- Student email addresses are located on the top box of their Login Sheets.
- Or students can look up their Office365 email address by clicking on their profile picture on the main Office365 screen, select "My Account", then "Personal Info".
- Or a manual alternative is to use this naming convention:
- 1st Letter of Firstname
- plus 1st 3 Letters of Lastname
- plus Last 4 numbers of Student/Lunch#
- then "@student.onslow.k12.nc.us" .
- For example: hypothetical student named "Cameron Staley with Student# 123458100" would be CSta8100@student.onslow.k12.nc.us.
Task
Now that you have learned a little bit about the different kinds of catapults, how math is involved, and the science behind force and motion, you will take a deeper look at catapults.
You will:
- learn the history about catapults and complete a comprehension assessment
- learn about castles and take a virtual tour
- learn a little more about force and motion
- learn more about catapult designs and how they are similar yet different
- learn the difference about accuracy and precision
- create your own catapult design
- record data for your catapult launches - find the mean, median, mode and range for each launch of an item and graph your results for the average distance of each item
- make a design change that will increase accuracy, precision and/or distance
- create a flipgrid for your best design with accuracy and precision
- and most importantly....have FUN!
Process
Make sure you use the document "All About Catapults" that is attached on your assignment from TEAMS in order to complete the comprehension part of this Webquest. You will click on each link below to learn more about catapults:
Part 1:
- History of Catapults Website
- How a Catapult Works - The Basics Website
- How a Catapult Works - The Physics Website - This is where you will learn about the actual formula for each design!
- Modern Day Catapults Website
- Beware the Power of a Catapult Website
- All About Catapults Website
- Catapult Facts for Kids Website
- Storm the Castle! Learn About Catapults and Make Your Own Website
- Catapult Physics - Newton's Second Law Website
Part 2:
- Take a Virtual Tour of a Castle - Complete a virtual tour of a castle and write a brief description. This assignment can be found on TEAMS labeled as "Virtual Tour of a Castle"
Part 3:
- Using the worksheet on TEAMS labeled "Science and Catapults" and the videos below, describe how each one uses force and motion.
Part 4: Accuracy vs Precision
- Watch the video, take a look at the website, and review the pictures below to complete the worksheet on "Accuracy and Precision" on TEAMS under assignments.
- Accuracy and Precision Website
Evaluation
Now it's your turn. Using what you have learned, you will create a catapult to launch various small items around your home. REMEMBER TO GET PERMISSION FROM YOUR PARENTS FIRST! You must:
- Plan what type of catapult will you use?
- Design what it will look like and how it will work. Make sure you think about motion and energy and the angle. Draw out your design showing details and measurements.
- Decide on what materials you will need to use to build your catapult.
- Construct your catapult.
- Test and make adjustments as needed.
- Make a flipgrid of your best construction that has the best accuracy, precision, and/or distance. The assignment will be posted on TEAMS
In addition, you will need to complete the worksheet on TEAMS for the assignment on "Mean, Median, Mode and Range". For this, use the following to help. You can also watch the videos below:
Conclusion
Think about what you have learned.
- If you could go back and modify your catapult to make it more effective, what would you change and why?
- Were you limited to materials? Projectiles?
- Now that you understand the science behind catapults and modern day launching systems, hypothesize some other things that could benefit from the use of catapults.
- Complete this reflection on TEAMS under assignments "Reflection on My Catapult".