My golf tower (It is 5’7″) (Made using newspaper & tape)

My egg drop tent (Made using Popsicle sticks, paper straws, newspaper, and tape)

Curricular Response

Describe and reflect how your work with both building of your device (Tower and Egg Dropper) improved your understanding of the SCIENTIFIC METHOD PROCESS. Think about the Inductive learning (Observing a problem using observations) and the Deductive Learning (Using experiments to test hypothesis).

Throughout the experiments/labs, I was able to write a hypothesis, and in doing so, designed an experiement to test it. Doing hands-on experiments based on my hypothesis allowed me to gain a clearer understanding of the different variables (Manipulated/Independent, Response/Dependent, Controlled). Using inductive learning, I observed the creations of my peers, which gave me insights into what I could improve with my own design. As for deductive learning, based on the results of both mine and my classmates experiments, I was able to form a conclusion regarding the things I could improve, thus setting myself up for success the next time I participate in an experiment of a similar topic.

Core Competency Self Assessment and Creative Thinking

It’s important to celebrate our accomplishments.  Which SCIENTIFIC METHOD LAB are you the most proud of and why?

The scientific method lab that I am the most proud of is the golf ball challenge. Before the lab, I was doubtful that I would be able to build a tall tower as I had not any good ideas during the prototype design. Initially, me and my partner were struggling with creating a strong base (Tri-pod base), but eventually, it was able to work, while not the best. I began stacking rolled newspaper layer by layer until we reached 3 rolls continuously stacked. By that time, we had run out of time. In the end, we ended up with a tower at a height of 5’7″, acheiving the 4th tallest tower in the class.

What strategies did you use to overcome those challenges?  Describe in detail.

During the construction of my golf tower, we didn’t have a good strategy for tape distribution, so when we were stacking the newspaper, all we could do was roll it tightly so it wouldn’t be undone. Because they were not taped together, it was difficult to balance them, thus taking up the majority of our time trying to find a balance point for the golf ball, through constant adjustments.

Describe your experience with understanding of the Scientific Method doing the 2 labs?

By doing 2 different labs, I was able find a clear understanding of the variables. I learned that the IF part of the hypothesis is always the manipulated variable, while the THEN part is always the response variable. It was very clear to identify the different variables after going through 2 experiments.

I demonstrated that I can create new things when I …

I created a tent for my egg dropper, which was not a design that other groups were doing. While it was not successful, it was a unique design which shows my ability to think, and not just follow along with what everyone else was doing.

I demonstrated that I can build on the ideas of others when I …

During the building of the golf tower, while everyone was doing a similar design for a base, I noticed the methods they used to hold the legs of their base together. At the beginning of the lab, we were struggling to come up with a way to firmly hold together the legs, but when I noticed how other groups were doing it, we used a similar method, though not the same as we wanted to distribute our tape differently. In the end, we ended up having the fourth tallest tower at 5’7″.

When trying new things, I expect setbacks and failure and use them to develop my ideas. An example of this from the Scientific Method labs would be …

During the egg dropper lab, our idea was unsuccessful has we had not accounted for the force of impact, and we had overestimated the strength of our cushioning. After the lab, the results were all of the succesful drops used a parachute mechanic, and it made quite a lot of sense because the parachute would slow down the fall, and thus you would not be required to have an extensive amount of cushioning to absorb the impact.