Year in Review: Roller Coasters

One of the favorite units over the last few years for Year 5 has been one of our science units that focuses on how systems work, with the culminating project being the building of marble roller coasters. Students are placed into small groups and tasked with building a roller coaster that meets several criteria, including a certain length, at least one 45 degree drop, a 360 degree loop and the use of at least 3 different materials in the construction of the track.

This year’s class, similar to those before them, took to the walls of the classroom in order to create enough velocity in their marble’s travels to accomplish the 360 degree loop. In the end, every group was able to accomplish all of the goals that had been set forth and had a good time designing, constructing and testing their prototypes.