Monday 3 February 2014

What materials make a good boot?

More project news!
We are working on a mini science experiment this week. Recently we have been discussing the various structures we have at school and at home, and what they are made of. For instance, we have chairs at home and at school, but at home, they tend to be padded, while at school they are usually plastic with straight backs. The scientists told me that this is because at home we need to relax, while at school we need to focus and we need to be able to wipe up spills easily.
We also talked about the type of shoe we need for gym class, why others won't work as well, and what they are made of. Other good examples were book shelves, that need to be built of strong materials, and pillows that need to be made of soft, squishy materials.
With this in mind, students are working in small groups to construct a boot! They have 6 materials to work with: cardboard, wooden sticks, plastic straws, aluminium foil, wax paper and felt. They have to decide which materials will make the best boot (we decided a boot needs to keep our feet dry and warm). Together with their group, each student is drawing a plan that shows how they plan to use the various materials. Many scientist even took samples to test under running water to see if the material would be waterproof.
When our plans are complete, we will build and test our boots. The scientists are very excited about this experiment, as am I. Please ask them what they're planning with their group - what materials are they planning on using, and how?
Talk to you soon!