Egg Car Project Due - January 23 (Day 1-3) and January 26 (Days 4-6)

Below are the instructions for the Egg Carr Project in case you have lost the one I provided in class.

CTD Class – Transportation Technology: Engineering Safer Automobiles

“The Egg Car” Project is due on __________

Background: We can all agree that automobiles have forever changed our lives.  However, with all of the many benefits and conveniences there are some negative impacts.  First on the list would be safety for the occupants during crashes.  Since cars can travel at great speeds the need to design and build safe vehicles is a crucial task for engineers.  Today’s automobiles are safer than ever due to improvement to seat belts, air bags and state of the art chassis.

For this homework assignment you will explore automobile safety engineering by designing and building a vehicle capable of keeping your passenger (one raw egg) safe during a crash.  Put on your thinking caps and start designing.

Objective: Design and build a vehicle capable of transporting and protecting one raw egg during three impacts with a concrete barrier.

Specifications and Constraints for building the vehicle:

• You may use any material to build your vehicle except foam, Styrofoam and/or bubble wrap.  Milk cartons, juice bottles and small boxes make great car chassis.  I will provide wheels and axles.
• You will receive extra points for vehicles built out of materials that would get thrown away or can be recycled.
• The vehicle must roll freely down the ramp.  No braking devices.
• The vehicle should not exceed 22 inches in length and 12 inches in width.
• You may add a bumper, but no foam bumpers please.  Creating a unique bumper can earn you points.
• You may use tape, glue, nails, hot glue guns, screws or any other fastening device to assemble the vehicle.
• I will supply the egg on test day.  Try and see if you can make part of the egg visible from the outside of the car.

Specifications and constraints for protecting the egg. 

These are the only materials you are allowed to use that can touch or protect the egg.  The challenge is to use only these materials to protect the egg.  Combining the materials is allowed.            

• Straws
• Rubber Bands (any size)
• Paper (however, no tissue paper or paper towels) and/or cardboard

Evaluation/Grading – A rubric will be used to assess the five areas below:

• Creative problem solving (Is your vehicle creative and unique?)                                
• Up to 40 points
• Construction (Is everything put together well?  Does it roll down the ramp)        
• Up to 25 points
• Egg Safety (Did your egg survive all three test runs?)                                                      
•  Up to 15 points
• Completed self-assessment sheet turned in on time                                                     
•  Up to 10 points
• Use of throw away or recyclable material throughout the vehicle.                        
• Up to 10 points

Trimester Update for CTD Class

Happy Fall everyone. Although we only started school a few weeks ago we got right to work in CTD class.  Since students are in class for only 30 classes a year, time is a precious commodity.  Grade 7 started the year learning about the development of technology and the positive and negative impacts of technology  on our daily lives.  We watched an interesting TED Talk from Hugh Herr.  He is a scientist at MIT working in Bionics.  I've included a link below if you are interested in watching the video.  It is a worthwhile investment of your time.

Next for Grade 7 was the Structure Unit.  After learning about loads, forces and the different types of structures we began our problem solving challenges.  First up  was "The Squeeze Is On".  Students had to build a structure capable of supporting a heavy load, however they could only use paper, straws and tape.  The next challenge was "Building Up".  Students had to design and create a tall structure using only one sheet of 12"X 12" paper and six inches of tape.  I've included some photographs below of the results.  Currently the students are finishing up The Balsa Wood Towers.  I will post later about the results.

Grade 8 started the year learning about Communication Technology Systems and how the different parts work to help humans send and receive messages.  Our first problem solving project was "The Pringle Challenge".  Using the steps of The Engineering Design Process students had to design and construct a package that would protect a single Pringle potato chip from harm during impact testing.
Currently the students are working on constructing Balsa Wood Bridges in class and should be working on their "Egg Cars" at home (Due Monday).  I've posted a few pictures of the "Pringle Challenge" and some bridges being constructed below.  I will post photographs of the Egg Cars soon.

Welcome Back

Summer vacation is almost over,

(The Scream, by Edvard Munch - 1893)

but no need to SCREAM because it will be the start of  a great new school year.  I hope everyone had a great summer and you were able to do some fun things with your friends and family.  For me it's been a wonderful summer of travel, creating some artwork and lots of construction work around the house, but I am looking forward to meeting new students, seeing my teacher friends and starting the new school year. However, it will be hard to be give up the flip-flops, shorts and t-shirts.

If you are wondering what supplies are needed for Art and CTD class, please see the list below:
Art Class - pencils and one pocket folder.
CTD Class - pencil or pen to write with.
As you can see, not a lot of supplies need to be purchased as I will provide most of the supplies.

Enjoy the rest of the summer and see you on Tuesday the 30th.

Youth Art Month Show at the Abington Public Library

Below are a few photographs of the work created by Frolio students currently hanging at the Abington Public Library. We are grateful to the library staff for their help and support with the annual Youth Art Month Exhibit.

Additionally, we were invited to exhibit student work at the Southfield Winter Farmers Market in Weymouth.  Below are a few images of the work created by middle and high school students displayed at the event.

Invention/Product of Technology - 7th Grade Homework Instructions

CTD CLASS – Invention Timeline Homework

                                            

Ten points will be deducted from your overall grade fro project turned in late without a valid excuse.

Assignment:  Use the Internet to research an invention or product of technology.   Find 15 facts about the invention and present the 15 facts on a creative poster or 3-Dimensional model. Some possible choices are: Computer, Television, Airplane, Telephone, Refrigerator, Penicillin, Musical Instruments, Shoes, Radar, Telescope, Microscope Light Bulb, Clock, X-Ray, etc.

Directions/Specifications:

• Choose an invention or product of technology you find interesting and would like to learn more about.
• Through Internet research uncover fifteen facts about your chosen subject.  Hint when searching for your facts type “history” or “timeline” of the (product you chose)” into an internet search engine such as Google for better results.
• Retype or rewrite the facts.  Do not “copy/paste” directly from the web-site to your word document and glue to your poster.  If the fact is long, shorten to one or two sentences.  The facts should include the year (if available), a brief description of the development for that year and any person or company responsible for contributing to the advancement of the product.
• If possible try to locate information from several decades.  (Might be difficult for recent products such as the I-Pod but easier for inventions like the airplane.)
• Your project can be either a 2-D (poster) or a 3-D (model)
• List the web page/URL address on your model.  I will subtract 12 points from your grade if the internet site is not listed.

Check with me if you are unsure about an invention or product.  Remember, the game of football is not a product of technology, but football equipment is.

Grading:

15 interesting facts with information relating to your chosen subject (up to 40 points).

Information is presented in a neat, easy-to-read, creative 2-D or 3-D format (up to 48 points)

Web page(s) or URL address the information was retrieved from (12 Points)

You may receive up to 5 additional, extra-credit homework points for outstanding effort and creativity.  Keep in mind the examples I have shown you in class.

Youth Art Month Exhibit at the Abington Public Library

 Youth Art Month is a national celebration promoting the value of art, the creative process and the importance of quality art education.  For this occasion, the Abington Art Department is currently exhibiting artwork from students in grades one through twelve throughout the Abington Public Library.  The show offers the viewer a broad range of art work in many different media and expressions.  The exhibition of over two hundred works will continue through March 31st.  Additionally, we will host a "Viewing Afternoon" on March 24 from 4:30-6:00 for the families of students and the community at large.  Please stop by and enjoy the creative efforts of our students.

Murals Created By This Year's "After School Mural Club"

Back in June the After School Mural Club presented two new murals at a ceremony held in the cafeteria.  The photographs below show the finished murals along with a few photos of the work in progress. The murals were started back in December and the club put in many hours of hard work to complete the Murals by the end of the school year.  The murals will be permanently displayed in Frolio's hallways .