Henry Ford Museum
Physics, Technology and Engineering in Automobile Racing
Start your engines! This five-lesson unit introduces physics and Newton's laws through automobile racing. Each lesson includes background information, a student worksheet, and an answer key. There are also culminating project...
Curated OER
Solar Car Races: Build and retrofit for speed
If you have solar car kits for your junior high schoolers, they can experiment with photovoltaic cell angle, light intensity, and aerodynamic design to discover what makes their car move more quickly. This is a classic activity to use...
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Solar Car Series: Angle/Energy Amount
Does the angle of a solar panel change the output? Emerging engineers find out! Demonstrate for your class how they can angle a straw to match the angle of light rays coming from a source. Then turn them loose to experiment with the...
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Solar Car Series: during What Part of the Day Can the Most Sun Power Be Collected?
In preparation for solar car races, middle schoolers attempt to discover what time of day the most solar energy can be collected. Begin by demonstrating the use of a voltmeter for measuring solar cell output. Take them outdoors to take...
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Go Car, Go!
Learners design and build their own car. In this physics lesson, students collect data to determine the speed of the car. They plot the data on the graph analyze the relationship between variables.
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Solar Race Cars
Pupils explore the relationship between time traveled, distance and speed. In this solar race car lesson students wire solar batteries using series and parallel circuitry.
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Build Your Own Car
Learners design and build their own cars. In this physics instructional activity, students test their car's speed and make changes when necessary. They graph data and analyze results.
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Solar Racing
High schoolers harness the power of the sun to design, construct and evaluate a solar-powered model car of their creation. They race their cars in a "Solar Sprint" race modeled after the National Renewable Energy Laboratory's Junior...
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Rover Races
Students identify the challenges encountered by astronauts in operating a planetary rover. For this space science lesson, students create a rover using their team members. They follow a command sequence from the driver and navigate...
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Build and Test Your Car Continued
Students create and build cars to race in class. In this physics lesson, students calculate the speed using distance and time information. They evaluate their design and make adjustments when needed.
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Balloon Powered Race Cars
Students examine Newton's Law of Motion and use the formula to calculate speed. In this laws of motion lesson students create a balloon powered car and calculate its speed and distance.
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Solar Powered Cars
Students build and race solar powered cars after a teacher lecture. They answer questions based on their experiences with the car they build.
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Car Show
Students race homemade cars. In this physics lesson, students present their cars to judges and then race the cars on the prepared track. Several tips for setting the school gym up to host the event are suggested.
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Solar Racing
Middle schoolers design and build solar-powered cars. In this renewable energy lesson, students view websites showing a Department of Energy contest and solar-powered car design guidelines. They work in teams to design and build...
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Race the Track! Shoot the Loop
Learners experiment with a steel ball and matchbox car to find the effects of force and motion. In this force and motion lesson, students assemble a track, conduct experiments and record on a shoot the loop worksheet. Learners change the...
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Race the Track! Design Challenge
Students focus on a force and motion problem, explore it, reflect on it and apply it while completing experiments. In this motion lesson, students experiment with force and motion by creating a track for testing cars.
Kenan Fellows
The Newton Challenge
Make Newton proud. Scholars apply their understanding of forces and energy to an engineering design challenge. They learn about simple machines, create a presentation on Newton's laws, and develop a balloon-powered car.
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Design and Race a Solar Car
Students design, construct and evaluate a solar powered model car. In this solar power instructional activity students compete in a "solar sprint" race once their car is created.
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Vectors
Students describe a complex path by the use of adding vectors. They are explained the procedures and rules of the balloon car race. Students are remined that the summary and answers to the questions are due Monday. They are given the...
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TE Activity: Racing with the Sun - Creating a Solar Car
Students use a purchased kit to build a solar powered car. They connect a solar photovoltaic panel to a motor which runs the car forward and backward. They determine how to wire the car to move in both directions.
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Indianapolis 500 Unit-Science
Fourth graders access prior knowledge of simple machines to build a car. In this car design instructional activity, 4th graders create and race their cars. Students evaluate what was good and bad about their designs. Each car will...
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The Great Tin Race
Students construct and race tin can cars. In this motion lesson plan, groups build tin racers, complete timed runs, and record their data on the provided worksheet. The teacher leads a discussion comparing data between groups. Specific...
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Work and Power: Waterwheel
Students investigate a waterwheel and the physical properties of energy. In this waterwheel lesson students create a model waterwheel and calculate the amount of power produced.
Colorado State University
What Is Energy?
Don't let the energy of your classroom falter! Explore the scientific definition of energy through play. A hands-on lesson focuses on the change of energy from one form to another.