Discover Engineering in Central Texas

Grade Level:  Elementary School, Grades 1^st – 6^th

Related Classroom Topics:  Force

Supplies Needed:

Divide Students into groups of 3-5.  Each team will need:

·        1 boiled egg

·        1 canister of Play-Doh

Procedure:  Ask students to design safety helmets out of Play-Doh for the boiled egg.  The boiled egg models a bicycle rider’s skull.  Drop the egg from waist height and determine amount of damage done to egg.  The best design will be the egg with the least amount of damage after drop. 

Extensions:  Bring in additional supplies to help model helmet such as:  Styrofoam, balloons, and packing peanuts.  Drop the modeled helmet from higher heights when more materials are used. 

Related topics you could discuss:  How force works—acceleration, gravity.  Newton’s law of motion.  Bicycle safety.

Hints/Tips:  Demonstrate what happens when you drop a boiled egg without a modeled helmet.  Discuss importance of modeled helmet to absorb shock of fall.

Original experiment submitter:  Victoria Heil, Arizona