Rube Goldberg Inspires Collaboration for 7th Graders
Eager seventh graders gather in excitement and anticipation as they test their portion of the Rube Goldberg machine.
Amy Zhang ’14 and Christine Yao ’14 are all smiles as they eagerly show off their portion of the seventh graders’ Rube Goldberg machine—a device named after cartoonist Rube Goldberg’s famous drawings of multiple-step contraptions which result in a simple everyday action.
In this case, the “action” provides for lots of giggles—a pie in the face of their science teachers.
“We use everything from shoe boxes to duct tape to the Barbie Jeep to Frisbees,” Yao says.
“And someone uses a croquet mallet, too!” adds Zhang.
Gathered on the tennis courts of the Nicholas Athletic Center, the daylong event allowed students plenty of time to set up their contraption and perform several test runs to catch any glitches. Wendy Svatek, Middle School Science Chair, says the annual Rube Goldberg event really inspires seventh graders to collaborate and come up with new and innovative ideas.
“We spent time in class learning about Rube Goldberg and preparing for the day,” Svatek says. “The students were totally engaged in this project and worked collaboratively in ways we often don’t get to observe in a typical classroom setting.”
Svatek also noted the “terrific energy” in the classroom as students brainstormed materials and tasks, and discussed ideas with their partners. In the morning, students were divided by science class and asked to work on a specific aspect of the contraption.
“This year we saw several zip lines, a skateboard or two, and some creative uses of remote-controlled cars (like the Barbie Jeep),” Svatek adds. “Overall, the machines were a little more creative and ran a little bit more smoothly than last year’s machines (the teachers also learn as we go along!).”
The concept and creation of Rube Goldberg machines actually sets up quite nicely for the other topics studied in seventh grade science: energy, structures and rocketry (Newton’s Laws). In the afternoon portion of the event, students were split-up by homeroom and given a box of every-day objects: string, straws, tape, pencils, etc. along with a list of objectives for specific trials and tests.
“On the day of the event, it was really impressive how well they worked together to fuse their individual tasks into one machine,” Svatek says. “There were many instances of creative problem-solving on the fly in order to achieve overall success for the class.”
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Photos
Raiann Rahman carefully sets up his area.
Science Teacher and seventh grade dean Brian Fehlau prepares for a pie in the face.
Brian Siao Tick Chong, Katerina Toffoloni, Nic Trieu (back to camera), and Amy Zhang know that working together is the key to success when building a Rube Goldberg contraption.