Mousetrap Challenge
Posted on 11th February 2022
The Aiglon Discovery Programme aims to provide a modern interpretation to the school's Guiding Principles by connecting all areas of academic study, our co-curricular activities, expeditions, the arts and personal reflection all under several big questions that allow our students to grow.
As part of this programme's classroom learning element, students participate in a series of challenges that seek to connect several big concepts together. One of such Discovery challenges for the Year 7 and 8 is the mousetrap challenge.
They have to design and build a vehicle that will be powered by two standard mouse traps. They choose the length and width of their vehicle. They choose three wheels or four. Where do you place the mousetrap on your vehicle? What size wheels should they use? Which is better: hot glue or wood glue? Why is another vehicle in the group working better than their vehicle and can they adapt their vehicle in the time allowed?
The group featured in the photographs only had four fifty-minute sessions to go from complete novice to expert. They had to learn how to work with the materials but they also had to learn how to adapt their ideas. This is discovery learning. The group did not want to stop and have asked to continue the project in their free time. The challenge is to design and build a vehicle that will go as far as possible. As they develop their ideas the challenge will soon be to see if they can make a vehicle that will travel the length of Parson’s Hall.
Watch this space.
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Mr Logie