Miller GT

Welcome to the newsletter of the Gifted and Talented classes of the Miller School! This edition will focus on the Great Mousetrap Racer Challenge for our 5th grade GT students. As you read, you will be introduced to this cross-curricular challenge, see how our 5th grade engineers interpreted and tackled it, and get a look at their racers! Enjoy!

A mousetrap-powered racer is a vehicle that is powered by the energy of a wound-up mousetrap's spring. The car works when one end of a string is tied to the arm on the mousetrap and the other end is wound around an axle. By winding the string around the axle, the mousetrap's spring is stretched providing stored energy. As the mousetrap is released it pulls the string off of the axle causing the wheels to turn and making the car move!

Build a vehicle powered solely by the energy of one standard-sized mousetrap, (1 3/4" X 3 7/8") that move when the mousetrap is sprung and will travel the greatest linear distance.

• The minimum number of wheels on the vehicle is two (2); any more is acceptable.
• The device cannot have any additional potential or kinetic energy at the start other than what can be stored in the mousetrap's spring itself.
• Vehicles must be self-starting.
• Vehicles may not receive a push in the forward direction or side direction.
• The spring from the mousetrap cannot be altered or heat treated.
• The vehicle must steer itself.
• FEEL FREE to get help building it from anyone you choose!

Our latest unit of study has continued to focus on Sir Isaac Newton and his three laws of motion, along with forces, friction, and potential and kinetic energy. We began this study in the fall when discussing aviation. Our "Great Mousetrap Racer Challenge" will now put our knowledge of these topics to the test as we try and build the best vehicle that can go farther than anyone else's in the class! We are also shooting for the school record which is currently held by Ryan Griffin of 137 feet set in 2017!

All construction of the students' racers was done at home. To stay on track, they had checkpoints. For this checkpoint, students had to take a photo of the parts they intended to use to build their racer, keeping in mind the following:

They had to be in the photo! They were also told to be sure to show everything:

• Chassis
• Wheels/Axles
• Mousetrap
• String
• Anything else they intended to utilize

Checkpoint #2 was proof of construction. That means that they had to submit a photo showing the progress they had made on their car to that point as they had a looming due date and needed to make sure their construction would be completed on time!

The students used Canva to introduce us to their mousetrap racer! Below are the areas they needed to address for this project!

▶ You will use 💻Canva to create a poster about your build. The link is below. The following must be on the poster:

• Describe the construction of your car.
• Include the materials used.
• This may also be in picture form!

▶ Explain how you believe 🍎Newton's Laws apply to your design.

• If you believe more than one law applies to your car, be sure to mention each law and how each applies.

▶ Predict the capability of your car for:

• Distance 📏
• How far do you think it will go and why?

▶ Durability car

• Do you think your car will hold up for several races?
• How many and why or why not?

▶ Make sure you have graphics!
▶ Feel free to use the photos from your checkpoints too!
▶Please put your name in the bottom right corner of the poster. It should be small.

The third and final checkpoint was photographic proof of their completed racer. Students had to submit two photos showing different views of their racer prior to bringing it in the school. Look through the galleries to see the variety of designs for their awesome cars!

Finally, race day arrived, and the students eagerly brought in their cars and prepared to race! Remember, their goal was to build a car that traveled the farthest linear distance. After some vigorous racing, several cars ended up in Pit Road for tweaks and repairs. One of the biggest problems encountered was with tires. Some wobbled causing cars to curve or crash. Others couldn't get traction so the Pit Crew (Miss Hunt and Mrs. Pettit!) added balloons to them. Still others rubbed on parts of the car, not allowing them to spin and move the car. Thankfully, there was a second day of racing, so all repairs could be tested! Besides this, drivers were also responsible for measuring how far their car traveled and logging the distances on a Google Sheet. After the second day of races, the top car in each class faced off for the championship!

Our second day of racing saw many cars visiting Pit Road to make repairs and/or adjustments! Some cares performed considerable better, while others simply made us scratch our heads! In all, though, the students had a great time racing and really enjoyed themselves!

One of our goals was for the drivers to have the bragging rights as the top racer for this year! Of course, they were also trying to break the elusive 137ft all-time school record as well! How did they do???!!! The leading drivers for each class were:

• Mrs. Brennan - Daraniya D. - 51ft 6in
• Mr. Baldwin - LuLu D. - 65ft 9in
• Mrs. Girard - Tino B. - 57ft 9in
• Mrs. Keiner - Owen G. - 67ft 7in
• Mr. McClain - Emma O. - 64ft 10in; Ethan E. 64ft 10in
• Mrs. Nhan - Blake P. - 62ft 6in
• Mrs. Scalley - Jasvi P. - 58ft 9in

Congratulations to Owen G. who squeaked 🐭 by LuLu D. by less than two inches to become the 2023-2024 Miller School Mousetrap Racer champion! His car traveled 67ft 7in to win the title for this year. Congratulations to ALL competitors for a job well done!

As all scientists and engineers do, the students had to gather their data, share outcomes and reflect on the project. This was done in the form of a video. The following information was part of their final project report:

• After testing your mousetrap racer, reflect on your initial prediction for your car's performance. Compare it to your car's actual test results and determine why your initial prediction was correct or incorrect. Explain why.
• Explain how Newton's Laws actually applied to your design based on your results.
• What modifications would you make to your car to improve its performance and why? If you did modify it after the initial build, explain how and why.
• What are your thoughts about the overall project? What did you like about the project? What would you change about the project? Are there any areas you suggest we improve for the project? Explain.

Check out some of their videos below!