How Do Cars Fly?

Our Winter Inquiry came to an end with students racing their toy cars inside the school and in the snow. This experience prompted some students to wonder about how cars could fly?  To be honest, Ms. Marrella and I were a bit hesitant to add this wonder to our Wonder Wall.  After all, flying cars didn't seem to make much sense.  We asked our students to explain where they had seen cars fly.  Excitedly, they told us about flying monster trucks and a cartoon movie called, Cars.  With all the excitement and interest surrounding this question, we had to form a group and investigate. 

The first thing we did was find an appropriate video on You Tube that showcased cars flying.  We asked the students to look closely at the video and identify what made the cars fly.  After watching the video (a few times - they couldn't get enough), the students figured out that it was a combination of high speed and ramps that allowed the cars in the video to fly.  We decided to explore this a bit further by attempting to construct our own ramps. 

Our investigation group took a few toy monster trucks outside to see if we could create a ramp in the snow. 

Outside, the students found a small hill.  As they began to smooth the surface with their gloves, they uncovered an icy portion.  Though the cars were able to travel smoothly on the icy surface compared to the snowy surface, the students couldn't get their monster trucks to fly.  Though we were a bit disappointed that we couldn't get our trucks to fly in the snow, WE DIDN'T GIVE UP! 

Inside the classroom, Ms. Marrella and I invited the students to work either independently or in small groups, and choose materials to construct ramps.  Here is what our students came up with. 

This investigation required students to pose a question, make predictions, select materials, and make observations during their exploration. 

Reflecting Thoughts 

The process of investigation would not have taken place without the original question, "How do cars fly?"  The question did seem a bit strange to Ms. Marrella and I, however rather than dismissing the question because WE didn't understand it, we asked our students to explain it further.  Our investigation in the snow was both exciting and disappointing.  The students were excited to uncover an icy patch that allowed their trucks to moved easily, though they realized that the snow stopped their trucks from gaining enough speed, thus flying wasn't possible. This ended up being a good lesson in problem solving for our students.  They learned that rather than giving up, they could just change the materials they were working with.  Once in the classroom, we asked our students to select materials independently without our guidance.  The purpose of this was to have students test a variety of materials in different ways.  Ms. Marrella and I knew that some materials would work better than others, but it was up to the students to figure that out on their own through trial and error.  Constructing the ramps required students to use and practice their communication skills.  In learning to negotiate with each other regarding the placement of materials, it was inevitable that small arguments would arise.  Rather than stepping in to help students solve these problems, Ms. Marrella and I watched as our students worked things out independently.  We observed that some students were fair in their problem solving, while other students weren't.  This informed Ms. Marrella and I that a bit more direct teaching about problem solving would benefit our students.   Finally, students were definitely creative in terms of the different types of ramps they constructed and the materials they used.  In the end, the investigation group presented their ramp constructions to the rest of the class.