With books, blocks, pipes and a range of other materials, students were working towards creating a machine that can run on its own for at least one minute. Our NAIS Pudong students have been working in groups to come up with designs for the machine and their ambitious goal is to build a “super” machine that will cover multiple floors of B Block, starting on the 3rd floor and finishing at the front door.
For this planning activity, students were put into small groups, each exploring different ways to build a section of the machine. Abe from Year 7, working with Year 1 students, explained their part of the machine: “We’re using books from the library as dominoes. The books are dictionaries, a symbol of learning, and we plan for them to move a ball through a pipe – this cup.”
Collaboration is key to the project, with Isabella from Year 8, working with Diya, Sam and Henry from Year 2, for yet another section of the machine. Their plan, outlined by Henry, was to incorporate a helium balloon into the design.
With less than a week to go before the April 11th deadline, Global Campus leader, Mrs Nicola Howard explains, there is plenty of work still to be done. She says, “The students not only have to complete their sections, but join them all together and film a 3-4 minute video to submit to the competition.”
Good luck to our young inventers.