Explore forces through this fun and engaging inquiry unit. Students get hands on as they work in teams to create a path for a marble to travel through, experimenting with friction, gravity, angles and momentum along the way. Putting their creativity and resilience to the test they practice their collaboration and engineering skills throughout the workshop.(45-60mins)

Victorian Curriculum Links

Critical creative

  • Identify, describe and use different kinds of question stems to gather information and ideas (VCCCTQ001)
  • Make simple modifications to known ideas and routine solutions to generate some different ideas and possibilities (VCCCTQ003)
  • Compare and contrast information and ideas in own and others reasoning (VCCCTR005)

Critical Creative 3-4

  • Construct and use open and closed questions for different purposes (VCCCTQ010)
  • Investigate different techniques to sort facts and extend known ideas to generate novel and imaginative ideas (VCCCTQ012)
  • Identify and use ‘If, then…’ and ‘what if…’ reasoning (VCCCTR016)
  • Explore distinctions when organising and sorting information and ideas from a range of sources (VCCCTR017)
  • Investigate a range of problem-solving strategies, including brainstorming, identifying, comparing and selecting options, and developing and testing hypotheses (VCCCTM020)

Critical Creative 5-6

  • Examine how different kinds of questions can be used to identify and clarify information, ideas and possibilities (VCCCTQ021)
  • Experiment with alternative ideas and actions by setting preconceptions to one side (VCCCTQ022)
  • Identify and form links and patterns from multiple information sources to generate non-routine ideas and possibilities (VCCCTQ023)
  • Investigate common reasoning errors including contradiction and inconsistency, and the influence of context (VCCCTR024)
  • Consider the importance of giving reasons and evidence and how the strength of these can be evaluated (VCCCTR025)
  • Examine the difference between valid and sound arguments and between inductive and deductive reasoning, and their degrees of certainty (VCCCTR027)
  • Investigate thinking processes using visual models and language strategies (VCCCTM029)
  • Investigate how ideas and problems can be disaggregated into smaller elements or ideas, how criteria can be used to identify gaps in existing knowledge, and assess and test ideas and proposals (VCCCTM031)

Personal Social 2

  • Identify personal strengths and describe how these strengths are useful in school or family life (VCPSCSE009)
  • Explain how being prepared to try new things can help identify strategies when faced with unfamiliar or challenging situations (VCPSCSE010)
  • Listen to others’ ideas, and recognise that others may see things differently (VCPSCSO012)
  • Describe ways of making and keeping friends, including how actions and words can help or hurt others, and the effects of modifying their behaviour (VCPSCSO013)
  • Use basic skills required for participation in group tasks and respond to simple questions about their contribution to group tasks (VCPSCSO014)
  • Recognise that conflict occurs and distinguish between appropriate and inappropriate ways to deal with conflict (VCPSCSO015)

Personal Social 3-4

  • Identify personal strengths and select personal qualities that could be further developed (VCPSCSE017)
  • Identify how persistence and adaptability can be used when faced with challenging situations and change (VCPSCSE018)
  • Name and describe the skills required to work independently (VCPSCSE019)
  • Describe the ways in which similarities and differences can affect relationships (VCPSCSO021)
  • Identify the importance of including others in activities, groups and games (VCPSCSO022)
  • Demonstrate skills for effective participation in group tasks and use criteria provided to reflect on the effectiveness of the teams in which they participate (VCPSCSO023)
  • Identify conflicts that may occur in peer groups and suggest possible causes and resolutions (VCPSCSO024)

Personal Social 5-6

  • Reflect on how personal strengths have assisted in achieving success at home, at school or in the community (VCPSCSE026)
  • Describe what it means to be confident, adaptable and persistent and why these attributes are important in dealing with new or challenging situations (VCPSCSE027)
  • Identify the skills for working independently and describe their performance when undertaking independent tasks (VCPSCSE028)
  • Identify the characteristics of an effective team and develop descriptions for particular roles including leadership, and describe both their own and their team’s performance when undertaking various roles (VCPSCSO032)
  • Describe the various causes of conflict and evaluate possible strategies to address conflict (VCPSCSO033)

Science 2

  • People use science in their daily lives (VCSSU041)
  • The way objects move depends on a variety of factors including their size and shape: a push or a pull affects how an object moves or changes shape (VCSSU048)
  • Respond to and pose questions, and make predictions about familiar objects and events (VCSIS050)
  • Participate in guided investigations, including making observations using the senses, to explore and answer questions (VCSIS051)
  • Use informal measurements in the collection and recording of observations (VCSIS052)
  • Compare observations and predictions with those of others (VCSIS054)
  • Represent and communicate observations and ideas about changes in objects and events in a variety of ways (VCSIS055)

Science 3

  • Recognise the role of people in design and technologies occupations and explore factors, including sustainability, that impact on the design of solutions to meet community needs (VCDSTS023)
  • Investigate how forces and the properties of materials affect the behaviour of a designed solution (VCDSTC024)
  • Investigate the suitability of materials, systems, components, tools and equipment for a range of purposes (VCDSTC027)
  • Critique needs or opportunities for designing and explore and test a variety of materials, components, tools and equipment and the techniques needed to create designed solutions (VCDSCD028)
  • Generate, develop, and communicate design ideas and decisions using appropriate technical terms and graphical representation techniques (VCDSCD029)
  • Select and use materials, components, tools and equipment using safe work practices to produce designed solutions (VCDSCD030)
  • Evaluate design ideas, processes and solutions based on criteria for success developed with guidance and including care for the environment and communities (VCDSCD031)
  • Plan a sequence of production steps when making designed solutions (VCDSCD032)

Science 4

  • Science knowledge helps people to understand the effects of their actions (VCSSU056)
  • Natural and processed materials have a range of physical properties; these properties can influence their use (VCSSU060)
  • Forces can be exerted by one object on another through direct contact or from a distance (VCSSU064)
  • With guidance, identify questions in familiar contexts that can be investigated scientifically and predict what might happen based on prior knowledge (VCSIS065)
  • Suggest ways to plan and conduct investigations to find answers to questions including consideration of the elements of fair tests (VCSIS066)
  • Safely use appropriate materials, tools, equipment and technologies (VCSIS067)
  • Compare results with predictions, suggesting possible reasons for findings (VCSIS070)
  • Reflect on an investigation, including whether a test was fair or not (VCSIS071)
  • Represent and communicate observations, ideas and findings to show patterns and relationships using formal and informal scientific language (VCSIS072)

Science 5-6

  • Scientific understandings, discoveries and inventions are used to inform personal and community decisions and to solve problems that directly affect people’s lives (VCSSU073)
  • Solids, liquids and gases behave in different ways and have observable properties that help to classify them (VCSSU076)
  • With guidance, pose questions to clarify practical problems or inform a scientific investigation, and predict what the findings of an investigation might be based on previous experiences or general rules (VCSIS082)
  • With guidance, plan appropriate investigation types to answer questions or solve problems and use equipment, technologies and materials safely, identifying potential risks (VCSIS083)
  • Decide which variables should be changed, measured and controlled in fair tests and accurately observe, measure and record data (VCSIS084)
  • Compare data with predictions and use as evidence in developing explanations (VCSIS086) Suggest improvements to the methods used to investigate a question or solve a problem (VCSIS087)
  • Communicate ideas and processes using evidence to develop explanations of events and phenomena and to identify simple cause-and-effect relationships (VCSIS088)

Design and Technologies

  • Explore how technologies use forces to create movement in designed solutions (VCDSTC014)
  • Explore the characteristics and properties of materials and components that are used to create designed solutions (VCDSTC017)
  • Visualise, generate, and communicate design ideas through describing, drawing and modelling (VCDSCD019)
  • Use materials, components, tools, equipment and techniques to produce designed solutions safely (VCDSCD020)
  • Use personal preferences to evaluate the success of design ideas, processes and solutions including their care for environment (VCDSCD021)
  • Sequence steps for making designed solutions (VCDSCD022)
  • Recognise the role of people in design and technologies occupations and explore factors, including sustainability, that impact on the design of solutions to meet community needs (VCDSTS023)
  • Investigate how forces and the properties of materials affect the behaviour of a designed solution (VCDSTC024)
  • Investigate the suitability of materials, systems, components, tools and equipment for a range of purposes (VCDSTC027)
  • Critique needs or opportunities for designing and explore and test a variety of materials, components, tools and equipment and the techniques needed to create designed solutions (VCDSCD028)
  • Select and use materials, components, tools and equipment using safe work practices to produce designed solutions (VCDSCD030)

Health and Physical Education

  • Practise personal and social skills to interact with others (VCHPEP060)
  • Cooperate with others when participating in physical activities (VCHPEM068)
  • Use trial and error to test solutions to movement challenges (VCHPEM069)
  • Examine how success, challenge and failure strengthen personal identities (VCHPEP088)
  • Apply innovative and creative thinking in solving movement challenges (VCHPEM103)
  • Adopt inclusive practices when participating in physical activities (VCHPEM102)