Duke Energy

SCIENCE NIGHT

PARACHUTES

BIG IDEA Build and design a parachute with a few simple household materials.

YOU WILL NEED What we gave you: • napkins (2 different sizes) • string • stickers • rulers • paperclips (2 different sizes) • masking tape • small Post-it notes • Parachutes instructions

Stuff you provide: • scissors • markers

FUN OPTIONS Ahead of time:

If you want, you can provide additional materials like coffee filters, newspaper, tissue paper, etc. Small plastic animals make fun parachute passengers while providing a little extra challenge to the parachute design.

During Science Night

If you have an additional volunteer, you can add a ladder to the activity to make the parachute launches more dramatic. The volunteer can “spot” children while on the ladder to ensure safety.

1

SET IT UP Use masking tape to create a bullseye target on the floor. Start with the center ring about the size of a paper plate and move outward in concentric rings. Make each new ring a foot or so larger than the previous. The target should consist of 3 or 4 rings. You may choose to provide additional targets depending on space available. Lay out the materials in order from left to right: string, rulers, scissors, napkins, stickers, paper clips. Place the instructions on the table. It’s a good idea to make your own parachute beforehand. This way the students can see the finished product, and you get a chance to make sure you understand the instructions as well as anticipate any issues children may face when constructing and testing their parachutes.

IT’S SHOWTIME Show families how to make a parachute according to the instructions. Challenge them to drop it so that their passenger, a paper clip, lands as close to the center of the target as possible. To help track where parachutes land, ask each participant to put their name or initials on a small Post-it note – each time they drop their parachute they can place the Postit note where their paper clip landed. Encourage them to explore different variables when testing and building their parachutes. For example: the height from which it is dropped, where they are standing when they drop their parachute, the angle at which it is released, the length of the strings, etc.

IF THEY LOVE IT After participants have successfully built one parachute, challenge them to change the design (one element at a time!) to see how it impacts the descent of their parachute.

WHY IS THIS SCIENCE? When you throw something into the air, like your parachute, it falls because the force of gravity pulls it to the ground. As something falls or moves through the air it experiences another force called drag, which is caused by the air pushing back against that object. Have you ever put your hand outside a car window as it was moving? The air rushing past the car pushes your hand backwards. Drag slows the object down and the more drag, the slower the object will move. As a parachute falls, the part that fills with air is called the canopy. A parachute works because air gets trapped in the canopy, increasing the force of drag on the parachute and slowing its descent to the earth. Successful parachutes will increase drag enough to allow the object to land safely.

TAKE IT BACK TO THE CLASSROOM Challenge your students to a classic egg drop experiment, a fun and dramatic way to get students involved in engineering. Students will need to design a system that protects a raw egg from a significant fall. With this activity, students will gain the ability to design a product (a container), evaluate the product and communicate the process of design modification. An egg drop can be related to anything from the air bags in a car to landing a rover on Mars!

PROUDLY PRODUCED BY

© 2012–2015, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to duplicate for educational purposes only.

Duke Energy

SCIENCE NIGHT

BUILD-A-BUBBLE

BIG IDEA Explore properties of soapy water and surface tension by blowing bubbles!

YOU WILL NEED What we gave you: • Dawn dish soap • plastic bins • pipe cleaners • straws • string • Bubble Challenges

Stuff you provide: • water • large mixing container • paper towels • scissors • optional: additional supplies for creating bubble wands (hangers, plastic soda rings, funnels, etc.)

IF THEY LOVE IT Challenge students to build a bubble wand that blows square (cube-shaped) bubbles. It can be done!

2

SET IT UP Mix Dawn dish soap and water together in a large container, like a bucket or mixing bowl, to create a bubble solution. There’s no magic formula; a lot depends on humidity and temperature. If the water in your area is very hard, you may have better results with purchasing distilled water. A basic ratio to start with is 1 part Dawn to 4 parts water. Measure the water first and then slowly stir soap into the water. Pour some bubble solution into the plastic bins (about ½ full) and save the rest in your mixing container – you’ll probably need to top it off throughout the event. Set out pipe cleaners, straws, string, scissors and Bubble Challenge sheet. It’s a good idea to have paper towels on hand for this activity.

IT’S SHOWTIME Show students that they can blow bubbles with their hands as long as their hands are wet. They simply need to dip one or both of their hands into the bubble solution, then form a circle with their fingers and blow through it. Then, give them a pipe cleaner and ask them to construct a bubble wand. Show them the challenge sheet and see what kind of bubbles they can create. You can also encourage them to use the straws to blow bubbles within bubbles. The string can be used to make wands that will create larger bubbles. Start with two straws. Cut a piece of string (about 3 feet long) and thread it through both straws. Then, tie the ends of the string together. Dip everything into the bubble solution. Using the straws as handles, pull the two straws apart from each other, forming a rectangle frame. Carefully pull the frame out of the bubble solution and gently wave it through the air. As you pull it through the air slowly flip the frame up or down to release the bubble. This will take a little practice.

WHY IS THIS SCIENCE? From physics to geometry, color to chemistry, bubbles are full of science! Bubbles are made of a very thin film of soap and water with a gas inside. The bubbles we’re blowing are full of air, but they can be made with any kind of gas. You can picture a bubble like a balloon – it’s a thin, stretchy skin surrounding a pocket of gas. A single bubble that’s not touching any other bubbles will always be round, because a sphere (or ball shape) contains the most gas (air) using the least amount of surface area (soap film). But once a bubble touches other bubbles, it changes shape, because they form a common wall where they touch. Bubbles touching each other create angles of 120 degrees, no matter how big the bubbles are or how many there are. Think about a beehive: the beeswax is arranged in hexagons, with angles of 120 degrees. Just like the beehive, bubbles arrange themselves in a hexagonal pattern that conserves surface area.

TAKE IT BACK TO THE CLASSROOM This fun activity uses bubbles to make an artistic print and also teaches some mathematics along the way! Directions are available online at: http://chemistry.about.com/od/bubbles/a/bubbleprints.htm Students add paint to bubbles and make a print, giving them a chance to be creative by making different bubble designs and mixing colors. Once the prints are dry, students can practice using protractors to measure the angle where bubble walls meet. The class can collect data from everyone’s bubble print, and then graph the data to see if they confirm that the angle is always 120 degrees.

PROUDLY PRODUCED BY

© 2012–2015, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to duplicate for educational purposes only.

Duke Energy

SCIENCE NIGHT

LIGHT THE WAY

BIG IDEA Explore the properties of light as you build and work through a maze.

YOU WILL NEED What we gave you: • masking tape • cardboard • easels • mirrors • laser pointers

3

SET IT UP Ahead of time, attach the easels to the mirrors and cardboard. Using the Kelvin cut out card, make two Kelvin cut outs by cutting on the dotted line and folding on the solid line. Check laser pointers to make sure they light up. On the floor or on a table, create a square using the masking tape. This square will serve as the base of the maze and should be approximately 3’x3’. Pick a starting point along the edge of this square, and with the on/off button facing up, secure the laser pointer to the floor with masking tape. Set out ten dividers, three mirrors and a Kelvin cut out. Repeat this process to make another maze station elsewhere in the room.

• Light the Way instructions

It’s a good idea to set up a sample maze before the event begins, like the example given on the instruction card. This way, you will become familiar with the process, and your sample will serve as an example for the first families to visit your station.

Stuff you provide:

IT’S SHOWTIME

• Kelvin cut out card

• a room that can be darkened • yardstick or tape measure

FUN OPTIONS Ahead of time

Purchase flexible, reflective sheets at your local home improvement store and bend to create different shapes. Include these in the maze, especially to explore how reflection works when the surface is not a smooth plane, like the provided mirrors. The light won’t bounce quite like expected!

As families approach your station, invite them to build their own maze. This maze, however, will use a laser pointer and mirrors to find Kelvin the robot. Ask participants what happens when a light hits a mirror – they should answer that the light will bounce, or reflect. This is what they will use to catch Kelvin. At this point, you can demonstrate your maze. Families can use the supplies at each station to build their own maze, and start them off with an easier challenge like using 2 mirrors and 2 walls. After building it, they can predict how the light will reflect and then turn on the light to see how close their predictions were. Then, move the mirrors – not the light! – to correct the path and shine the light on Kelvin.

IF THEY LOVE IT Challenge families to make more and more complicated mazes, requiring additional dividers and mirrors. What happens when they use 4 or more mirrors?

WHY IS THIS SCIENCE? While building mazes and searching for Kelvin, you were exploring physics and energy! Your energy source is the laser pointer, which makes a beam of light. As the light travels from the pointer, it travels straight. But, if something is in the way, the light will react differently, depending on what it hits. If the light hits the maze walls, which are made out of cardboard, the light doesn’t just stop – instead, most of the light is absorbed into the cardboard or scatters. But, if the light hits a shiny surface like the mirrors, the light will be reflected, or bounce off the mirror and travel in a new direction. On this flat surface, the light will reflect at the same angle, but in an opposite direction. This is why the mirrors must be placed at an angle to get the light around the walls of the maze. Even though mirrors reflect much of the light, they still absorb some. This is why, if reflected off of many mirrors, the beam of light will begin to appear dim. Each mirror absorbs some of the total light.

NORTH CAROLINA CONNECTION North Carolina is known for its 12 historical lighthouses, which guide ships along the coast with their beams of light. Lighthouses have been around for over 2,000 years, first burning wood, coal or oil. These were phased out when electric lighting became possible, but none produced a light that could be seen very far away from the lighthouse. A French inventor and engineer named Augustin-Jean Fresnel had observed the very properties of reflection that you observed in the maze, and used these observations to make lighthouses even better. By reflecting light off of many polished lenses in a beehive-like shape, he was able to create a very bright beam of light that could be seen for 20 miles – a huge improvement to ship safety. You can still see Fresnel’s lenses operating in the Cape Hatteras National Seashore, Ocracoke Island and Bodie Island lighthouses. And, this same design can be found in cars’ headlights, handheld magnifiers, cameras and even in solar power generation today!

PROUDLY PRODUCED BY

© 2015, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to duplicate for educational purposes only.

Duke Energy

SCIENCE NIGHT

INVISIBLE INK

BIG IDEA Write a secret message while experimenting with acids and bases.

YOU WILL NEED What we gave you: • goldenrod paper • vinegar • baking soda • cotton swabs • plastic cups • trays • plastic spoons • Invisible Ink instructions

Stuff you provide: • water

• scissors • paper towels • garbage bag

SET IT UP Cut the sheets of goldenrod paper in halves or quarters. Place 3 cups on each tray. Fill one cup per tray halfway with water. Fill the second halfway with vinegar. Fill the third halfway with water, then add 8 tablespoons of baking soda; stir to dissolve. Place cotton swabs on the tray and set instruction sheet on the table.

4

FUN OPTIONS During Science Night

Create a reusable secret message. Mix some of the baking soda solution in a spray bottle. Make another spray bottle with vinegar. Use a yellow crayon to write a message on the goldenrod paper. Then, spray the paper with the baking soda solution, revealing the message. To conceal the message, spray the paper with vinegar. The wax from the crayon protects the surface of the paper so that the message can be used over and over again.

IT’S SHOWTIME As families approach your table, give them each a sheet of goldenrod paper and direct them to a tray. Encourage them to explore how each of the liquids reacts with the paper. They should use a different cotton swab for each liquid. Explain that they are drawing with chemical reactions. Chemical reactions are the heart of chemistry. There are different kinds of evidence (things you can see or feel) of a chemical reaction. Typically there is a change in color, smell, temperature or production of a gas. In this case, there was a change in color. Ask guests if they know any examples of chemicals called acids (i.e. vinegar, lemon juice) or bases (i.e. baking soda, ammonia). Explain that they are creating their own artwork by testing how acids and bases react with the paper (bases will cause the goldenrod paper to turn red; acids will cause it to remain yellow). Therefore, the paper is an indicator.

IF THEY LOVE IT Families may also use the base (baking soda solution) to “draw,” and then use the acid (vinegar) to “erase.”

WHY IS THIS SCIENCE? This is chemistry in action! Chemists study the properties and structure of substances. By knowing the pH and other properties of these substances, chemists can understand reactions and even make new substances. The pH scale goes between 0-14. The middle of the range, 7, is neutral. Bases, like the baking soda, have a pH above 7; the higher the number, the stronger the base. Acids are substances with a pH below 7; the lower the number, the stronger the acid. Why does this work with the goldenrod paper? It contains a pigment that changes color when it comes into contact with bases. The baking soda solution is a base and causes the paper to change from gold to red. This chemical reaction can be reversed if an acid such as vinegar is added. No color change occurred when water was added because the water was closer to neutral, not acidic or basic.

NORTH CAROLINA CONNECTION In 1585, Sir Walter Raleigh sent a group of pioneers under the command of John White, to establish a foothold in the New World. These pioneers landed on Roanoke Island and established the Roanoke Colony, the first English Colony in the New World. Sometime between 1587 and 1590, the entire colony vanished. There was no sign of a struggle or battle, and what happened to the settlement and its inhabitants has never been discovered. Stories about the “Lost Colony” have circulated for more than 400 years. In the 21st century, as archaeologists, historians and scientists continue to work to resolve the mystery a clue may have emerged…in the form of invisible ink! The discovery came from a watercolor map in the British Museum’s permanent collection that was drawn by John White. The map was incredibly detailed and accurate, but contained two small patches of paper affixed to the surface of the map. For centuries it was thought that these patches were just corrections to the map. In May 2012, the British Museum revealed that they had discovered a symbol of a fort beneath one of the patches of paper believed to be written in invisible ink. This discovery has led researchers to question if the Roanoke Colony settlers went, or intended to go, to that location. Though the map doesn’t provide definite answers about what happened to the Lost Colony, it does give researchers a new place to look for clues. For more information about the First Colony, check out: http://www.firstcolonyfoundation.org

PROUDLY PRODUCED BY

© 2012–2015, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to duplicate for educational purposes only.

Duke Energy

SCIENCE NIGHT

CATAPULTS

BIG IDEA Build a catapult to explore the physics behind a simple machine, and hit a few targets in the process!

YOU WILL NEED What we gave you: • jumbo craft sticks • small craft sticks • spoons • rubber bands • plastic container • pom poms • Catapult instructions

Stuff you provide: • nothing else

FUN OPTIONS Before Science Night

Set up a “castle wall” for participants to destroy! Launch heavier objects, like marbles, into stacks of cups or other lightweight materials. Encourage participants to experiment with the angle of the launch to deal the maximum damage to the castle walls! Then, allow them to build a structure for the next group.

5

SET IT UP Lay out all materials on the table, in order: instruction card, small craft sticks, rubber bands, jumbo craft sticks, spoons, masking tape. You may want to create multiple building stations, or try an assembly line. It’s a good idea to make your own catapult as an example. This way the students can see the finished product, and you get a chance to make sure you understand the instructions as well as anticipate any issues children may face when building their catapult. The trickiest part for younger children is wrapping the rubber bands, so make sure you have extra help or call on families to help with this step. Or you may want to prep some steps ahead of time to streamline the process. Make targets for students to hit with their pom poms. Make a variety of targets: some on the wall, some on the floor, some near and some far. Place pom poms in the plastic container and put near the launching area.

IT’S SHOWTIME Show families how your example catapult works: place a pom pom on the spoon and pull back, letting go to launch. The example will help them understand how to make their own catapult. Help families build their catapult according to the instructions. Younger children may have difficulty wrapping the rubber bands around the ends of the craft sticks. Encourage their adult or an older sibling to help them with this part, and allow the student the chance to count out the supplies they need to build the catapult. Encourage them to play and experiment with their completed catapult by aiming for the targets around the room. They can change the angle of the launch by sliding the fulcrum – the stack of craft sticks. How does this affect their catapult’s launch?

WHY IS THIS SCIENCE? Catapults are a great example of a machine engineered to do work, using a lot less energy and force to complete a task. It uses a simple machine called a lever; in this case, the craft stick that served as the launching arm. The lever was attached to a fulcrum, the stack of smaller craft sticks, and supported the lever. When you pull down the lever, you are providing the force, but the lever magnifies this force, launching the pom pom into the air! There are two types of energy: potential energy (stored energy) and kinetic energy (energy of motion). In the case of the catapult, you store up potential energy as you pull back the lever. Once you release it and it snaps back into place, the energy that was stored is turned into kinetic energy, launching the pom pom into the air as it travels. What will happen to the pom pom? Newton’s first law of motion says that an object in motion stays in motion, unless an external force is applied to it. In this case, the external force is gravity, which will eventually pull the pom pom back to the ground. By sliding the fulcrum, participants were changing the amount of potential, and therefore kinetic energy. When the fulcrum is closer to the front of the catapult, more force was needed to pull the lever back, storing up more energy and therefore launching the pom pom a greater distance. When the fulcrum was further back, less energy was stored and so the pom pom couldn’t fly as far. The levers on catapults were used in ancient and medieval warfare to throw stones to knock down walls. But levers are also found many other places: seesaws, scissors, wheelbarrows, tweezers or brake pedals on cars. Simple machines are all around us!

TAKE IT BACK TO THE CLASSROOM This basic catapult can be tested to help determine the best design. Try setting up an experiment where students alter one variable at a time, to understand how the catapults work. For example, how does the position of the fulcrum or the spoon impact the throwing distance of the catapult? Students can repeat launches a few times to get an average, and even graph their data. Students can also use what they’ve learned to make a new catapult design and turn this activity into a true engineering challenge.

PROUDLY PRODUCED BY

© 2015, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to duplicate for educational purposes only.

Duke Energy

SCIENCE NIGHT

MARSHMALLOW TOWERS

BIG IDEA In engineering, all shapes are not equal. Use simple building materials to investigate which shapes are the strongest.

YOU WILL NEED What we gave you: • mini marshmallows • toothpicks

6

IT’S SHOWTIME Encourage families to build structures using marshmallows to connect toothpicks. Once they have built on their own for a while, you can point out the shape diagrams and suggest that they build triangles and squares and see where that takes them. Suggest that families add on to a communal effort to build a really giant tower. Kelvin the Robot will be the test for stability. Challenge families to see if they can build something that supports his weight.

• Kelvin the Robot stuffed toy • Marshmallow Challenges • Marshmallow Shapes

IF THEY LOVE IT

Stuff you provide:

Encourage families to check out the challenges and try to build:

• nothing else

• the tallest tower

SET IT UP Set out the mini marshmallows and toothpicks on your table or floor space. Set out Marshmallow Challenges and Marshmallow Shapes diagrams; think about taping these to the table. Put the Kelvin the Robot stuffed toy in a safe place until some structures have been built.

FUN OPTIONS Ahead of time

You can also buy small gumdrops (like Dots) or colored toothpicks to make the towers more colorful.

• the tower with the narrowest base • a bridge • a structure that adds onto someone else’s building • a building with a hole big enough for your arm to fit through

WHY IS THIS SCIENCE? This is engineering! Comparing the stability and weight-bearing ability of different shapes is what engineers do. A triangle is the most stable shape that can be made with straight lines, because when pressure is added to one point, the corners (or vertices) stay at the same angle and the triangle doesn’t change shape. In contrast, pressure added to one corner (vertex) of a square will squish the square, changing its shape. This means that squares aren’t as good for building strong supports. It is easy to see triangles in structures such as power-line pylons, radio towers and some bridges.

TAKE IT BACK TO THE CLASSROOM This fun activity takes geometry and shapes commonly used for construction outside to the playground. Take a geometry tour with your students or send them on a geometric shape scavenger hunt. Activity directions are available online at: http://www.exploratorium.edu/geometryplayground/Activities/GP_ OutdoorActivities/GeometryScavengerHunt.pdf

PROUDLY PRODUCED BY

© 2012–2015, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to duplicate for educational purposes only.

Duke Energy

SCIENCE NIGHT

PULSE-DOH

BIG IDEA You’ve felt and maybe even heard your heart beat, but have you ever seen it?

YOU WILL NEED What we gave you: • Play-doh • straws • stopwatch • Pulse-doh instructions

Stuff you provide:

• optional: calculators or paper and pencils

FUN OPTIONS Ahead of Time

Working with your school nurse to have stethoscopes available for students to hear their heart beat. How does the sound change after they exercise versus at rest?

IF THEY LOVE IT Challenge participants to find their pulse elsewhere, like their wrist, ankle or even behind the knee. Where else can the participants find their pulse? Have the adults find their pulse as well; how does it compare to their student’s heart rate? Children’s heart rates tend to be higher than adults, ranging from 90-120 beats per minute, whereas an adult averages around 72 beats per minute.

7

SET IT UP Set out cans of Play-doh, straws and stopwatch on the table. You might want to assemble a sample, so that families can see what a finished product looks like. It is also a good idea to try out the activity on yourself, so that way you can anticipate any problems children might have.

IT’S SHOWTIME Ask participants if they know what their heart does. Many of us have likely heard our heart, but have you ever seen it beating? Have participants find their pulse on their neck, on their carotid artery, which is the blood vessel that brings blood to the face and neck. Instruct them to take two fingers and place them on their neck. Next, they should move their fingers around until they can strongly feel their pulse. Ask them to describe what they feel. It is their blood being pumped through their blood vessel. Next they will watch their heart beat. Each student can grab some clay and roll it into a ball. They should find their pulse again on their neck, but this time, place the ball of clay directly on the spot where they feel their pulse. Have the student freeze, and instruct the parent to gently stick a straw into the clay. Test to make sure the student can see it without moving his or her head; if not, reposition the straw slightly until it comes into view. Now watch closely – can they see the straw move? Have them record how many times the straw moves in 20 seconds, either using a stopwatch or a smart phone to time it. Now multiply by 3 and that’s how many times their heart is beating per minute. Is that more or less than they thought? Now what happens when the student is exercising or playing? Have the student pick an activity, like doing 30 seconds of jumping jacks. Then repeat the activity, counting the straw movements over a 20 second period, and then multiplying by 3 to get beats per minute. How did the student’s heart rate change?

WHY IS THIS SCIENCE? This activity is all about the human body, specifically our cardiovascular system, which is very important for our health! The cardiovascular system, or circulatory system, includes everything needed to transport blood throughout our system. The blood carries important things like nutrients, oxygen, and carbon dioxide, transporting them to and from every organ and corner of our bodies. The heart is the pump that works this system, pumping blood with oxygen throughout the body, and blood without oxygen back to the lungs to get more. The blood travels through tubelike blood vessels, and when we “take our pulse,” we are feeling the rush of blood as it flows through the vessel. When you exercise, your heart needs to work harder, because your muscles need lots of oxygen to keep you moving. Muscles at work also produce waste that must be carried away. This is why your pulse goes up while exercising – your heart beats faster to pump your blood faster, which you can feel by your increased pulse. But as you stop exercising and begin to rest, your heart slows back down to its resting rate. The time that it takes for your heart rate to go back to normal is called recovery time. A low recovery time means that your heart slows down quickly after exercise, and is a good sign that your heart is strong and healthy.

TAKE IT BACK TO THE CLASSROOM Heart rate activities can be a fun way to collect, graph and interpret data, all while getting your kids moving! Have each student make their own chart throughout the day, taking their pulse at defined intervals, making sure to record what they were doing at the time. Students can then graph this data, or even get an average for the day. For older students, you can also determine how many times their heart beats in a given year – the number will be in the millions! How many times does the heart beat in an average lifetime?

PROUDLY PRODUCED BY

© 2015, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to duplicate for educational purposes only.

Duke Energy

SCIENCE NIGHT

MY GENES BRACELET

8

BIG IDEA See what traits you have and represent them with a personalized bracelet showing your genes.

YOU WILL NEED What we gave you:

• 10 colors of pony beads • pipe cleaners • My Genes trait cards

Stuff you provide: • optional: mirror

SET IT UP Lay out the trait cards in the order shown in diagram. Open each container of beads and place the corresponding colors below each of the trait cards. Put the pipe cleaners on the left side of the table. Imagine the table as a buffet where participants start at the left and work their way to the right, adding beads to their pipe cleaners as they go.

FUN OPTIONS Ahead of time

Order PTC testing papers and add another trait: tasting or non-tasting ability. Create a chart of the different traits and have people fill in which they are. In general, are there more people with dominant traits?

IT’S SHOWTIME When families approach the table, give them each a pipe cleaner and tell them they’re going to figure out what genes they have inside their bodies by looking at some cool traits on their outsides. Have participants look at the pictures on each trait card and decide which trait they have, and then add a bead of the corresponding color to their pipe cleaner. They should end up with five beads representing their five traits. They can twist the pipe cleaner around their wrist and wear it as a bracelet. Encourage students to compare their bracelets with their family members and friends. See if you can lead them to notice that there are usually more similarities within families.

IF THEY LOVE IT Ask students to compare their traits to their parents’. Explain how dominant and recessive traits work. Ask students if they can figure out how their traits came from their parents’ traits. Obviously, be sensitive to non-traditional families – we don’t want to upset anyone.

WHY IS THIS SCIENCE? Each of these traits is controlled by a single gene, meaning that the trait you show on the outside is the simple result of your two copies of the gene on the inside. You have two copies of every gene, one from your mother and one from your father. These copies are called alleles. Alleles can be dominant or recessive. A dominant allele will always be visible in your traits, even if your other allele is recessive. So the only way you can show a recessive trait is to have two recessive alleles. This means we expect more people to show dominant traits, because there are two ways you can show a dominant trait – by having two dominant alleles or by having one dominant and one recessive allele. Interestingly, two parents who both have a dominant trait can have a child with a recessive trait – if both parents had one dominant and one recessive allele, there is a ¼ chance that the child will end up getting the recessive allele from both parents, and will therefore show a recessive trait. However, there is no way for two parents who both have a recessive trait to have a child who shows a dominant trait. Note: Although these traits are commonly used for activities like this one, there is some debate about whether all of them are actually controlled by a single gene. There are exceptions to every rule; however, we still think it’s worthwhile to do this activity and learn a bit more about our genes.

TAKE IT BACK TO THE CLASSROOM There is a wealth of information about single-gene traits and gene inheritance on the internet. Gregor Mendel was a monk who experimented with pea plants to discover how this kind of gene inheritance works. Here is a lesson plan about Mendel’s pea plants, which you can scale to fit your time frame and your students’ comprehension level. http://www.lessonplansinc.com/lessonplans/mendel_pea_plants_ws.pdf Here is a worksheet on Punnett Squares that uses the pea plants: http://www.lessonplansinc.com/lessonplans/pea_plant_punnett_squares_ws.pdf … and here are two fun variations on Punnett Squares that use SpongeBob Squarepants characters. http://sciencespot.net/Media/gen_spbobgenetics.pdf http://sciencespot.net/Media/gen_spbobgenetics2.pdf

PROUDLY PRODUCED BY

© 2012–2015, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to duplicate for educational purposes only.

Duke Energy

SCIENCE NIGHT

RING GLIDERS

9

BIG IDEA

SET IT UP

It doesn’t need to look like an airplane in order to fly! Build a ring glider to experiment with the four forces of flight.

Ahead of time, cut 8.5”x11” sheets of paper in half to make 8.5”x5.5” sheets.

YOU WILL NEED What we gave you: • paper

• transparent tape • Ring Glider instructions

Stuff you provide:

• optional: hula hoop for target

FUN OPTIONS Ahead of time

Use hula hoops as targets: have one family member hold the ring and challenge the students to throw their glider through it! Or, have larger paper or paper of different thickness or weight, like construction paper or card stock, so participants can experiment with different materials. Which makes the best glider?

Lay out Ring Glider instructions, paper and tape on table. Make sure you have an open space for throwing ring gliders, as they can travel pretty far! It’s a good idea to make your own ring glider as an example. This way the students can see the finished product, and you get a chance to make sure you understand the instructions as well as anticipate any issues children may have with building their own ring glider.

IT’S SHOWTIME Encourage families to have fun making and flying their ring gliders according to the provided instructions. Straight, crisp folds make for better flight. There are a few ways to throw the ring glider. Participants can wrap their hand around the glider, nose side facing out and pitch it underhand. Alternatively, participants can wrap both their hands around the glider, hold above their head, and then push forward and release. Because the gliders can fly quite far, it is fun to play catch with them, or compete to see whose glider can travel the furthest.

IF THEY LOVE IT Challenge families to adapt the designs – what’s the biggest ring glider they can make that still works? What happens if you connect multiple rings? Or, what other designs can they create and fly?

WHY IS THIS SCIENCE? In order to fly, an object needs to overcome the force of gravity. The earth’s gravity pulls things down, so these ring gliders have to take advantage of other forces that temporarily override gravity’s pull. Lift is a force created by air flowing over the curved surface of the ring, and thrust is the force given to the glider when you throw it. Both lift and thrust help keep the ring glider in the air. Drag is the resistance met when the ring glider moves through the air; it slows forward motion, which reduces lift. The ring glider is a very compact design, which helps decrease drag. So because lift and thrust are stronger than drag and gravity, the glider will fly.

NORTH CAROLINA CONNECTION North Carolina is the “First in Flight” state because the Wright brothers flew the first sustained, powered, heavier-than-air human flight in Kill Devil Hills in 1903. The Wright brothers’ achievement began aviation as we know it today. People have always been fascinated with the idea of flying. While ring gliders like these wouldn’t work for carrying people, they help demonstrate that there is a huge variety of shapes that will fly.

PROUDLY PRODUCED BY

© 2012–2015, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to duplicate for educational purposes only.

Duke Energy

SCIENCE NIGHT

PENDULUM PATTERNS

10

BIG IDEA

SET IT UP

Decorate your school’s sidewalk with math inspired chalk paintings!

Ahead of time, build a few pendulum cups using the pre-event instruction card.

YOU WILL NEED What we gave you: • cups

• corn starch • spoons • food coloring • craft sticks • kite string • Pre-event instructions • Pendulum Patterns instructions

• Stuff you provide: • water • single hole punch

FUN OPTIONS During Science Night

With sidewalk chalk, have families sign their names to their artwork! Encourage families to tour the other artwork and compare designs.

IF THEY LOVE IT Challenge families to change the height of the pendulum by having the student hold it this time – how does it impact the pattern it makes? What other experiments can they design? Different patterns can be made by changing the angle of the initial release or changing the weight of the cup.

Set out the materials in order on the table, from left to right: instructions, remaining cups, spoons, cornstarch, water, food coloring, craft sticks. You may want to create an assembly line set up with one volunteer in charge of the cups and cornstarch and another in charge of the water and food coloring. Be sure to keep spoons separate! Position another volunteer to help families make their sidewalk chalk art. It is a good idea to make a trial batch of the sidewalk chalk paint before the event begins, and test out the pendulum cups. This way, you’ll get a sense of how best to help the students and their families. You’ll also want a container of water nearby to rinse out any clogged pendulum cups.

IT’S SHOWTIME As families approach your table, let them know that they will be using science to make their own sidewalk art. Guide families through the process of mixing the sidewalk chalk paint according to the instructions. After their paint is mixed, families can take their cup over to the sidewalk. Show families the pendulum cup, and have the parent hold the cup by the string, not moving his or her arm. Then, the student can add the paint to the cup, making sure to put one finger over the hole in the bottom. Once everyone is ready, the student can let go and give the cup a little swing. The pendulum station volunteer should check the cup after each turn to make sure it isn’t clogged. If it does get clogged, rinse the cup with a little water.

WHY IS THIS SCIENCE? The device that participants built is a pendulum, and even though it is a simple design, they have been studied and used by scientists for thousands of years. Ancient Chinese scientists used pendulums to detect earthquakes and Galileo, the famous astronomer, realized that the predictable motion of pendulums could be used to keep time. And a French physicist named Foucault used a pendulum to prove that the earth is rotating, and even measured the speed of our planet’s rotation. The pendulum consists of a few elements: an object is connected to a stationary point, which allows it to swing back and forth freely. This swing demonstrates Newton’s First Law, that an object in motion will stay in motion, unless an external force is applied. As you release the cup, gravity takes over and directs its swinging. But what is the external force that eventually brings the cup to a stop? Over time, friction and drag from the air take away some of its energy, eventually bringing the pendulum to rest. Newton’s First Law also says that it won’t start moving again without an external force, like another push.

TAKE IT BACK TO THE CLASSROOM There are a number of ways to incorporate pendulums into class to explore math and experimental design. Pendulums can be found in everyday life, from playgrounds to amusement parks; anything that swings under its own weight is a pendulum. Can your students name different pendulums and their purpose? If you have swings on your playground, be sure to check out “Riding on a Pendulum,” from the National Math and Science Initiative: www.nms.org/Portals/0/Docs/FreeLessons/Open%20 Lesson%20Grade%20Four%20Science%20-%20Pendulum_Teacher%20and%20 Student%20with%20PPT%20CC.pdf And, pendulums are a great way to introduce art into your science! The patterns your students made with their pendulums are reminiscent of those made by the Spirograph, an art set you can find in toy stores. Check out an online version called Inspirographs (http://nathanfriend.io/inspirograph/). The math behind Spirographs is higher-level trigonometry, but students of all ages will enjoy experimenting and making patterns. And, as with tangrams and pattern blocks, these manipulatives encourage exploration and provide a foundation in math literacy. Or for a great video break, check out the amazing patterns and sounds of 16 pendulums, located right here in North Carolina: youtu.be/YhMiuzyU1ag

PROUDLY PRODUCED BY

© 2015, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to duplicate for educational purposes only.

Duke Energy

SCIENCE NIGHT

ZIP LINES

BIG IDEA Engineer a zip line car that will carry a ping pong ball to the target!

YOU WILL NEED What we gave you: • chipboard

• paperclips • masking tape • ping pong balls

11

SET IT UP Ahead of time, build your zip lines according to the included instructions. Attach 4 foot segments of fishing line to both the wall as the starting point, and a chair as the finish. Place a coffee can or other container on the chair to catch the ping pong balls. Depending on your available space, you can also create additional zip lines with longer or shorter lengths, or that have different angles of descent. Or, set up identical lines next to each other for participants to race their cars.

• Zip Lines instructions

It is a good idea to build a sample car. This way the students can see one example of a finished product, and you get a chance to make sure you understand the instructions as well as anticipate any issues children may face when building their cars.

Stuff you provide:

IT’S SHOWTIME

• fishing line • washers • Pre-event instructions

• chairs

• coffee can or other container to catch ping pong balls • optional: assorted recycled paper, paper towel rolls, and/or plastic cups

FUN OPTIONS Ahead of time

Have extra recycled materials on-hand to inspire creative car designs. This can include any sort of bottle, cup, tube or paper you have – the sky is the limit and there is no “wrong” design!

Invite families to build a car using the materials and instructions provided. Their challenge is to engineer a car that will travel down the prebuilt zip line and drop a ping pong ball into the container at the end of the line. You can show off your finished example or let families get to brainstorming. Allow them time to build, test and rebuild their cars.

IF THEY LOVE IT Now that they have a successful design, challenge families to a race! Can their car deliver the ping pong ball in five seconds or less? Encourage families to adapt their car to fit the challenge. Have a stopwatch on hand, or ask families to track with their smartphones.

WHY IS THIS SCIENCE? Science is all about trying things out. Specifically, families are working with iterative design, which is an important process in engineering. They designed their car, tested it, observed how well it worked, and then made changes based on their observations. This activity is also a great introduction to energy and Newton’s Laws of Motion. There are two types of energy: potential energy (stored energy) and kinetic energy (the energy of motion). When the car is held at the top of the track before it is released, it has potential energy. Once the car is released, gravity pulls on the car and it slides down the track. The potential energy is changed into kinetic energy because the car is in motion. Once it hits the end, the car quickly stops, but not before it drops the ping pong ball into the target. This is a great illustration of Newton’s first law of motion, which says that an object in motion (in this case, the car) stays in motion unless an external force is applied to it. In the zip line example, the external force was the chair, which stopped the car in its tracks!

TAKE IT BACK TO THE CLASSROOM Extend this activity by taking a look at friction. The zip lines in this activity use fishing line, which is very smooth, creating very little friction. Set up other lines with identical length and angle, but use different materials such as yarn, twine or even braided rope. Allow students to hypothesize which track will work best for their car, and let them test the other lines. What types of modifications do they need to make to their cars for these new lines? Engineering challenges are great hands-on activities to incorporate into the classroom, and have wonderful benefits from iterative problem solving to working collaboratively as a team. And, often times they use inexpensive or nocost recycled materials. The University of Alabama has a collection of iterative design challenges that are inspired by children’s books for a connection to literacy at http://www.uastem.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/2013-UASTEM-PROBLEM-SOLVING-ACTIVITIES.pdf

PROUDLY PRODUCED BY

© 2015, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to duplicate for educational purposes only.

Duke Energy

SCIENCE NIGHT

STOMP ROCKETS

BIG IDEA Stomp Rockets let you blast rockets high into the air. And you can make your own rockets!

YOU WILL NEED What we gave you: • Stomp Rocket Jr. kit • construction paper • wooden dowels • transparent tape • masking tape • Stomp Rocket instructions

Stuff you provide: • scissors

FUN OPTIONS Ahead of time

Provide foam sheets as well as paper – the stiffness makes for great fins and nose cones, but the extra weight does affect the flight.

12

SET IT UP Set up the Stomp Rocket launcher according to directions in the box. Use masking tape to draw two or three targets on the ground or on a wall, approximately 15-25 feet away. Each target should be about 5 feet away from other targets. The goal is to provide a couple of different challenges. Consider safety: aim all rockets away from people passing by. Lay out instructions, dowels, construction paper, scissors and transparent tape on tables.

IT’S SHOWTIME Show families how the Stomp Rocket works: place the rocket on the launcher and stomp! Have them aim for the target or work on improving their distance. They can vary the angle of the launcher or how hard they stomp. The challenge increases when they aim for different targets. Students can also make their own rockets. Tightly roll a piece of construction paper around the dowel and tape the edge shut. This creates a paper tube that’s the correct size for this launcher. Then use more paper and tape to add an air-tight nose cone to one end of the paper tube. Rockets need a nose cone so that the air from the launcher doesn’t whoosh out the front. Fins aren’t necessary, but are nice because they stabilize the rocket and make it fly better. Once the nose cone and fins are added, slide the paper rocket off the dowel and practice launching the home-made rockets!

IF THEY LOVE IT Challenge students to build a rocket that separates into two parts, like many rockets designed to go into space.

WHY IS THIS SCIENCE? This is aerospace engineering! For Stomp Rockets, the force of stomping on the rocket launcher provides a large push of air that launches it. For rockets that are launched into space or low-earth orbit, igniting massive amounts of fuel creates this pushing force. For both kinds of rockets, the pushing force has to be strong enough to overcome gravity in order to launch the rocket. Aiming the rockets is a challenge in real life just as it is for the Stomp Rockets, and aerospace engineers use both mathematics and physics to help them aim, guide and time the launches correctly.

TAKE IT BACK TO THE CLASSROOM Stomp Rockets make a great addition to your classroom! Take them outside and have distance or height competitions. You can focus on making and perfecting rockets using different nose cone and fin designs. Have the students test one variable that changes the rocket’s flight by designing two rockets with only one difference, then testing both rockets repeatedly and comparing the data. Or model the challenges of aiming rockets by having the students try to hit a moving target. If you or your students love to build, you can find instructions online for making your own rocket launcher in addition to your own rockets.

PROUDLY PRODUCED BY

© 2012–2015, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to duplicate for educational purposes only.