Bullet Blast

We have been hanging out with the Cains more. Tyler and Logan are in the same class and Hunter is in the same class as Scott.  I love Cheryl and the boys play nicely together and have fun so it is just a great fit.  Anyway, Tyler was just starting his science fair project and I didn't even think about seeing if he wanted to do it with someone but just mentioned to cheryl that Logan could join in if he wanted and she was down.  Looking back I am grateful because I think that working together is so great for kids.

I came up with the idea to measure different nerf bullets or guns against each other. They came up with Bullet blast and decided to test a nerf bullet vs a generic bullet.  Simple, easy and fun.  They didn't love doing the writing, creating the hypothesis, figuring out what a variable is, etc. but I think they learned a lot about the scientific process and thinking about science experiments.  It was fun to see the process and growth in doing the project.  They got together 3 times.  One to just figure out and talk about the project.  They put tape on the floor that they measured and figured out who they were going to do the experiment.

Then they got together to solidify the project, do the project and write up the project.  That was about 2 hours on a Saturday when all the kids were playing outside. The second hour was pretty trying (as you can imagine).  I decided that I should do a science experiment on how long it takes kids to do homework on a weekend vs weekday or on a sunny day with kids playing outside vs cold day when nobody is outside.  They knocked it out amidst multiple breaks and some minimal whining or daydreaming of being outside.

They split up the typing and came together to put the poster together.  Fun project!

They made it to the district science fair for their school and were so proud.  They did a great job because it was a simple project that was easy to measure and then they thought a lot about how they could improve the project. They would use robots instead of humans and have a laser measuring the exact spot it lands.

I was just happy that they showed their poster at the fair since it said 'bullet blast' and there was just the horrific school shooting in Florida.  Not great timing.  I don't think a nerf science experiment is related to gun violence but I am sure some people do.