Simple+Machines

**Activity 1** Begin your review of simple machines by logging onto [|this site]. __//Write down a description of each of the machines listed on this site.//__ At the bottom of this page you will find three hyperlinks. Visit each of these sites.

On the Inventor's Toolbox site, write down the names of machine parts, such as cams, gears, etc. __//Write a description of how they work.//__

On the __//Leonardo Homepage//__ site, click on the button that reads Inventor's Workshop. __//Answer the following questions://__ 1. What kinds of machines were used during da Vinci's time? 2. How did da Vinci change the way things were done at that time? 3. What impact have Leonardo da Vinci's records had on modern-day engineering?

At the bottom of this page, there are six hyperlinks. Investigate the first five. (If time permits, we will do the classroom activity together.) **Activity Two**

Back to your original site to investigate the __//Simple Machine Activities//__. This is a fun EdHead site that teaches the basics of simple machines while playing a game.

Here's a fun site that has [|everything you ever wanted to know about simple machines]! Check out all the links (you have seen some of them before); the University of Houston site (Simple Machines Learning Site) has a test on simple machines that you should take. Who said, "Give me a place to stand and I will move the Earth?" There are five games you may play at the end of this site. **Activity Three** **HOMEWORK!!!** Log onto [|this site] and write about the simple machine of your choice.

**Activity Four** Read about [|Maillardet's Automaton] (pronounce this may-are-**daze** **otto**-mah-tahn) and then click onto the [|Understanding Simple Machines] site. Be sure you jot down notes when you stumble on new information.

Find out what [|Harry and Pic] are doing and learn a little about **mechanical advantage.**
 * Answer the following questions:**


 * Would you have a problem if the door knob came off in your hand before you unlatched the door?
 * How could you get an ATV into the back of a pickup truck if you did not have a ramp?
 * How does a carpenter separate two boards that have been nailed together incorrectly?
 * What do you look for when you open a drink bottle that does not have a screw-on cap?
 * How do machines give us a mechanical advantage?

Activity Five

This is a scavenger hunt that is unlike any other! When you have finished collecting your simple machines, [|check] to make sure all your choices are correct.

Activity Six

Now, stop and think a minute. What is your favorite sport....cheerleading, baseball, football, basketball, tennis, golf? Make a list of all the simple machines that make your sport possible. (Hint: the [|human body] is a group of simple machines, too!) Consider the following machines: fulcrum, gears, inclined plane, lever, load, pulley, screw, thread, wedge, and wheel and axle. How does the use of these machines give the athlete a [|mechanical advantage]? [ For example, one of the common simple machines used in baseball is a lever: the bat. A lever is nothing more than a bar that turns around a fulcrum. The function of the lever is to change the position of a load by applying a force. In the case of the baseball bat, the fulcrum is at the small end, the force is at the point where you grip the bat, and the load is where the ball strikes the bat**.]** **When you have finished collecting your data, write a paragraph describing the simple machines involved in your activity and how these machines contribute to the athlete's success. You may include pictures, if you have them, as long as you point out and describe the simple machines in the picture.** **As an example, study the picture above. What type of simple machine is at the end of the arrow?**

// SPI 0807.T/E.1 Identify the tools and procedures needed to test the design features of a prototype. //

Activity Seven

** Inventors and their Inventions ** **1. It is easy to take for granted all the technological advances that have made our lives so much easier. However, these time and energy saving inventions have been built, one upon the other, over hundreds (in some cases, thousands!) of years. In this activity, You will be given a list of inventors; your task will be to use the resources below to locate the inventor, determine what he/she invented, record the date of the invention (the patent date usually), and the nationality of the inventor.** **Resources:** [|**Smithsomian Education**] [|**Enchanted Learning**] **[|Kid Info]** [|**Energy Quest**] [|**Wikipedia**] **[|PBS/AMEX]** 2. Once you have completed the work, your teacher will give you a strip of adding machine tape. You will use the tape to create a timeline of inventions. Beginning on the left side of the tape, place the earliest invention. Your most recent invention will be on the far right. Space the remaining inventions at appropriate intervals throughout the tape. // SPI 0807.Inq.3 Interpret and translate data into a table, graph, or diagram. //

3. Write a short report explaining the trends you observe on your timeline. // SPI 0807.Inq.4 Draw a conclusion that establishes a cause and effect relationship supported by evidence. //
 * For example, is there a period of time when a lot was happening? Is there a space of time in which little or nothing was recorded?
 * Draw a conclusion about why such clumps and gaps occur. For instance, is there a significant invention that began or ended a period of activity?
 * Include in your paragraph which 5 inventions you think have made the greatest difference in your life.



Extra Credit Opportunity This is a blockbuster of an activity!! Using what you have learned about simple machines, construct a catapult. If several people choose to take advantage of this opportunity, we will have a competition outside to see whose catapult can toss a rock or ball the farthest. You must build a catapult that is no larger than 18 inches tall and uses only household materials. ( In other words, your dad can't weld a super-catapult for you using iron beams, tractor tires and bowling balls.) A date for the competition will be announced at a later date. Check out [|this website] to see a simple catapult that even I could build! Guys, before you whine and cry and complain that this is too hard for you, dry your eyes and take a look at [|what the girls have done!] SPI 0807.T/E.1 Identify the tools and procedures needed to test the design features of a prototype. SPI 0807.T/E.2 Evaluate a protocol to determine if the engineering design process was successfully applied.