Engaging in Guided Inquiry: Week 2

"What is the effect of large objects colliding with smaller objects?"
To conduct my experiment, I decided to use some toy trucks in my son's room to demonstrate the effects of size on collision. He has a lot of trucks of varying sizes to choose from. I took the trucks downstairs to the hardwood floors for some tests. I selected an area of the floor that was bare with no furniture or toys in the way. I started by taking two identical trucks. I pushed them into each other and observed that they each bounced backwards slightly after colliding. Next, I took a new, larger truck and repeated the procedure. This time, the larger truck collided with the smaller truck and the smaller truck bounced backwards further than the larger truck did. I repeated this several times and saw the same results. Next, I took a much larger truck and repeated the procedure several times. Each time, the results were the same. The smaller truck bounced backwards with a much greater force than the previous experiment. As the bigger truck got larger, the smaller truck was pushed back more. I kept measurements of the distance the smaller truck was pushed with each trial.
Overall, I did get the results I was expecting. The experiment itself worked fine. The only concerns I have about it would be the actual act of pushing the trucks into each other. There was no way for me to measure the force of my push each time. I tried to be consistent with the force I used, but if someone else were to replicate the experiment, it may not show the same results. I am confident the trend will be the same, however. My six year-old son enjoyed watching me and even did it himself after I was done.
This experiment could be modified by have truck standing still while the other collides with it. The larger truck could be released from the top of a stationary ramp to ensure that the speed is the same with each collision. This would keep that constant.
If I were to do this in the classroom, I would allow my students to design their own experiment given the problem stated at the beginning of the post. I would do this so that they could show their creativity and watch them design their own experiment. I think this really stretches their minds and gets them to think like scientists, and even engineers! I would need to be sure to have plenty of supplies available to them because they would probably come up with a lot of different ideas. I am sure some of them will give me new ideas that I have never thought of!
To make it more interesting, I might give them several problems to solve, like we did in our bumper cars activity in Newton's Amusement Land for week one. This would change the scenario slightly and they could continue to use similar supplies.
I would like for my students to learn about Newton's Laws from this experiment. I would also like them to learn about the design process when it comes to setting up experiments. They would be given the opportunity to design something and test it on their own. I think I will achieve my goal with this lesson.