This month the PreK-4 students are learning all about different methods of transportation. One of the methods that we know the most about is by car. As part of our math lessons this week we are thinking about what would make the cars roll faster. Using a smooth wooden board and the rug we compared surfaces. Then we used journals as our roads and blocks to prop them up to create “hills.” We then measured the distances our toy cars rolled using non standard measuring equipment, such as unifix cubes and large wooden blocks.

What we discovered was that the cars roll further on a smooth surface and a lot faster if they go down a hill. We were surprised to find that if the “hill” was too steep then the car just bumped to a stop at the bottom and did not continue on at all! The class is looking forward to thinking about how to record all our discoveries in a pictorial form.