Title: Crafting Hovercraft

Purpose: In this exercise, students will experiment with alternative methods of flight by creating their hovercraft. Students will explore friction and air cushions by designing their own floating devices.

Description: Students will build a standard CD and balloon hovercraft in order to physically experiment with low-friction crafts. After seeing what makes hovercrafts successful, they will design their own hovercraft with the goal of traveling the furthest distance. 

Materials:

• Balloons 
• CD
• Hot Glue
• Tape
• PVC pipe section/coupler
• Straws
• Foam core

.Instructions: This exercise is broken into 4 parts

1. Standardized Design - Students will individually fabricate their own CD and balloon hovercraft with the instructions provided.
2. Rally 1 - Students will test their hovercraft and make observations about how their hovercraft moves compared to each other based on slight variations of attention to tolerances, and craftsmanship of construction.
3. Customized Racers- Students in groups of two will have free reign to design a hovercraft with any parts on hand at NuVu. They will first create a sketch of their own design and then build their hovercraft based on the drawings. Students will predict how far and how fast their hovercraft will go!
4. Hovercraft Rally! - Students from all sections will take turns launching their custom hovercraft designs across the floor to see who can go the fastest, and who can go the farthest!

Deliverables: Student groups will create a final post in the Responses tab and post:

1. 2 photos of their standardized hovercraft (in the Photo Booth and on the ground) w/ predictions and analysis
2. Sketches of their custom hovercraft design
3. 2 photos of their custom hovercraft (in the Photo Booth and in on the race track) w/ predictions and analysis