physics fun

FUN IDEAS

You may work in a group. In one or two lessons make one of the following simulations and post to your blog with the alias names of your group

Build a complex or elegant building that doesn't fall down when placed on top of an earthquake simulator (see screenshot). The earthquake simulator can be modified to produce longitudinal and transverse waves

Use just links and circles to make a structurally sound Eiffel Tower

Make a see saw keep moving for as long as possible without using grab

Sorting different sized balls in to two buckets, large and small (with no jams).

Ping pong, can you make a device that hits a ball back and forth across the screen?

Make a blender

Make a puppet dance


Make a dog run

Make a piston so that balls are released one by one through an opening


Source for many of these ideas: Sugar Labs: Physics

physics games screenshots

This video is from a session with Sugar at the Boston Museum of Science Computer Clubhouse by an approximately 11 year old student

mmm ... I wonder if we could make some videos like this next week of the games students have made using physics

Today the challenge again was for students to make a game in physics and then post a description and screenshot to their blogs. They could work in groups of up to three if they wanted.

Here are a couple of screenshots with abbreviated descriptions. Read the student blogs for more detail.

We called it Keep It Up!. The aim of the game is to make an any shaped object at 1.5cm starting from one of the 4 top columns, you then drop the object and try to get the bottom without touching/or atleast try not to touch the triangles. The object that touches the triangles the least wins. Players only have 4 tries (source)

The aim of the game is to draw a ball at the top of the screen and then hope it drops into one of goals at the bottom. There are three goals and each are worth either one, two or three points. The sticks and triangles in the middle of the screenshot are obstacles which rotate and spin to toss the ball around the screen. (source)

update: 21st August

STICK FIGHTERS
My game I have created is similar to a favourite game of mine Street Fighter©, a great game I’m sure most of my blog readers have heard about and played. But my version is slightly different. In my game players take turns to create a move (using the slingshot type function) and use it on the opponent or be able to drag the character and knock them out of the screen (source)

The aim of the game is to try and get three balls of any size (your choice) and using the rubber band like tool to throw the ball over the wall and get the ball to land on either of the three platforms which have points on them (5,10 and 20 points). The ball must be on one of the three long platforms in order for the point to count. Once all three balls have been thrown it is the next player's turn to throw. (source)

The goal for our game was to get the ball into the goals which are on the top right hand corner of picture. Our group all drew a ball in the far top right corner and we watched till one off the balls got in, the picture shows that moment, the orange ball almost made it but it rolled backwards and fell out (source)

the wow factor: Physics

For most of my students Physics has emerged as the wow factor of Sugar. This is good. Every new system needs a wow factor.

So, today I asked the students to make a game or other activity using Physics. They could work in groups of three, two or on their own. (I don't believe in forcing students to do group work). I also asked them to do a screenshot and write a description of their game or activity.

This turned into a fun lesson with some movement around the computing lab when things became exciting with some of the games that were developed. Some students asked for more time, "Can't we have a double lesson for this?" Some of the groups didn't manage to organise their blogs this time around.

No screenshots yet but look out for them in the student blogs in the next week or two.

I think the best option might be to run this again next Friday (single lesson) and leave the double lesson for new learning. It's good to have a fun activity to run on Friday, lesson 6, the final lesson of the week.

Towards the end a couple of students asked about how to "hack" Sugar. I see this as another teachable moment. I can explain how hacking is good thing and introduce them to the linux terminal.

update 8th August: Now I realise that Tony Forster planted the hacking seed in a comment he left on Mr. Unknown's blog. Also that student did try to visit the pygame site but due to school network problems :-( didn't quite get there.