Iowa Public Television

Science is fun on the ICN! Levers, wedges, pulleys, incline planes, wheels and axles, screws and more are yours to explore when 'Gizmo Glen' is around!

In cooperation with the Bettendorf Family Museum, Glen Boyles helps students discover the principles of simple machines and how they make our work easier every day.

After Glen demonstrates how simple machines work, it is the students' turn! Students, while in the ICN rooms, utilize learned principals to create a new contraption that pushes pulls or rolls.

PLEASE NOTE: Registrants agree to provide the listed materials for each student. Please print this description to maintain a list of these materials for your records.

Students create a 'gizmo' of their own after Glen demonstrates the 6 simple machines. Teachers need to bring the following materials to the ICN room for each student.

YOU MAY SUBSTITUTE OR OMIT ITEMS AT YOUR DISCRETION:

Materials List:
1. 2 uncooked pasta wheels (rotelle)
2. One 2-inch piece of a coffee stirrer that fits through the center hole of the pasta wheel (to make a wheel and axle)
3. One 4oz paper cup
4. One half of a regular plastic drinking straw
5. One pom pom (the 1" fuzzy craft balls)or cotton ball
6. One 8-inch piece of string
7. Two paper clips
8. Two craft sticks (regular Popsicle sticks)
9. One jumbo craft stick (tongue depressor)
10. One roll of masking tape (2-3 students may share tape)

Following the ICN session, registrants receive a complimentary book.

PBS LearningMedia, a dynamic platform offering the best of public media content and produced specifically for PreK-16 teachers. With free access to over 14,000 high-quality resources tied to national standards, teachers can download, save and share exactly what they need for an inspired classroom experience. Sign up is free and easy! Learn more about PBS LearningMedia.

PBS Teachers - PBS Teachers offers free lesson plans, professional development and more for preK-12 educators.

Applicable standards from MCREL:

Science Standards (Earth and Space Sciences)

Level II [Grades 3-5]
1. Knows that an object's motion can be described by tracing and measuring its position over time
2. Knows that when a force is applied to an object, the object either speeds up, slows down, or goes in a different direction
3. Knows the relationship between the strength of a force and its effect on an object (e.g., the greater the force, the greater the change in motion; the more massive the object, the smaller the effect of a given force)

Level III [Grades 6-8]
1. Understands general concepts related to gravitational force (e.g., every object exerts gravitational force on every other object; this force depends on the mass of the objects and their distance from one another; gravitational force is hard to detect unless at least one of the objects, such as the Earth, has a lot of mass)
2. Knows that an object's motion can be described and represented graphically according to its position, direction of motion, and speed
3. Understands effects of balanced and unbalanced forces on an object's motion (e.g., if more than one force acts on an object along a straight line, then the forces will reinforce or cancel one another, depending on their direction and magnitude; unbalanced forces such as friction will cause changes in the speed or direction on an object's motion)
4. Knows that an object that is not being subjected to a force will continue to move at a constant speed and in a straight line

Classroom Resources:

The following related programs are available on IPTV's broadcast or from the AEAs: (Check the K-12 Classroom Television (www.iptv.org/k12catalog) Web site for broadcast dates and times.)

• BILL NYE THE SCIENCE GUY (Grade Level: 4-12)
• DRAGONFLY TV (Grade Level: 2-5)
• DESIGN SQUAD (Grade Level: 5-12)

Sessions are provided at no cost by Iowa Public Television in collaboration with the Iowa Communications Network to PK-12 students and the adults working with or on behalf of PK-12 students in Iowa. If you are not employed by a school district or an AEA please register at library sites only.

Sign up for the K-12 Connections eNewsletter to receive timely information regarding ICN sessions like this one.