Welcome to my latest blog post where I am going to teach you how to build a crane for grade 7 students. It may seem intimidating to build a crane from scratch, but I assure you that it's a very fun and educational activity that will help students develop their engineering skills.
Materials Needed
Before we start building our crane, we need to make sure we have all the necessary materials. Here's a list of everything you'll need:
- Wooden dowels
- Cardboard
- String or fishing line
- Glue
- Scissors or a box cutter
- Paper clips
- Weights (pennies or small rocks)
Building the Crane
Now that we have all our materials, it's time to start building our crane. First, we'll need to create the base of the crane. This will be done using the wooden dowels and cardboard.
Step 1: Create the base
Take a piece of cardboard and cut it into a square. You can use any size you like, but make sure it's big enough to hold the weights that will be attached to the crane. Glue the wooden dowels to the corners of the cardboard to create a frame.
Step 2: Create the tower
Using another piece of cardboard, cut out a rectangular shape. Roll it into a cylinder shape and glue the ends together to create a tower. Attach the tower to the base by gluing it to the center of the cardboard square.
Step 3: Create the arm
Take another wooden dowel and attach it horizontally to the top of the tower using glue. This will be the arm of our crane.
Step 4: Attach the weight
Take a paper clip and bend it into a hook shape. Attach the hook to the end of the arm using string or fishing line. Tie the weights to the hook so that they hang freely.
Testing the Crane
Once the crane is built, it's time to test it out. Here are some steps to follow:
- Place an object on a table.
- Lower the hook of the crane so that it's just above the object.
- Slowly add weights to the crane until the hook picks up the object.
- Try lifting different sized objects to see how well the crane works.
And that's it! You now have a fully functional crane that can lift weights. This activity is great for grade 7 students because it teaches them the basics of engineering and physics. It also encourages students to think creatively and problem-solve when building and testing their crane. Have fun and happy building!
