Name____________________________________Date_________________________ Class Period______

Balloon Race Car Lab

Objectives:
 Create a balloon powered race car for maximum speed and distance
 Incorporate Newton’s Laws of Motion
 Learn how to use the formula: Speed = Distance / Time

Teacher Provided Materials

 balloon  Wooden dowels  Rubber bands
 Straws  Small amount of tape

Rules:
 The car must be powered by balloon
 You can build the car out of anything
 It must have at least three wheels. The wheels can NOT be wheels from a toy car. They must be made out of
something that was not originally meant to be used as wheels.
 The car may not leave the ground.
 The car must be capable of traveling at least 5 meters.

Procedure:
1. You will bring in materials from home and assemble your car in class.
2. You will race against other classmates.
3. Awards will be given in three categories:
a. Best Looking Car
b. Fastest Car (in 5 meters)
c. Farthest Distance Traveled

Analysis Questions:
1. Did your car work the first time? If not, what did you do to modify it? Explain how that worked.
2. If you could make more improvements on your car, what would you do?
3. Describe how the balloon supplied energy to your car.
4. Was it difficult to calculate the average speed of your car? Why or why not?
5. What factors/things influenced the speed of your car?
6. Give TWO tips or pieces of advice to someone who had to construct a balloon-powered car?
7. What did you learn from building and testing your balloon car?
8. What forces acting on your car affected the design? Explain and draw a free body diagram of the car in motion.
9. Was work being done? How can you tell?
10. What was the fastest average speed calculated from your car?

Grading Rubric
Points Earned Points Possible Activity/ Criteria Answer/Data

____________ 20 Record distance traveled ______________

____________ 20 Record time ______________

____________ 30 Calculated Speed ______________

____________ 10,20, or 30 30-car moved at least 5 m ______________

20- car moved less than 5 m
10- car didn’t move, but followed all rules

_____________= Total Points earned/ Grade