Summary
Materials Needed
The following is a list of all the materials that are needed to complete the VEX GO Lab. These materials include student facing materials as well as teacher facilitation materials. It is recommended that you assign two students to each VEX GO Kit.
In some Labs, links to teaching resources in a slideshow format have been included. These slides can help provide context and inspiration for your students. Teachers will be guided in how to implement the slides with suggestions throughout the lab. All slides are editable, and can be projected for students or used as a teacher resource. To edit the Google Slides, make a copy into your personal Drive and edit as needed.
Other editable documents have been included to assist in implementing the Labs in a small group format. Print the worksheets as is or copy and edit those documents to suit the needs of your classroom. Example Data Collection sheet setups have been included for certain experiments as well as the original blank copy. While they offer suggestions for setup, these documents are all editable to best suit your classroom and the needs of your students.
| Materials | Purpose | Recommendation |
|---|---|---|
|
VEX GO Kit |
For students to build the Lever and for activities in Play Part 1 and 2. |
1 per group |
|
VEX GO Tile (optional) |
For students to attach their Lever build. |
1 per group |
|
For students to build the Lever. |
1 per group | |
|
For visual aides during Lab for teacher and student reference. |
1 for teacher facilitation | |
|
Editable Google Doc for organizing group work and best practices for using the VEX GO Kit. |
1 per group | |
|
Blueprint Worksheet (Google / .docx / .pdf) or Lab 2 Blueprint Worksheet Example (Google / .docx / .pdf) |
Editable Google Doc for drawing and sketching pivot points of the Lever. Also will be used to sketch design ideas for the challenge in Play Part 2. |
2 per group |
|
Ruler |
For students to explore levers in Engage. Or for teachers to demonstrate a lever. |
1 for classroom demonstration (optional: 1 per student) |
|
Book |
For students to explore levers in Engage. Or for teachers to demonstrate a lever. |
1 for classroom demonstration (optional: 1 per student) |
|
Pencils |
For students to fill out the Robotics Roles & Routines sheet and the Blueprint Worksheet. |
1 per group |
|
To help remove pins or pry beams apart. |
1 per group | |
|
Get Ready...Get VEX...GO! PDF Book (optional) |
To read with students to introduce them to VEX GO through a story and introductory build. | 1 for demonstration purposes |
|
Get Ready...Get VEX...GO! Teacher's Guide (optional) Google / .pptx / .pdf |
For additional prompts when introducing students to VEX GO with the PDF Book. | 1 for teacher use |
Engage
Begin the lab by engaging with the students.
-
Hook
Ask students if they can lift a book off of their desk with one finger. Allow students to try. Then, have students use a ruler with a pencil as a pivot point to lift the book off of the table.
Note: If students are new to VEX GO, use the Get Ready...Get VEX...GO! PDF book and Teacher’s Guide (Google / .pptx / .pdf) to introduce them to learning and building with VEX GO. Add an additional 10-15 minutes to your lesson time to accommodate this additional activity.
-
Leading Question
Have you ever had to push, pull, or carry something heavy? Was it hard? You were doing work. Work is a task that requires effort to complete it. Do you think you need to be strong to move objects? How can using a lever make the work of lifting an object easier by decreasing the amount of force required to lift it?
-
Build
Students will use build instructions to build the Lever.
Play
Allow students to explore the concepts introduced.
Part 1
Provide each group with a Blueprint Worksheet to record their data. Groups will observe the changes in force by testing three different pivot points of the Lever with one Disk on each side. The students will have to add VEX GO pieces to the Lever to balance the amount of force on each side of the Lever. Groups will draw their Lever at each of the pivot positions on their Blueprint Worksheet.
Mid-Play Break
Groups will share and compare their data and drawings from the Blueprint Worksheet with another group.
Part 2
Students will be challenged to choose the best pivot point on the Lever to find the least amount of force needed to balance with three Disks on one side. Students will draw their design on a Blueprint Worksheet before testing. The Lever will have three disks on one side while using the least amount of additional VEX GO pieces on the opposite side.
Share
Allow students to discuss and display their learning.
Discussion Prompts
- What was the purpose of changing the pivot point on the Lever?
- How did changing the pivot point make the Disks easier or harder to lift by reducing or adding force?
- Can a lever be built into other machines to make work easier?
- If you could repeat the challenge would you change the location of the pivot point? How would you change it?