Trebuchet Project
Project Description: We built counterweight trebuchets for this project. A trebuchet is an ancient type of siege machine. It uses a long arm with a sling or basket on one end and a heavy counterweight on the other to throw an object into projectile motion. Our essential questions were:
Reflection Questions:
A. To throw an object as far as possible with a trebuchet, you need the ideal ratio of weight between the projectile and the counterweight. So you can get the right swing and release point to achieve optimal projectile motion. For every pound you want to throw with your trebuchet, you will need 34 pounds of counterweight. If there were an incorrect ratio of weight between the projectile and counterweight, the projectile wouldn’t fly as far or wouldn’t have the best release point.
How a trebuchet actually fires is pretty interesting. Trebuchets hold either potential or kinetic energy at all times. When the counterweight is not pulled up the trebuchet has potential energy. Once, the counterweight is pulled up the trebuchet has kinetic energy. When the weight is dropped it accelerates giving it velocity and launching the projectile
B. There’s a lot of important aspects that go into being a community of learners. Good communication skills are very important when working with a group, especially in a project where you’re working with power tools every day. Collaboration is a key component in being a community of learners. Without good collaboration skills someone could have ended up doing almost the entire project without anyone speaking up. People also might not take as much pride in their trebuchets if they didn’t collaborate as much while it was being built.
Creativity is one of the most important components in a community of learners. creativity lets people bring their own style or ideas into the project, then other people can collaborate and add to or change pieces of someone's idea. I liked seeing that happen during the trebuchet project. Critical thinking in the trebuchet project was important, for a number of reasons. One big reason is use of materials, if my group didn’t think through and plan the use of our materials we could have run out and that wouldn’t have been good. Critical Thinking also came in handy when we didn’t know what part of our project to prioritize over others.
C. This project went over all smoothly, except for a couple of challenges. The main thing that I struggled with was my group members not doing a lot of work or not doing their best work. How I dealt with that is by talking to and encouraging them. For example, I asked them if they could revise something a little more. Or if they weren't working, what they could do to help us out, or I would just ask them to do something specific. Another thing I think my group struggled with is just general communication. There were a couple instances that someone would start to cut or drill something and someone else would have to rush in and stop them. That way we could discuss what they were doing, and see if it was the best thing to do.
D. Most of my group had pretty similar skill sets but there's still a couple of strengths that I have that I think really helped my group. The big one is carpentry skills. I’ve been working with power and carpentry tools my whole life. I think me knowing how to use a lot of tools helped my group put our trebuchet together quickly. That’s the primary strength that I brought to my group with which the other people weren’t quite as knowledgeable. Almost everyone else contributed just as much in the other aspects as me.
- How do you throw an object as far as possible with a trebuchet?
- How can the time era of the trebuchet be accurately portrayed in its design?
- What does it mean to collaborate in a community of learners?
Reflection Questions:
A. To throw an object as far as possible with a trebuchet, you need the ideal ratio of weight between the projectile and the counterweight. So you can get the right swing and release point to achieve optimal projectile motion. For every pound you want to throw with your trebuchet, you will need 34 pounds of counterweight. If there were an incorrect ratio of weight between the projectile and counterweight, the projectile wouldn’t fly as far or wouldn’t have the best release point.
How a trebuchet actually fires is pretty interesting. Trebuchets hold either potential or kinetic energy at all times. When the counterweight is not pulled up the trebuchet has potential energy. Once, the counterweight is pulled up the trebuchet has kinetic energy. When the weight is dropped it accelerates giving it velocity and launching the projectile
B. There’s a lot of important aspects that go into being a community of learners. Good communication skills are very important when working with a group, especially in a project where you’re working with power tools every day. Collaboration is a key component in being a community of learners. Without good collaboration skills someone could have ended up doing almost the entire project without anyone speaking up. People also might not take as much pride in their trebuchets if they didn’t collaborate as much while it was being built.
Creativity is one of the most important components in a community of learners. creativity lets people bring their own style or ideas into the project, then other people can collaborate and add to or change pieces of someone's idea. I liked seeing that happen during the trebuchet project. Critical thinking in the trebuchet project was important, for a number of reasons. One big reason is use of materials, if my group didn’t think through and plan the use of our materials we could have run out and that wouldn’t have been good. Critical Thinking also came in handy when we didn’t know what part of our project to prioritize over others.
C. This project went over all smoothly, except for a couple of challenges. The main thing that I struggled with was my group members not doing a lot of work or not doing their best work. How I dealt with that is by talking to and encouraging them. For example, I asked them if they could revise something a little more. Or if they weren't working, what they could do to help us out, or I would just ask them to do something specific. Another thing I think my group struggled with is just general communication. There were a couple instances that someone would start to cut or drill something and someone else would have to rush in and stop them. That way we could discuss what they were doing, and see if it was the best thing to do.
D. Most of my group had pretty similar skill sets but there's still a couple of strengths that I have that I think really helped my group. The big one is carpentry skills. I’ve been working with power and carpentry tools my whole life. I think me knowing how to use a lot of tools helped my group put our trebuchet together quickly. That’s the primary strength that I brought to my group with which the other people weren’t quite as knowledgeable. Almost everyone else contributed just as much in the other aspects as me.