Driven by Design: 8th Graders Compete in Physics 500

During the month of May each year, eighth grade science students immerse themselves in their annual physics project, the Physics 500, where they brainstorm, design, construct and race a cardboard car.

They work in groups of four to brainstorm ideas, draw preliminary designs in their “race journals,” decide on a team name, logo, and slogan, and engineer their cardboard car. In the classroom, they study simple machines. As the project rolls on, students are assigned a “pit” space in the basement where they can construct their cars. After receiving their first distribution of cardboard, they move on to making measurements, hypotheses and detailed sketches. Teams build cars using cardboard, glue, and PVC pipes that could carry a 25-pound weight.

two boys hold on to a red box car on a ramp

The cars then compete in a gravity-powered distance race where teams face off in elimination rounds until the ultimate winner gets crowned. The goal is to see how far the cars can travel rather than how fast they can go. This year several Upper School students kicked off the event by racing two electric cars they had built from the ground up under the guidance of physics teacher Tim Clarke.

Congratulations to “Space Jam” on winning this year’s Physics 500!

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Driven by Design: 8th Graders Compete in Physics 500

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