Putting Together a Talk for Kids

[Old Monkey]

Parents go in to my daughter's school and give talks and lessons about things they're familiar with. I've though about two subjects, one trees and the other mechanical advantage. Trees are great and I think I could make interesting but like the idea of having the kids lift stuff with blocks and pulleys. You folks do any talks for schools? I want get them moving and thinking. Right now I think about setting up small blocks and tackles and lifting objects with 2:1, then 3:1, etc and have the figure out how much the weight is reduced with each leg of rope. The kids are in a mixed age classroom of third to sixth graders.

 

[stehansen]

I think a zipline is in order. Using mechanical advantage to stretch the line of course. I know, the school would freak. Maybe set up something showing how someone small like them could lift the teacher using MA?

 

[emr]

My wife teaches 3rd grade and she just told me that I am talking to her class for Earth Day. I am in your same boat I guess. I have done enough talks to adults so that doesn't worry me, but little kids is a different story.

As for your topics, I personally would go with talking about trees. I would think that would be easier than tackling mechanical advantage. However, I just saw an episode on Sesame Street talking about pulleys, levers, and ramps. They pulled it off so you can too. You just have to figure out a way to incorporate Elmo into your talk.

 

[stig]

Great idea, Darin.
And using the teacher as a weight to be lifted is another.

They'll love that.
I've taught karate to kids for about 10 years before I decided that I'd done my part, since I don't believe in procreation, myself.

One thing I learned is that if you don't talk down to them, kids really try hard to understand what you are laying on them.
Being used to being talked town to by parents and teachers, they really react well when someone just treats them as sentinent beings.

 

[NeTree]

The math involved is within their grasp; I like the MA idea. You could probably touch on the idea of elongation (rope stretch), too; it's a mechanical property that affects how everything you use is made, even concrete!

We tried doing some tree and climbing stuff a few years ago, but it was hard to borrow the extra kid-sized saddles, and the school was really freaky about the liability; ended up being a boring talk on trees and tree biology- stuff they're already learning or going to learn.

Best things I could tell you, you probably already know: Keep it shorter (attention span), make it interesting, and keep them busy.

 

[NeTree]

Great idea, Darin.
And using the teacher as a weight to be lifted is another.

They'll love that.

I agree; an excellent way to demonstrate mechanical advantage! One small child can pick the adult teacher up!

 

[Paul B]

if you can access the gym you may be able to use the roof girders etc to set something up. Maybe think of MA horizontally as well, some sort of tug of war? Teacher vs class with some sort of fiddle block rig?

 

[CurSedVoyce]

Excellent stuff!

 

[woodworkingboy]

You could take in some leaves, have the kids associate the type of tree with the leaves. Maybe the ones around the school so they can observe them when coming and going. No leaves this time of year? Just sayin ....

 

[treesmith]

Hang a rope from the roof girders and let 'em ride the Wraptor. Guaranteed thrill! Just kidding, as I'm sure that's out of the question. Mechanical advantage would make a great topic to discuss with them. It's a blend of physics, math, science, all in one.

 

[vharrison]

As for your topics, I personally would go with talking about trees. I would think that would be easier than tackling mechanical advantage. However, I just saw an episode on Sesame Street talking about pulleys, levers, and ramps. They pulled it off so you can too.

Don't underestimate Haley, she is a very smart girl.

 

[MasterBlaster]

If she just wasn't so plain and ordinary looking!

 

[Old Monkey]

I am thinking of taking a round of heavy wood, putting an eye lag screw into it for my heavy object. Then I want to make lever arm and fulcrum that have different notches to try to see what lifts the piece the easiest and thn some block and tackle set ups for lifting it. I'd bring the GRCS but that might tax my ability to explain how it works.

Haley is bright but lazy like her old man. its interesting to raise kids not to emulate your weaknesses.

 

[NeTree]

Maybe a few rounds of different weights; a saddle to pick the teacher up with; bathroom scale.

You could go pretty wild or not with this one.

 

[Old Monkey]

For some reason, I don't own a bathroom scale. Although I have heard of such things.

 

[NickfromWI]

My co-arborist is getting ready to do the same thing! Funny. We were talking about it and we decided that kids don't want to listen or read, they want to DO something. You got things covered there.

Among other things, he's going to bring in leaves for them to smell. Some that smell good and some that stink. Depending on the season, that might not work out for you right now.

I once did a rope making demo where I had kids make an 8 strand rope out of eight 200' caving lines. It was AWESOME. I don't think that 3-6th graders would be up for it, though.