Does a paper clip make a plane fly farther?
- 👶 Small parts
- 🙅 Never at faces
My hypothesis
If I change how many paper clips are on the plane's nose, then how far the plane flies will ______, because ______.
You fill in the blanks. Think about where the weight of a plane sits, and what happens if the nose is too light or too heavy. A guess is a good because: the test finds out.
Change, measure, keep the same
CHANGE
how many paper clips are on the plane's nose: 0 clips, 1 clip, 2 clips, 3 clips
MEASURE
how far the plane flies, in cm
KEEP THE SAME
- the same folded plane
- the same gentle, level throw from the same line
- flying indoors, where there's no wind
- clips on the very tip of the nose
Scientists call the thing you change the independent variable and the thing you measure the dependent variable. The things you keep the same are the controls: if one of them changed too, you wouldn't know which change made the difference. Try each of the 4 levels 3 times.
What you need
- Paper: a sheet or two, all the same
- Paper clips: 3
- Masking tape, to mark lines
- A tape measure, or a long ruler
Steps
- Fold one paper dart from a sheet of paper, and press the creases flat.
- Put a strip of masking tape on the floor as your throwing line.
- Stand behind the line and throw the plane gently and level, across the room.
- Measure from the line to where the nose first touched the floor.
- Write it in your table, then throw it twice more with no clips.
- Clip one paper clip on the very tip of the nose, and throw it three times.
- Add a second clip next to the first and throw three times, then add a third clip and throw three times.
- If the nose gets bent, press it straight again before each throw.
- Find the mean for each number of clips and draw a line graph.
Every step is one you can do yourself, with a grown-up nearby. Write each number down straight away, in the table below, so nothing is lost.
Your results table
Name ______________________ Fair day ____________
Question: Does a paper clip make a plane fly farther?
I changed: Clips on the nose I measured: how far the plane flies (cm)
| Clips on the nose | Try 1 (cm) | Try 2 (cm) | Try 3 (cm) | Mean |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 clips | ||||
| 1 clip | ||||
| 2 clips | ||||
| 3 clips |
MY GRAPH (a line graph: clips on the nose along the bottom, cm up the side)
What I noticed: ______________________________________________
From 4th grade, add the tries for each level and divide by how many there were: that's the mean, and it goes in the last column. Then draw a line graph, because the thing you change is a number that goes up.
Name ______________________ Fair day ____________
Question: Does a paper clip make a plane fly farther?
If I change how many paper clips are on the plane's nose, then how far the plane flies will ________________, because _____________________________________________
| I CHANGE | I MEASURE | I KEEP THE SAME |
|---|---|---|
| Clips on the nose: 0 clips, 1 clip, 2 clips, 3 clips | how far the plane flies (cm) |
|
What I think will happen, in my own words:
Name ______________________ Fair day ____________
Question: Does a paper clip make a plane fly farther?
| Date | What I did | What I saw | What I think |
|---|---|---|---|
Name ______________________ Fair day ____________
Question: Does a paper clip make a plane fly farther?
| Date | What I did | What I saw | What I think |
|---|---|---|---|
Name ______________________ Fair day ____________
Question: Does a paper clip make a plane fly farther?
| Date | What I did | What I saw | What I think |
|---|---|---|---|
Name ______________________ Fair day ____________
Question: Does a paper clip make a plane fly farther?
My hypothesis was ☐ right ☐ partly right ☐ not right.
I know because my numbers show:
What surprised me, or what might have gone wrong (7th and up):
Next time I would test:
Idea: Change a second thing: slide one clip back along the body in steps, and graph how far the plane flies for each spot.
Why it works
Weight at the front moves the plane's balance point, the spot where it would balance on your finger, toward the nose. A little weight there helps the plane fly straight and keep its speed. Too much pulls the nose down, because the wings cannot lift that much.
Going further (7th and up): Change a second thing: slide one clip back along the body in steps, and graph how far the plane flies for each spot.
Board layout
- ❓ Question (10 × 8 in): Does a paper clip make a plane fly farther?
- 💭 Hypothesis (10 × 9 in): If I change how many paper clips are on the plane's nose, then how far the plane flies will ______, because ______.
- 🧺 Materials (10 × 12 in): 4 things: see your list.
- 🪜 Steps (22 × 9 in): 9 steps, three tries at each level.
- 📊 Results (22 × 16 in): Your table (Clips on the nose down the side, tries across) and your line graph.
- ✅ Conclusion (10 × 14 in): My hypothesis was right / partly right / not right. I know because…
Materials to list: Paper; Paper clips; Masking tape, to mark lines; A tape measure, or a long ruler.
Bring photos or drawings of your test. Nothing wet, hot, powered or alive on the table.
This project at your grade
| 1st–3rd grade | Tries: three at each level (one is fine at a first fair). The table: levels and tries, numbers or pictures. The graph: a picture, or a simple bar graph. The conclusion: what happened, in their words. |
|---|---|
| 4th–6th grade | Tries: three at each level. The table: units in the header and a mean column. The graph: a bar graph, or a line for a number that grows. The conclusion: right, partly or not, and the numbers that show it. |
| 7th grade and up | Tries: three or more at each level. The table: a mean for every level of both tests. The graph: a graph with two lines or two sets of bars. The conclusion: the numbers, what might have gone wrong, and a next question. Second variable: slide one clip back along the body in steps, and graph how far the plane flies for each spot. |
From 4th grade up, the table gets a mean column. See every project for 3rd grade, or print a blank results table.
What a judge will ask
- What did you change, and what did you measure? I changed how many paper clips are on the plane's nose and measured how far the plane flies, in cm.
- What did you keep the same, and why does that matter? I kept the same folded plane and the same gentle, level throw from the same line the same, so the only difference was how many paper clips are on the plane's nose.
- How many times did you test it? 3 times at each of my 4 levels.
- If you did it again, what would you change or test next? I'd slide one clip back along the body in steps, and graph how far the plane flies for each spot.
Make it yours
Keep this project on this device and Peabody counts down to your fair day, with a plan for each day. Nothing is sent anywhere.
Try next
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