Sunset Students Experience Forces and Motion

GREENOUGH – Sunset School students competed in Silverwood's Physics Day Roller Coaster contest May 18. They were one of 30 teams with students from junior high to high school age.

This was the first time Sunset School competed in the event at the theme park in Athol, Idaho. Sunset School teacher Toni Hatten said they saw the Physics Day in a brochure they received and she thought it would be a great extension to their Forces and Motion Unit.

Lucas Nygard, Reagan Fox, Hanarose Groom, and Isaac Morse designed and constructed a roller coaster within the guideline rules using non-kit materials in a designated amount of space. They chose a marble as their vehicle to complete their design successfully. 

"They did it!" wrote Hatten in an email to the Pathfinder. "Their reward [was] to experience forces and motion on as many rides as they could in the remaining half of the day, which they also accomplished!" 

Fox also entered the logo contest for next year's Physics Day, but she has not heard if her entry was chosen. Hatten said they are looking forward to participating in the contest that measures velocity and acceleration the next time they participate.

"We learned a lot from examining other entries as to how they built theirs and their creativity but Sunset kiddos also got a lot of compliments from the other participants as well," wrote Hatten. "It was an awesome experience."