Timing Time

Challenge
Time: to measure or record the speed, duration, or rate of something. That is just one definition of the word, and there are many others. But this is the most accurate definition that will be needed for this month’s STEM challenge. There are many ways to measure time and the challenge will test different ways to measure time in seconds. What are the different ways to measure time? How many measurements can you think of that involve some kind of time? How much time does it take to do different tasks? Answering these questions could help you design a timer, which is the STEM Challenge. Your timer though is going to be manual and not electronic! What items can you use to build a timer? How will you test it to know it measures the time you want it to? Do you need a timer to measure your timer? Your goal is to build a timer using some kind of block or item that can be knocked over like dominoes. The timer must go for almost exactly 5 or 10 seconds.

​Your timer does have some criteria and constraints. The timer starts from when the first item gets pushed over to when the last item falls. Only items being knocked over can be used in the creation. You can mix and match different items to create the domino effect.  

Materials

• stopwatch or timer
• blocks
• dominoes
• books
• Legos
• markers

Hints and Tips for Success

1. Allow students planning and discussion time by having them experiment with the items to see how fast/slow they fall over and by changing the distance between them.
2. After experimenting, allow student groups to plan their timer by drawing it out and labeling their materials being used. Include predictions for how many items they think they will need for the designated time.
3. For differentiation, add additional materials to use, change the time needed to be timed, show different ways to set up the domino items. Adjustments could be made to make it more challenging or simpler.
4. Make sure to standardize the timer as in when the stopwatch/timer starts to measure how long the creation lasts. If needed, have this person be consistent for each group working on the problem.