Blast Off with Straw Rockets! Today for MOSI Monday we are launching into learning with straw rockets! This simple hands-on activity gets kids thinking like engineers while having a blast-literally!
This activity teaches real science concepts like force and motion. When you blow into the straw, you're pushing air into the rocket, creating thrust that sends it flying! Kids learn about air pressure, gravity, and even test how design changes—like fin shape or rocket length—affect how far it goes. Let's make one from a straw, index cards and clay. If you don't have a launcher you can throw it or hang a string and push it from a string.
After launching, it's time to experiment! Kids can adjust their rockets—make the nose cone sharper, add fins, or change the size—and see how those changes affect performance. It’s all about trial, error, and curiosity. This is the same design-thinking process real engineers use!
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