Turning Up the Heat in Math

All Fired Up

Turning Up The Heat In Math Class

A collaboration between the math department and the MLab yielded a project Algebra II students won’t forget.

If you were to visit the Upper School gymnasium on December 16, you’d be greeted by Johnny Cash’s “Ring of Fire” blaring over the speakers and dozens of students gathered with catapults around a tall flaming hoop, anxiously awaiting to see if golf balls would make it through the ring after being launched.

This exciting scene was the culmination of an Algebra II project by math teachers Nhaila Hendrickse and Abby Jones. As part of their classes’ unit on quadratics, the students were assigned to design and build launchers. Their ultimate goal was to launch a golf ball perfectly through a ring of fire and land on a small cushion. The students would get only five tries, but if their math was done perfectly, it was guaranteed to hit both targets.

“With this project, Abby [Jones] had said that she wanted the students to really get their hands dirty and see the math happening in front of them – this project was her brainchild.” said Ms. Hendrickse. Ms. Jones had experience with this project, having assigned it at her previous school. “The kids loved it. At my old school, we just used an embroidery hoop that we pretended was on fire – but I was by myself without a Richard Wright or an MLab!” said Ms. Jones.

Samir Ramachandran, Max Flint, Homero Rangel, and Tad O'Brien on catapult launch day.

Two teams take their catapults for a test run outside before launch day.

All Fired Up

The launcher project centered around projectile motion and was the culmination of the students’ unit on quadratics. Projectile motion involves any object that is thrown, shot, or dropped, and it can always be modeled by a quadratic function.

After introducing the project, Algebra II students had about a month to research different types of launcher styles, like catapults, trebuchets, and spring launchers. Within their group, they decided which style of launcher would suit their needs best, then they set to work on designing the model. After coming up with their designs, they were to submit a materials list to Mr. Wright in the MLab, who got all the materials so the students could begin building in the MLab. Students had about five classes to build their launchers, using materials like PVC pipes, wood, springs, and rebar. Mr. Wright and Coach Reetz were in the MLab during building time to advise, but students were on their own to troubleshoot and figure out how to move forward if an element of design didn’t end up working out.

Once the launchers were built, students began to collect data. They took their launchers to the lacrosse wall at the Upper School and took video footage of the first part of the golf ball launch. They were able to record the first quarter of the launch path and one section on the third quarter of the launch path. Their goal was to calculate the vertex of the arc of the launch path, which would help them come up with a final quadratic equation. After collecting data points, they used quadratic regression to figure out the equation that would fit their data. Their knowledge of quadratic functions and projectile motion helped them place the ring of fire and the cushion in the correct spot for a proper launch.

Then came the highly-anticipated launch day. Mr. Wright had fashioned the ring of fire with an extendable tripod

Coach Reetz helped out Algebra II students in the MLab.

and a metal hoop that was attached to a propane gas can. The hoop had holes in it and it would ignite once lit. The atmosphere crackled with excitement as students prepared their launchers, a playlist of fire-themed songs playing over the gym speakers. Students gathered around one another’s launchers to watch each group’s five attempts at a perfect arc, with many groups achieving

Rory O'Hara, Caroline Cotlar, August Nodstedt, and Reese Goodman work on their launcher in the MLab.

Halston Fedorowicz, Ellie Herz, Bella Brand, and Addison Sell in the MLab.

ABOVE PHOTO: Lorenzo Jervis, Roshan Durairaj, Ryder Runkle, and Ben Stapleton work together on their launcher. BELOW PHOTO: Finley Ahearn, Lily Elliot, Keara Moore, and Beau Diede collaborate in the MLab. both the golf ball going through the hoop as well as landing on the small cushion.

“The great thing about this project was that once the ball went through the ring of fire, the students could see tangibly that their math was correct. It was an immediate satisfaction that you don’t always get with projects.” said Ms. Hendrickse about launch day.

The collaboration with the MLab was one that both Hendrickse and Jones considered extremely beneficial. “I hope the project was a good introduction to the MLab and that going there will feel more comfortable to the students who may not have had much experience with it, especially the 9th grade students who still have 3 years at St. Andrew’s.” said Ms. Hendrickse.

The launcher project was an exciting way for students to see the real-world applications of the math they had learned in class. “The kids seemed to really like it,” said Ms. Hendrickse. “It also gave students a chance to shine who may not shine in the traditional test in math class – this gave a lot of them a chance to thrive and really get hands-on with their work.” Though it was the first time the project was done at St. Andrew’s, both Ms. Hendrickse and Ms. Jones want to continue it in future years – it’s a surefire way to get students excited about math.