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Hint: The best questions are open-ended and do not accept yes/no or true/false questions.

4. Now give students time to design an experiment to investigate motion and draw a preliminary design of their car.

Hint: Additional materials that should be available include stopwatches, meter sticks, tape for floor marking, and graph paper.

5. It is now time to let students construct their fan car design and redesign as necessary.

Hint: A time limit is recommended.

6. Next students conduct their experiment using their experimental design.

Hint: Suggest repeated trials, for students that only complete one trial.

7. When completed with Step 6: students spend time developing explanations of their findings supported by the evidence of their experimental data.

Hint: It is critical that students use their own words to explain their findings to determine level of understanding and detect lingering misconceptions.

8. Students now present their findings to the class.

Hint: This is when students will discover that there may be more than one answer to the investigation and may lead questions. Write these questions on the chalk board or newsprint for discussion when reviewing student initial observations.

9. At this point have students look at their initial recorded observations (chalk board or newsprint). Facilitate a discussion by asking students to look at their initial observations for comparison with their experiment findings. This is the time that misconceptions already detected may still linger and new misconceptions may appear. Additionally this the time to lay a foundation for investigating other science concepts students identify in the discussion.

Hint: It is critical misconceptions be addressed as soon as they appear. Discuss each misconception by comparing student personal findings, class findings, understanding, and experiences. This is the best way to begin to eliminate misconceptions.

10. The final step is to have each student write a personal reflection paper about what they learned from the project.

Hint: Personal reflections provide details as to level and extent of understanding of "motion" and lingering misconceptions.

Recommended Project Extensions:

Extension activities help students develop a higher level of understanding and challenge students that need that extra level of critical thinking and motivation.

1. Allow students to redesign their cars to determine a design that is fastest over a given distance, which builds a little competitive spirit in the project.

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