Back to School STEM Activity: Paper Roller Coaster Challenge (BTS13) | Middle School Physics Lab (Grades 6-8)

? BACK TO SCHOOL STEM ACTIVITY: PAPER ROLLER COASTER CHALLENGE (BTS13)

2-Page Printable STEM Packet | Print-Ready PDF Format

Bring roller coaster physics to life in your classroom! The Paper Roller Coaster Challenge (BTS13) challenges middle school student teams to act as mechanical engineers, constructing a paper track out of cardstock that guides a marble from a height of 40 cm for the longest ride time possible.

Students explore potential vs kinetic energy, friction, centripetal force, banked turns, and average speed calculations (s = d / t) while designing high-performance coaster tracks!

? WHAT'S INCLUDED IN THIS 2-PAGE PACKET?

• ? Page 1: Student Mission Card & Blueprint: Real-world amusement park engineering and physics scenario. Clear material constraints box (4 cardstock sheets, 1m tape, 1 marble, 40 cm start height, maximum time goal). Dedicated Coaster Track Schematic & Energy Map sketching zone for pre-build track planning and energy labeling.

• ? Page 2: Testing Log & Scientific Reflection: Structured Data Testing Table (track coaster features, track length in cm, and total ride time across 3 prototype runs). Applied Math Connection (calculate average speed in cm/s using s = d / t). Physics reflection questions analyzing potential/kinetic energy, friction, momentum, and centripetal force.

? CORE STEM SKILLS COVERED:

• Potential Energy, Kinetic Energy & Energy Transformations

• Friction, Centripetal Force, Acceleration & Track Mechanics

• Data Logging, Distance Measurements (cm), Time Tracking (s), and Speed Math

• Prototyping, Failure Analysis, and Track Optimization

? WHY TEACHERS LOVE THIS RESOURCE:

• Instant Classroom Favorite: High-energy physics challenge that gets every student actively testing and tweaking track slopes!

• Low-Cost Materials: Requires only cardstock paper, masking tape, and marbles.

• Clean 2-Page Layout: Keeps student schematics, average speed calculations, and physics reflections organized on a single front-and-back printable sheet.

• Format: High-resolution, print-ready PDF format (2 Pages).

Target Grades: 6th, 7th, 8th / Middle School

Subject Area: Physical Science, Physics, Forces & Motion, Energy Transformations, Back to School Activities

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