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| How the Rubber Meets the Road |
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(Full teacher resource documents are included in the PDF)
Lesson Focus
Lesson focuses on how engineers design tire treads to increase safety and reliability. Students are presented with the challenge of designing a new tire tread that will be safe when driving in rainy conditions. Student teams will design and construct a sample tread out of clay, then test and evaluate the effectiveness of the design, evaluate their results, and present their findings to the class.
Lesson Synopsis
The "How the Rubber Meets the Road" lesson explores how engineers design tire tread patterns to achieve safety in a range of driving conditions. Students work in teams to design a pattern of grooves or "tread" to reduce tire slippage in heavy rain by forcing water to flow out to the side of the road -- away from the tire. They then create a model of their tread using clay, and evaluate their models with a water test. They'll measure how much water is deflected away from the tire, evaluate the effectiveness of all the systems developed by student teams, and present their findings to the class.
Age Levels: 8-18
Objectives
- Learn about engineering design.
- Learn about planning and construction.
- Learn about teamwork and working in groups.
Anticipated Learner Outcomes
As a result of this activity, students should develop an understanding of:
- engineering
- problem solving
- teamwork
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Lesson Activities
Students learn how tire tread patterns are developed and changed over time to achieve safety and efficiency in a range of driving conditions. Students work in teams to develop a new tread pattern to prevent hydroplaning in heavy rain -- first on paper and then by building a clay model. Teams evaluate their own systems and that of other students, and present their findings to the class.
Resources/Materials
- Teacher Resource Documents (attached)
- Student Worksheets (attached)
- Student Resource Sheets (attached)
Alignment to Curriculum Frameworks
Curriculum alignment sheet is included in PDF.
Categories
Engineering Design, Mathematical Applications, Motion And Forces, Properties Of Materials
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