STEM Update
STEM – Year 3 & 4 Rocketry Challenge
Last Monday, Mr Frazzetto worked with all Year 3 and 4 students as they launched into an exciting STEM rocketry experience!
The Year 3 and 4 students have been exploring the world of Rocketry — the science, technology, and practice of designing, building, testing, and launching rockets.
Students have been learning to work together as a team while following the design process to plan, build, test, and launch their own water bottle rockets. Throughout the unit, students also discussed the formula F=ma and explored how force and motion influence rocket performance.
Students learned about the parts of a rocket and how each component contributes to stable and successful flight. They shared ideas, collaborated in teams, and created detailed designs before moving into construction.
They then built and refined their rockets, adding features such as nose cones and fins to improve flight stability and distance. A key focus of their learning was understanding how the centre of mass and centre of pressure affect how a rocket flies through the air.
During launch sessions, students safely prepared and launched their rockets, carefully observing and recording how far, how high, and how fast their rockets travelled. They used this data to reflect on their designs and consider improvements.
The excitement on launch day was incredible — students were surprised and thrilled to see their water bottle rockets soar into the sky!
Students are learning to:
- Work collaboratively and share ideas with their team
- Follow a design process to plan and build a rocket
- Safely help launch a water bottle rocket
- Measure and record distance, height, and speed
- Explain how the centre of mass and centre of pressure affect rocket flight
It has been a highly engaging, hands-on STEM experience, with students thinking and working like real engineers and scientists.
Specialist Teacher | Joe Frazzetto