Marble Run!!!
Not too long ago, the children’s interest with the marble run had resurfaced!
Early one Monday morning, KM started building a marble run and was joined by GK and OR in his play. They put the marbles on the track to test the run, with KM placing the marble up high, and he had a turn at the bottom of the run. GK placed blocks behind the turn to act as a barrier to help keep the marble on the track. KM noticed that where the marble started, it would affect how it ran. At the top it would fall off but wouldn’t go through if it started too low. He noticed that the marble had to be right in the middle to have enough speed without falling off. KM also added a tunnel to the run but found that the marble would get stuck. He discovered the tunnel was too low and the marble would get trapped so he made the tunnel higher using blocks.
On Tuesday they continued building and was joined by LB; although LB has a different plan for the track. After some discussion they chose a different location for their set up and they make a long straight track. However, they added blocks all around the track as a tunnel. KM found the marble stuck somewhere and they observed that the tunnel is tall enough but not wide so they worked on that. It took some trial and error to figure this out, but they were successful. Their project continued on Wednesday, and this time the children tried to make a bridge by using two shelves and a block on top. They used some big blocks as a pillar and made another attempt at a barrier. Unfortunately they discovered their barrier was not really successful since the marble had come back at the starting point. The children were able to determine the reason why, since they realized the end was a little high. This project was a great way for the children to test out, reflect, and re-evaluate their ideas to try and solve a problem!
Great work everyone!
Caitlin Brock, Early Childhood Educator RECE
Krina Lodaliya, Educator
Allison Brock, Educator
