Four classes of sixth graders at Hornsby Middle School became rocket scientists this week when they launched their own hand-built crafts into the sky.
“I said to their teacher, ‘We’re going to teach them about rockets and they’ll probably remember it for the rest of their lives,’” said flight test engineer Greg Eggleston.
Dyana Steely, a teacher at the school, took three days with Eggleston to teach her students how to build rockets, create flight projections and measure outcomes.
“Now, these students are going to remember things like trajectory because he explained it to them in such a way that I, as a teacher, never would have thought of,” Steely said. “It’s great to get that different perspective from someone who does this for a living every day.”
Steely had been teaching the subject for 14 years with different experiments, such as bouncing balls and measuring height or analyzing the absorption of napkins. But at the beginning of the new school year, she started talking Eggleston about new ways to teach the scientific method that would engage students.
Eggleston took the opportunity to work hands-on with the sixth graders and was at the school Monday through Wednesday to teach them how to understand and build rockets from pipe-insulated foam, duct tape and card stock.
“The first day we taught, the second day we built, the third day we launched,” Eggleston said. “We could spend a whole week doing this, probably, because the power is in the results. It’s about building future flight test engineers.”
Each rocket was named by the students, and they got to individually launch their rocket. After all of the rockets were set off, the students then went and took notes about distance and trajectory. Throughout the process, Eggleston, wearing a badge labeled “Rocket Scientist,” encouraged each sixth grader to have fun with the project, even if their rocket only flew a few feet.
“He’s really a big nerd about this and that’s what’s amazing for the students,” Steely said. “They see him get excited about it and they’re excited. When you ask a rocket scientist for help, you get rocket science.”
Once all of the students launched their own rockets, Eggleston had two larger rockets of his own to show.
“Rocket scientists, are you ready?” Eggleston yelled at the group of students as he stood out in the field. The sixth graders yelled back ‘Yes!’ as he began the countdown to launch.
After the rocket shot through the sky, the students chased after it and Eggleston taught them about some of the different aspects that went into a successful launch. The students crowded around him to hold the pieces of the rocket and discuss the results.
“On Monday, Mrs. Steely probably thought she was just going to teach something fun to these students,” Eggleston said. “But after today, she’s going to have rooms full of future rocket scientists.”
