Why don’t snowboards need wheels?

This investigation is all about scientific inquiry, getting students to plan and carry out investigations to explore friction and inclined planes. Students take true agency over their learning as they design and conduct an experiment of their choosing to investigate an area related to this core ‘why’ phenomenon. Having students plan and carry out their own investigations is one of the best ways to help them to develop scientific mindsets and participate in true scientific practices.

Build Guides

To do so, students will be required to build the following projects as part of the ‘Why don’t snowboards need wheels?’ lesson set:

• The bumpy snowboard
• The smooth snowboard

Concepts

• Friction
• Gravity
• Inclined plane
• Scientific inquiry