On March 17, Mrs. Wagner's eighth-grade Math classes participated in a Barbie Bungee activity. Students began the project on Wednesday, March 16. They worked in small groups to measure the average lengths Barbie or Ken dropped from a 200 cm height. For each drop, students added 2 rubber bands for a total of 12 bands or 6 drops. They placed their data in a data table. Once their data was collected, they plotted it on a class scatter plot.
The students determined the line of best fit and the equation for that line. On Thursday, students used the equation to predict how many rubber bands would be needed to allow Barbie and Ken to bungee safely from the top of the railing on the balcony above the middle school commons area. Mrs. Wagner's eighth hour was able to correctly predict the 28 rubber bands needed for Barbie to safely bungee. The other classes were very close. There was a discussion of how they could make a more accurate prediction, what variables in the experiment could they change to make a more accurate prediction, and what variables they have no control over. Comparison of Barbie and Ken sizes and weights were mentioned, as well as using only one Barbie as opposed to 5 different Barbies, etc.
The students enjoyed the process of taking data from experiments, plotting them on a scatter plot, and finding the end result.
