Pupils from Ms Regans 2nd and 3rd class learned about how moving air can be a very powerful force. We explored ways moving air can be used to move objects, We then learned about how compressed air can be particularly strong force. One of the pupils told us that his dads tractor used air brakes, we also talked about how compressed air can be used in car tyres. Some of the pupils had seen tools powered by air before. 

We decided that we were going to build an air powered rocket. The children were shown a launcher that would launch the rockets. A pump needle was poked through a cork and the cork was placed into each bottle. The bottle was pumped full of air and the rocket would launch when the bottle slipped out of the cork. The children were asked to test ways of reducing drag that might slow their rocket down. We also tested what would happen if water was used in the rockets and also what difference the size of the bottle would make. 

Our tests showed that using a small amount of water in the bottle, provided an air seal that stopped air leaking out of the bottle. As a result the rockets launched much better. The medium sized bottles seemed to launch higher. The large ones seemed to have a little too much weight to go really high and the small ones did not take enough air.