Purva Fairmont session 4 – Voila we have creation

Every team surprised me with their creations today.

I was expecting less. Not because I don’t believe. But, these kids are so busy all week with homework, taekwondo, swimming, tennis, music, dance and other activities. So naturally I am hesitant about putting more burden on them.

But they all surprised me.

Here is a hydraulic crusher. Elegantly done. Just two syringes and some cardboard. We crushed some berries !!

This team did it with just one syringe and two bottles. Having some trouble with the leaking tube and the piston – but when it is done it will be a pure implementation of the Pascal’s Principle multiplying the force. Very impressed by their persistence.

These guys are more into mechanics than hydraulics !! They are trying to build a hydraulic fork lift, but Pascal has taken a bit of a back seat here. It’s remote controlled, Lego based super complicated fork lift. Ambitious team, enjoying themselves thoroughly !!

Road to creation is very bumpy. The team has one of the most complex engineering designs to pull off. Painted cardboard boxes need to be made water proof. The interesting contraption with coke cans, cut bottles and stuck tapes with then act as the balance scales. Not done yet. But I am sure they will make more progress by next week. They are unfazed by the obstacles to cross.

Guess we are mostly done with this project. Every team will polish it up and present to their parents next week.

A certificate awaits EVERYONE next week !!

We also had a fascinating discussion analyzing the Docking scene from Interstelllar. We paused at every point and discussed the nuances of the story telling.

Watch the video and ponder on these questions:

• Why does the background music go quiet at 0.17?
• Why does the camera have the planet in the background at 0.27?
• Why does Cooper say what he does in reply to Tars at 1:15?
• Why does the camera shift to a far shot at 2:50?

We just analyzed the scenes and camera angles. We could talk about the background music, the dialogues, the action or the physics.

The whole idea is to get the children to peel the onion and go beyond the obvious.

This has been so much fun. I am so convinced about what I always believed in – every child is unique and is inherently motivated to learn. Just creating an environment they can be themselves and an interesting challenge at hand is enough to get them going.

Sad to see this series nearing it’s end next week. Will plan one more starting January. Lot’s of learning this time. Excited about the next one.