Three Kinds of Hands-on Science

Spinning Tops Activity

This activity was orginally developed by Nancy Schlenke, Teacher-in-Residence at the Institute for Inquiry, in order to do the activity with simple materials. Trisha Herminhaus and Traci Caves from Anchorage further modified the activity. They had been doing 3 kinds of hands-on science using the phenomena of parachutes, but after finding that this required higher ceilings than were always available, they decided that the materials for the Tops Activity were easier to transport and execute than either foam or parachutes. Because of the need expressed for a more staff developer-friendly version of 3 kinds-of hands-on science, we began to use the Tops Activity in the past several workshops to work on a polished version. While we continue to modify the activity each time based on feedback, here is a current write-up.

If you use the activity, please let us know your experience, and any suggestions for modifications.

To print out the full text version of the activity, click here. To print out a the guided activity worksheet only on its own page, click here. Then, print them out as you would any document on your computer.