Leicestershire / South Nottinghamshire
Slo-Mo Marble Challenge
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What's it about?
This creative primary school Challenge is to design and build a slo-mo marble run using materials from a given list, which maximises the time taken by a standard glass marble to roll from the top to the bottom.
Judges will be looking for evidence of STEM learning through research into gravity; energy; friction; gradient and material properties, together with innovative design and construction methods.
The run must incorporate a minimum of three different methods of slowing the marble's descent.
Eligible school year groups: Years 3-6
Entries accepted from: Individuals or teams of 2-5 students. Schools may submit a maximum of 3 entries for the Challenge. Teams may be mixed age if desired.
Open to: Leicestershire and South Nottinghamshire Schools, Academies and Private Schools. Home-educated children may also participate. See our Terms and Conditions.
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CREST Discovery Awards
3M will pay for entries to be submitted for a British Science Association CREST Discovery Award. See our Terms and Conditions. Please indicate your consent on the Entry Form.
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- Download the Slo-Mo Marble Challenge Risk Assessment (DOCX, 88 KB)
- The aims of the Challenge are to (i) design and build a marble run that maximises the time taken by a standard glass marble to roll from the top to the bottom (ii) maximise students’ learning about relevant science such as gravity, energy, friction, gradient and material properties etc
- The run must incorporate a minimum of three different methods of slowing the marble's descent
- Please refer to the Mark Scheme. Although the time taken for the marble to descend accounts for 35% of the overall marks, it is possible for a marble run with a shorter run time to outperform if it scores highly in other categories such as STEM learning, presentation quality or number of methods of slowing the marble's descent
- The marble run can only be built from materials on the Materials List (PDF, 574 KB)
- The marble run must not extend beyond a plan area of 600 x 600mm at any point
- The marble must start its run no more than 700mm above the base
- There is no restriction on the height of any decorative feature or framework
- The marble run must incorporate an area or container to catch the marble at the end of its run, which must be contained within the 600 x 600mm plan area
- The marble run must be clearly marked with a finishing line just before the catch/stop area
- The marble used for testing must be a standard glass marble of between 14-17mm diameter. Textured marbles are not permitted. No coatings, coverings or attachments may be made to the marble itself
- The marble may be instantaneously stationary during a change of direction but may not otherwise stop rolling at any point during its run
- The marble must not be touched by the entrants once it has begun its run, nor be provided with additional energy during its run by any means, such as motors, release of energy stored in springs prior to beginning the run, or similar
- If the marble stops during its run and fails to reach the bottom, the time taken to reach the point at which it stopped will be taken as the time for the run
- Three runs are permitted and the longest run time will be used for allocation of marks
- Marks will be awarded for theming or decoration of the marble run as well as for its performance
- Marble runs that incorporate a variety of different methods for slowing the marble’s descent will score highly
- Entries must be the students’ own work
- Students should prepare a presentation using any format (e.g. Powerpoint slides, poster, talk or other creative interpretation) up to a maximum of 10 minutes duration. This should cover initial gathering of ideas, concept development, material selection, design modification, testing and problem solving, with an emphasis on STEM learning. The presentation should be submitted in advance of the judging session
- Marble runs must be transportable to 3M for judging, but do not have to be submitted in advance
Closing date for entries: 24 March 2022
Virtual judging: 24, 25 and 26 May 2022 at 3M, Charnwood Campus, Loughborough. Please indicate your preferred date/time on the entry form.
Entries will be screened to ensure they meet the entry criteria. Students will be asked to deliver a presentation of up to 10 minutes length to demonstrate their marble run and talk through their background research, material selection, design experimentation and construction processes. The judges will ask questions about the marble run and their STEM learning. All members of a team should play a part in the presentation.
- Judges will check the dimensions of the marble run are in line with the rules
- The marble should be released from the top of the marble run and allowed to roll to the bottom
- The time taken for the marble to complete its journey will be measured using a digital stopwatch
- If the marble stops during its run and fails to reach the bottom, the time taken to reach the point at which it stopped will be taken as the time for the run
- Three runs will be timed and the longest time taken will be used for judging purposes
£750 of science or engineering equipment for school use plus a £50 gift voucher for the winning individual or team member. All finalists and their schools will receive a framed certificate.
All entrants will receive a certificate of entry and personalised feedback from the judges.
Up to 35 marks for the marble run’s performance, based on the time taken for the marble to roll from the top to the bottom of the run
Up to 30 marks for evidence of STEM learning including:
- background research
- idea generation
- design and material experimentation
- prototyping
- overcoming problems and challenges
Marble runs must incorporate a minimum of three different methods of slowing the marble’s descent. Additional methods will score more marks
Up to 20 marks for quality of the presentation
Up to 15 marks for the marble run’s style, aesthetics and visual appeal
Total marks available = 100
The students’ year group will be taken into account when awarding marks
Judges will select 4-6 finalists who will be invited to attend the 3M Young Innovators Challenge presentation event on Friday 17 June 2022
Year 3 Forces and magnets
Pupils should be taught to:
- compare how things move on different surfaces
Pupils should be taught to:
- identify the effects of air resistance, water resistance and friction, that act between moving surfaces
Pupils should explore the effects of friction on movement and find out how it slows or stops moving objects.
Important documents to download
Please make sure you download these important documents for the Slo-Mo Marble Challenge. Please save the entry form to your device and send as a file attachment to younginnovators@mmm.com.
If you have any questions, please Get in Touch.
Please see our Terms and Conditions.
Judges
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Chris Bishop
Chris Bishop is a Principal Project Engineer at Kindeva Drug Delivery. He graduated from Cambridge University in 1998 with a Master's degree in Engineering and managed engineering projects for 3M before moving to Kindeva. A Chartered Engineer and STEM Ambassador, Chris enjoys delivering maths and engineering-based activities in primary schools, and lives in Loughborough with his wife and two young children.
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Fay Rochester
Fay Rochester is a Manufacturing Technology engineer for 3M's Abrasives division and is based at its Atherstone site in Warwickshire. She graduated from Loughborough University with a Master's degree in Mechanical Engineering in 2020 and as part of her course spent a year at 3M as an industrial placement student. Fay became a STEM Ambassador while she was studying for her degree, and is passionate about promoting diversity in science and engineering careers.
