Rubber Band Racer
Ready? Set? ZOOM! The excitement mounts as your Rubber Band Racer zips down the hall and past the
finish line. This is more than a DIY car toy, the Rubber Band Racer Activity Pack comes with all of the
TeacherGeek building components (and more) that you'll need to build your own rubber band powered
car. Leave other soapbox and cardboard cars in the dust as TeacherGeek's build system allows you to
easily redesign your Rubber Band Racer over and over to meet all sorts of new challenges.
Each Rubber Band Racer Activity Pack comes with a printed Go-Guide to get kids started and inspire them
to make their own unique designs. The Advanced Rubber Band Racer Activity Pack comes with even more
TeacherGeek building components to open a whole new world of design possibilities! TeacherGeek also
offers free science labs and engineering challenges to depend student' understanding and challenge them
even further, covering topics such as kinetic energy, simple machines, friction, elasticity, and ratios!
Scroll down to "Things You'll Need" for more info.
Age Range
Customize this activity for the highlighted ages with tons of free labs and challenges!
This is an educational product and not a toy. Adult supervision is required.
Videos
Documents
Click on the flowchart to view documents from each category.
Go Guide:
Give it to your students and go! This is the essential document to get students started with Rubber Band Racers, and it culminates in the Long Shot Engineering Challenge. There are two versions of the Go Guide, pick based on whether you ordered the basic kit or the advanced kit (which includes extra parts).
|
Basic Go Guide: English: PDF DOCX Videos Spanish: PDF DOCX |
For the basic version of the kit. |
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Advanced Go Guide: English: PDF DOCX Videos Spanish: PDF DOCX |
For the advanced version of the kit. |
Labs:
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Ramp Roll Lab: English: PDF DOCX Ramp Build Spanish: PDF DOCX |
Discover how height effects the distancy your racer rolls, and learn about potential and kinetic energy. Ages 9+. |
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Energy Lab: English: PDF DOCX Video Ramp Build English: PDF DOCX |
Explore different types of energy and how they are transformed. Ages 12+. |
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Atwood's Machine Lab: Atwood's Page |
Use a Half Atwood's Machine to explore Newton's 2nd Law. Requires two or more Advanced Kits. Ages 15+. |
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Mechanical Advantage Reference Sheet: English: PDF DOCX Spanish: PDF DOCX |
Guide students in exploring how gears create mechanical advantage by trading between force and distance. For use with the advanced kit, which includes gears. |
Challenges:
Compete for distance, speed, or precision! See the Go Guide document for challenge instructions.
|
Long Shot Challenge & More: PDF DOCX |
Challenges are included in the Basic Go Guide document. |
|
Advanced Go Guide: PDF DOCX |
Challenges are included in the Advanced Go Guide document. |
|
Engineering Notebooks: Simple Version Full Version |
Available at two different learning levels, TeacherGeek Engineering Notebooks are designed to help students cycle through the Design & Engineering Process and help them innovate and invent new designs. Use an Engineering Notebook page for each iteration of design. We recommend keeping extra copies of this on-hand for kids during activities. |
Other Resources:
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STEM Rubric: PDF | DOCX |
Use the STEM Rubric to assess any TeacherGeek project. |
|
Mechanical Advantage Reference Sheet: PDF DOCX |
Guide students in exploring how gears create mechanical advantage by trading between force and distance. For use with the advanced kit, which includes gears. |
|
STEAM Market-It Challenge: PDF DOCX |
Add the STEAM Market-It Challenge to any completed TeacherGeek activity to teach students how to turn their TeacherGeek design into a retail product. Students will learn the 4 'Ps' of marketing - Product, Placement, Price and Promotion. Students have the option of completing a commercial, a billboard or retail packaging as a summative assessment. |
|
Engineering Notebooks: Simple Version Full Version |
Available at two different learning levels, TeacherGeek Engineering Notebooks are designed to help students cycle through the Design & Engineering Process and help them innovate and invent new designs. Use an Engineering Notebook page for each iteration of design. We recommend keeping extra copies of this on-hand for kids during activities. |
Things You'll Need
You're going to need some stuff, but don't sweat it! You probably have it already.
Click a tab below to choose how you will complete this activity - that determines what you'll need.
You're in the right tab!
TeacherGeek Tools
optional
Screw Driver
Drive screws into holes.
optional
Slip Joint Pliers
Grab nuts, bend
wires, etc.
optional
Multi-Cutter
Cut dowels, strips,
recycling bin items, etc.
optional
Reamer
Ream splines (teeth),
from holes so
dowels spin freely.
optional
Mini Hammer
Tap dowels into
other components.
Other Supplies
- Scissors
- Glue (optional)
- Recycling Bin Materials (optional - for more creative designs)
You're in the right tab!
You will need to pre-cut the dowels for this activity, or your kids can cut them (with adult supervision).
TeacherGeek Tools
optional
Screw Driver
Drive screws into holes.
optional
Slip Joint Pliers
Grab nuts, bend
wires, etc.
REQUIRED
Multi-Cutter
Cut dowels, strips,
recycling bin items, etc.
optional
Reamer
Ream splines (teeth),
from holes so
dowels spin freely.
optional
Mini Hammer
Tap dowels into
other components.
Other Supplies
- Scissors
- Glue (optional)
- Recycling Bin Materials (optional - for more creative designs)
You're in the right tab!
Make sure you have the right components - check the Go Guide (see above).
You will need to pre-cut the dowels for this activity, or your kids can cut them (with adult supervision).
TeacherGeek Tools
optional
Screw Driver
Drive screws into holes.
optional
Slip Joint Pliers
Grab nuts, bend
wires, etc.
REQUIRED
Multi-Cutter
Cut dowels, strips,
recycling bin items, etc.
optional
Reamer
Ream splines (teeth),
from holes so
dowels spin freely.
optional
Mini Hammer
Tap dowels into
other components.
Other Supplies
- Scissors
- Glue (optional)
- Recycling Bin Materials (optional - for more creative designs)
Activity Pack Components
What comes with the Rubber Band Racer?
The table shows what comes in each single kit. To see what comes in a 10-pack, just multiply by 10.| Component | Basic | Advanced | |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
#10 25mm Screw | 4 | 8 |
 |
#10 Hex Nut | 4 | 8 |
 |
Connector Strip | 4 | 6 |
 |
Dowel - 15 cm (6 in) | 1 | 1 |
|
Dowel - 13 cm (5 in) | 4 | 6 |
|
Dowel - 10 cm (4 in) | 4 | 6 |
|
Dowel - 5 cm (2 in) | 3 | 4 |
 |
Hole Plate | 2 | 2 |
 |
Mixed Gear Set | - | 1 set |
 |
Slide Stop - 8 cm (3 in) | 1 | 1 |
 |
Small Rubber Band | 10 | 10 |
 |
Stop Clip | 2 | 4 |
 |
Tire Rubber Band | 2 | 2 |
 |
Wheel | 4 | 4 |
Science, Math & Engineering Standards
TeacherGeek products fit proposals, grants or lesson plans with ease! Explore more resources below:
|
NGSS Standards Spreadsheet: PDF DOCX |
NGSS standards matrix for all TeacherGeek activities. |
|
ITEEA Standards Spreadsheet: PDF DOCX |
ITEEA standards matrix for all TeacherGeek activities. |
