Year 2

Machine makers

The dominoes falling pushes the marble… The marble lands in the spoon and raises it… The spoon flips the switch… Ever seen a Rube Goldberg machine in action? In this unit explore the forces of push and pull and apply understanding to design your very own Rube Goldberg machine!

Machine makers addresses the AC Science Understanding ACSSU033 A push or a pull affects how an object moves or changes shape, in the context of creating Rube Goldberg machines.

Explore our new sequences for Year 2 aligned to AC V9

Machine makers provides students with hands-on opportunities to:

  • experience different ways to make objects move using ramps, levers, and pulleys
  • explore the different strengths of pushes and pulls required to manipulate and control the movement of objects
  • examine diagrams made by other inventors

Students apply their new learning by:

  • designing and making their own Rube Goldberg machine using pushes and pulls

Linking science with literacy

In the Primary Connections approach, students are supported to create representations that draw on and strengthen their literacy development. In Machine makers, students represent and explain their understanding about how a push or a pull affects how an object moves or changes shape, by creating these representations:

  • Annotated drawing
  • T-chart
  • Ideas map
  • Data table
  • Word wall


 

This is a classic Primary Connections sequence aligned with the Australian Curriculum V8.4. It is only available as a downloadable package.

The Machine makers sequence package includes all the resources you need to teach this sequence, including:

  • The Machine makers unit PDF
  • Equipment list
  • Australian Curriculum v8.4 alignment
  • Student eResource sheets
  • Assessment resources:
    • Assessment rubrics
    • Work samples
    • Student self-assessment
    • Achievement standard class checklist

Teacher tools