Free Homeschooling – The Egg Drop

The egg drop experiment is one of the oldest and most beloved free homeschooling experiments. In fact, I can’t think of a student in the country who has not performed some variation of the egg drop experiment at least once in all his or her years of schooling. Therefore, this free homeschooling experiment is not only beneficial for everyone, but it’s fairly standard.

The egg drop experiment is perfect for students who are learning about gravity and about how materials interact with one another. The end goal of the experiment is for students to create packaging around an uncooked egg to ensure that the egg can be dropped from a height without breaking.

Ready to get started? Here’s what you’ll need:
    •    A drop platform
    •    Various packaging materials
    •    A carton of uncooked eggs
    •    Plastic bags

Now, before you get started, it’s important to understand the point of the experiment. You’ll learn a little bit about the physical interaction between height, weight, and gravity. But even more than basic physics, you’ll learn a little bit more about what goes in to making sure that things stay protected from gravity.

Background
Gravity is all around us. We have shock absorbers in our shoes to absorb the impact of our bodies as our feet hit the pavement. Our cars are built with safety features that protect us from impact. Everyday items that we buy in stores are packaged so that they will not be damaged when they come into contact with other items.

The purpose of this experiment is to learn how to create packaging around a simple egg to keep the egg from breaking under the pressure of gravity when the egg is dropped. Sound impossible to protect a fragile egg from a drop? It’s not. But you may have to do some messy trial and error runs before you find the right packaging.

By the way, parents looking for more free homeschooling projects? Check out this website for great homeschool science resources.  It’s definitely one worth bookmarking.

The Experiment
    •    Select a surface of about 3-5 feet from which to drop your egg. Beneath that surface, place plastic bags on the floor and on any other items that may need to be protected from egg splatter, such as tables, sofas, and more.
    •    To see what happens when you drop an egg without protection, go ahead and drop an egg from your surface.
    •    Record your observations.
    •    Next, use any materials that you gathered to create packaging around the egg that you think will project the egg from breaking when it hits the surface.
    •    Drop the egg within the packaging.
    •    Observe your results. Did the egg break? If so, then hypothesize why and create new packaging. If the egg did not break, then hypothesize why not in your notes.
    •    Continue with the experiment until you create packaging that protects the egg from breaking during the drop. This may take many different tries to get right – so don’t worry if the eggs break over and over again!

Conclusion
Were you able to create packaging that protected your egg? What did that packaging look like? Why do you think the packaging worked? How would you apply that packaging to other goods on the market?

This is a wonderful free homeschooling experiment because it not only encourages students to be innovative with their packaging design, but it also encourages students to think about how their designs can be applied in everyday life.