Rolling Marble Runs Kit: Engineering Through Motion & Play
In The League Rolling Marble Runs unit from The League of Young Inventors, students become physics detectives and toy engineers as they design and build marble-run systems that challenge speed, momentum, and gravity. Across 8–10 scaffolded lessons (approximately 10 hours of instruction), learners experiment with inclines, curves, drop‐heights, and track materials to optimize marble path performance.
This unit is tailored for grades around 3-5, making abstract science concepts like energy conversion and kinetic to potential energy tangible through playground-like builds. Students begin by exploring how marbles move, get stuck or slow, then apply the engineering design process: plan → build → test → iterate → present. The balance of fun and curriculum makes The League Rolling Marble Runs ideal for STEM blocks, makerspaces, or gifted programs.
Teachers receive fully scaffolded slide decks, teacher guides, worksheets, and embedded media. Hands-on materials are sized for full-class use, allowing each team to design their own track and compare performance data. The exploratory, iterative nature builds not just STEM content but collaboration, perseverance, and design thinking.
What’s Included in the Box
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Slide-based teacher presentation deck (8–10 lessons)
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Standards-alignment documentation for K–5 science & engineering
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Hands-on materials kit (for up to ~30 students): marble rails, supports, connectors, marbles, drop ramp materials
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Student worksheets & build-log templates (sketch → test → iterate)
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Testing and measurement tools (e.g., timers, protractors, measurement cards)
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Embedded media access: instructional videos, examples, discussion prompts
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Reflection & team-presentation templates
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Teacher guide with facilitation notes, differentiation tips, assessment suggestions
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Storage/organizer tray for kit materials
The Rolling Marble Runs Kit doesn’t just let students play—it lets them engineer. They will measure drop times, adjust angles, refine layouts and finally present why their design won. It’s physics in motion, design in action, and invention with a rolling marble.
