Glue them together and repeat with the other pieces. This will leave a small notch for the pencil to rest in later. Use two long pieces and one half-piece to form an “A” but make sure you cross the long pieces slightly at the top to form a miniature "V" shape. Take five popsicle sticks and cut one of them in half. Start out by building the two side A-frame pieces.You can modify your design based on your own ideas and the materials you have available. Think of this as an engineering design project-there is no single “right answer” or correct way to build the trebuchet. For example, you could decide to build the entire frame out of pencils instead of popsicle sticks and you can choose whether you want to use tape, glue or rubber bands to secure the different joints. There is more than one way to do this, so the procedure described here is just one method. It will have two "A-frame" shaped pieces on the sides and one crossbar on the top. To build your trebuchet, you will build a frame that looks almost just like a swing set.A toy trebuchet might seem harmless, but even a small projectile can cause eye damage. Safety note: Never aim projectiles at people or animals. Assemble all your materials in a location that is open and clear of people, animals or breakable objects so that you can test your trebuchet.Glue (A hot glue gun is best if available, but use caution and adult assistance when using hot glue.).Piece of corrugated cardboard, about one foot by one foot.Many medieval trebuchets were larger and could hurtle projectiles even farther than catapults. Then the counterweight is allowed to fall, rotating the lever arm and converting that potential into kinetic energy in the projectile, which is flung through the air. When the counterweight is raised up, it has lots of gravitational potential energy. A trebuchet has a lever arm with a large, heavy counterweight on one end and a smaller projectile on the other end. It relies on gravitational potential energy-the type of energy you get by raising something up off the ground. By purchasing a subscription you are helping to ensure the future of impactful stories about the discoveries and ideas shaping our world today.Ī trebuchet works differently. If you're enjoying this article, consider supporting our award-winning journalism by subscribing. This catapult worked by storing elastic potential energy-the type of energy you get from stretching something such as a rubber band or a spring-and rapidly converting it to kinetic energy (the energy of motion) of a projectile (in that case a cotton ball). The Bring Science Home activity Build a Catapult showed you how to build a miniature catapult out of popsicle sticks and rubber bands. But did you know about an even bigger type of medieval siege weapon called a trebuchet? Try this project to build a miniature version! In the Middle Ages armies would use them to hurl stones at castle walls. Mitch and I also made a super easy catapult from pool noodles! This contraption is pretty cool for little kids to make and because the pool noodles are so flexible it doesn’t throw anything very hard.You probably know what a catapult is. Mitch and I have been working on improving our catapult designs - check out the Binder-a-Pult 2000 with a range of 20 feet! Make it Bigger with Pool Noodles It’s great for younger kids to build because it’s so very simple. ![]() ![]() This catapult has a lot of upward thrust–not a very good distance shooter. Mitch and I made a little video if you want to see how it’s built and little demo at the end. Marshmallows are also great for catapult flinging! They have just the right amount of weight to travel far, aren’t round enough to roll under the couch and won’t hurt anything that accidentally gets in the way. Mitch and I tested all kinds of things–wads of paper, super balls, foam balls, foil balls or rocks (if you’re outside).īecause this is meant to be an indoor project, I recommend making aluminum foil balls. You can experiment with different kinds of projectiles for your popsicle catapult–really anything that can fit on the spoon will work. Tada! That was easy! Make Projectiles for Your Catapult
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