Build a Crazy Contraption:
a Chain Reaction Machine!
Our world is full of machines, from cars to computers to microwaves. They can do some incredible things! But for a machine to do its job, all its parts must work together. Without an engine, a car won’t move — even if the wheels are perfect.
God made people in the same way. We have many parts, like our stomachs for eating and our eyes for seeing. We also have hearts for feeling, minds for thinking and souls for loving and knowing God. All our parts work together to help us grow and be happy.
That’s why Compassion helps kids living in poverty with more than just food or medicine. Kids also need friends to play with, Bibles to learn from, and other things to help them feel loved and cared for.
You can see how this works by making your own chain reaction machine! This is a fun machine (also called a Rube Goldberg machine) where one part makes the next part move, like a line of falling dominoes.
Follow these instructions to build it and see how all the parts work together, just like God created you to do!
#1 Supplies
Gather a few supplies. See what you can find around the house. Here are some ideas:
#2 Simple Machines
Think about ways you can create “simple machines” with your supplies. A simple machine is made of parts that work together to make things move. Experiment with some to learn what they do! Here are some simple machines to try:
A line of standing dominoes or wooden blocks.
A seesaw (also called a lever). To make one, tape a small battery or something similar underneath the middle of a ruler or other long, flat object.
A swinging object, like a ball hanging from a string.
A ramp for a ball to roll down. You can use books, cardboard or anything long and flat to make a ramp.
#3 Choose a Task
The easiest way to plan your machine is to start with the last step. First, choose what you want your machine to do at the end of the chain reaction. Here are a few examples: ring a bell, press a button, pour sprinkles onto a scoop of ice cream.
Decide what kind of simple machine will do this main job. For example, if you want to pour sprinkles onto ice cream, attach a cup of sprinkles to a ledge. Then you can tip the cup over by swinging something or using a seesaw. Other ideas:
Roll a marble down a ramp and into a bell to make it jingle.
Using a pulley, drop a heavy object onto a button.
#4 Build!
Working backward, create more simple machines to power the ones you just made. Each machine should connect to the next one in some way. This is how you create a chain reaction!
Here’s an example of how you could combine simple machines:
- Start by rolling a ball down a ramp ...
- The ball topples domino rally ...
- The dominoes knock a golf ball tied to a string off a ledge ...
- The car runs into a cup of sprinkles and knocks it over ...
- The golf ball swings into a toy car ...
- The cup of sprinkles fall over onto a bowl of ice cream beneath it.
Tips
Here are a few final tips to help you build your machine:
• Ask an adult to look online for ideas. Lots of kids have shared videos of their chain reaction machines for inspiration.
• Don’t be afraid to mess up. If your machine doesn’t work the first time, you can always change things up and try again.
• Be creative! Have fun thinking of new objects to include and new ways to create motion. For an extra challenge, try copying some of the more advanced simple machines you see online, like a pulley.
Break It!
Once you have your chain reaction machine working, try taking one machine or even just one little piece out of the middle and see how well it works. See how every part is necessary?
Share your creation! Take a photo or video of your chain reaction machine and send it to [email protected].