Pop Rockets

By Katie-Rose McNulty,

Dana Schunter, and

Amanda Krause

Pop Rockets was a very good idea. The fifth grade teachers came up with the idea by using teacher resources and our science specialist Mrs Fagan. Pop Rockets are made of small paper or notecards with a small tube that has an antacid tablet in it to make it pop. When the fifth graders first got to experience the rockets taking off, it was very exciting for them.

The teachers knew all fifth graders would have fun from past experience. The fifth grade teachers picked the pop rockets as an activity because it fit right in with our Space Unit. The students had a hard time trying to build the pop rockets and getting it to go up without the bottom popping off. The two teachers we interviewed, Ms Corti and Mrs Ambrosio, thought seeing the rockets go up was even fun for them.

One of the students, Valerie Nezvesky, thought making the rockets was really fun. She said, “You can make it your own style, shape, color, or size.” She added that it was a challenge because you wanted your rocket to go the highest so your rocket’s launch all depended on the shape and size of your design.

The suspense of waiting for your rocket to pop makes you anxious. You want your rocket to pop up of course! Some didn’t work at all but many went very high. A few good rockets even went onto the roof!

Since many of the rockets (about 25 percent) didn’t launch, the students wanted to change their rockets by making them bigger, smaller, just fixing a small bug, or even doing a different design. Most of the owners of the rockets who did a great job, only wanted to change the design! They thought their rocket was PERFECT. Maybe it was.

Many fifth grade students are now looking forward to relaunching their model rockets! There will be many excited students waiting after school for their turn to see their rockets blast off for the second time. It will be on Tuesday, May 9, and the rain date is Wednesday, May 10. Even though they are not launching pop rockets at this get-together, the model rockets will be exciting and fun!