These web-based activities were developed, during summer sessions from 1997 through 1999, by students at Mainland High School, located in Daytona Beach, FL. As part of Mainland's CCTT grant, the students were given permission by the book's publisher to convert the ancillary materials of the County's adopted Algebra 1 Textbook (Glencoe Algebra 1 - ISBN: 9780028253282) into html format.

Steps to Making a Bouncing Balloon Ball

Inflate one balloon until it feels tight, but not stretched. (This seems so subjective but your goal is to inflate a balloon as large as possible while still being able to cover it with a second balloon.)

Tie a knot in the "neck" of a balloon

Clip the "neck" of another balloon as shown.

One student should then stretch the clipped balloon (Step #3) while the partner stuffs the inflated balloon (Step #2) inside. Once this is done, the WORST is over. Clip a third balloon and use it to cover both nested balloons from Step #3.

Continue covering until all the balloons have been used. Number of balloons used to make your bouncing balloon ball:_________

An oblong balloon can be "rounded" by positioning the open end of the clipped balloon in a different spot each time.

Drop Height X	Bounce Height Y	ratio Y/X
________ cm	________ cm	________
________ cm	________ cm	________
________ cm	________ cm	________
Average of this column		________

…find the average of your two averages! ________ We will call this number the constant of your function.

Under the best of scientific testing conditions, the function of your Balloon Ball would have been a Linear Function, meaning that it’s graph would be on a line.

Let’s see how close you came to optimum conditions by graphing your X’s and Y’s from both trials…..

…..how did you do? Are your results an approximation of a line? What are some causal factors?

Let’s try! If the drop height were _______, what would you predict the bounce height to be?

Copyright 1997-1999: html adaptation
Career Connection to Teaching with Technology