(CGUHS) On Friday, February 14, Mrs. Yap's Physics classroom bustled with creativity and problem-solving as students embraced an exciting challenge: designing their own virtual roller coasters using JASON Learning’s Coaster Creator game. This interactive activity allowed students to apply key physics concepts, such as potential and kinetic energy and the law of conservation of energy, in a fun, engaging, and practical way. Roller coasters are more than just thrilling amusement park rides; they are marvels of physics. To prepare for the activity, students explored the principles that govern roller coaster motion, potential energy, the energy stored in an object due to its position. In roller coasters, this is highest at the top of the first hill. Kinetic energy: the energy of motion increases as the coaster descends. Law of conservation of energy: energy cannot be created or destroyed but is transformed from one form to another. For roller coasters, potential energy is converted into kinetic energy and vice versa throughout the ride. Armed with this knowledge, students were ready to put theory into practice.
In using the Coaster Creator simulation, students designed roller coasters with hills, loops, and turns. Their task was to create a ride that was both exciting and functional; one that wouldn’t stall or crash. This required careful planning and an understanding of how energy transformations work in real-world scenarios. The first attempts often resulted in coasters that became stuck or overran the track. Some designs lacked enough height on the initial hill to generate sufficient potential energy for the ride, while others had loops or turns that were too steep for the coaster to navigate safely. These challenges provided valuable lessons in physics and engineering. Through trial and error, students refined their designs. They adjusted hill heights, smoothed out transitions, and reworked loops until their coasters performed successfully. Each failure became an opportunity to analyze what went wrong and make improvements; a process that mirrored the real-world work of engineers.
By the end of the activity, every student group had created a roller coaster that completed its track without crashing or stalling. The sense of accomplishment was evident as students celebrated their success and reflected on what they had learned.