Students will launch the self-propelled car challenge by investigating how changing mass affects acceleration, identifying initial design expectations, and using horizontal force diagrams to connect signed net force with Newton’s first and second laws.

Students will measure contact forces, investigate stakeholder needs, analyze horizontal force diagrams, and use evidence to define measurable criteria, constraints, safety requirements, and testing questions for a self-propelled car.

Students will synthesize prior observations into a user-focused design brief, apply force diagrams and Newton’s laws to anticipated car motion, generate multiple self-propelled car concepts, and select a design using physics evidence, criteria, constraints, and two rounds of peer feedback.

Students will build and refine a self-propelled car, collect repeated force and motion measurements, use force diagrams and Newton’s second law to analyze acceleration, and prepare validated evidence for the school showcase.

Students will present and demonstrate their self-propelled cars at a school showcase, defend conclusions about force and acceleration with quantitative evidence, revise an explanation using feedback, and submit an individual portfolio and self-assessment.