by Anthony F.

The Pinewood Derby is a timeless tradition created in the 1950s by Cubmaster Murphy. It is supposed to be a friendly competition between friends, but he didn’t realize how much this competition would help science students.

The first Pinewood Derby, held on May 15, 1953, took place at the Manhattan Beach Scout House in California and was designed by Cubmaster Don Murphy, under the sponsorship of the Management Club at North American Aviation. What had begun initially as one Cubmaster’s way to let his young son race miniature wooden cars similar to Soap Box Derby cars would, with the help of the Boy Scouts of America, expand rapidly across the United States. That first year of the derby was so enthusiastic that, by 1954, it had been widely adopted and was an official part of the Cub Scout program. Over the years, the Pinewood Derby has changed because of shifts in car designs and regulations regarding the event.

Ms. Henry-Valdez, a STEM teacher at AHJS, said, “The Pinewood Derby is teaching students about the transfer of energy and Newton’s Laws.” The reason each of these is important is because:

The transfer of energy allows for potential energy to turn into kinetic energy. “My students are learning right now that if they put masses toward the back of the car, that means more potential energy,” Ms. Henry-Valdez added. This is because the equation for potential energy is mass times height times acceleration due to gravity. This means that height is directly proportional to energy, and if the weight is farther back, it is higher up. Also, due to the law of conservation of energy, the more potential energy, the more kinetic energy.

Newton’s Second Law of Motion allows people to create more force with more weight. Since the equation for force equals mass times acceleration, mass and force are directly proportional.

Having all of these examples helps students learn essential physics principles, which boosts STEM students’ grades. In an interview, Ms. Henry-Valdez mentioned that “Ms. Milliger agrees that this project is helping students learn basic physics principles.” This project can help students by demonstrating big concepts in real-time.

Ms. Henry can also help other teachers in the Alamo City area with this project. “Yeah, I work with other teachers around the city of San Antonio, and I work with some people who work with the museums, like The Science Mill and the San Antonio Museum of Science and Technology. Talking with them, I’m trying to come up with ways that teachers can do this in classrooms, even if they don’t have a shop.”

Doing this project not only helps students at AHJS but also helps students elsewhere.

Even though this might seem like a simple game, the Pinewood Derby impacts students from around the area.