Children are intrigued by the properties of various materials as they move along the belt. As they crank the handle, certain shaped objects move while others just roll in place. Turn the handle in one direction, and the belt moves to the right; turn in the other direction, and the belt moves to the left—how curious! Child-powered motion equals hands-on learning. Place a bucket at the end or two Conveyors back to back for an engaging, objective-driven experience.
Adults know that the Conveyor revolutionized the manufacture of mass-produced goods. Now, it’s going to revolutionize systems thinking in your classroom! For children, the Conveyor is simply fantastic!
Assembled, the Conveyor is 48 inches long x 24 inches wide x 12 inches tall.
This product requires assembly.
Perfect in your Discovery Center, Makerspace, Block Area or STEM lab!
Appropriate for ages 2+
From The Classroom:
- Use the Conveyor to move balls, blocks, and even a classmate! (Okay, yes, we’re joking and don’t recommend that children ride on it, but if they do, it is strong enough to hold them! We know – we’ve tried it!)
- Move small toys along the belt until they drop into a basket. Think of how fun clean-up will be!
- Use as a part of a ramp system.
- Combine with other large materials such as laundry baskets, jump ropes, playground balls, buckets, and pulleys to design and construct an enormous chain reaction machine.
- The physical foundational concept of the Conveyor is the translation of motion from circular hand cranking to linear belt movement. How does the energy put into cranking the handle make the belt move?
Adults know that conveyors were pivotal to the growth of the Industrial Revolution. In fact, many believe this to be humankind’s most significant tool of the modern age. In the school-age classroom, the Conveyor is perfect for supporting a social study of inventors, industry in the 1800s, and, in particular, Henry Ford’s factory.
Children’s Books:
- Because a Little Bug Went Kachoo by Rosetta Stone (really Dr. Suess)
- What Is A Pulley? by Lloyd G. Douglas
- Now and Ben: The Modern Inventions of Benjamin Franklin by Gene Barretta
- Neo Leo: The Ageless Ideas of Leonardo da Vinci by Gene Barretta
