| Menu | Introduction |Shoe Design | Lab Tools | Activities | Glossary | References |

Shoe Design Poster Activity

Introduction

In this activity students work in two person teams to design a prototype basketball shoe. The prototype integrates the latest findings from sport research into a shoe that appeals to basketball players as well as to kids that might want to buy it. The poster (see example, figure 1) must demonstrate and explain the features of a new shoe design as well as contain sections that explain the science involved in sport research.

Figure 1 - Poster from Slam Dunk Science The best use of the poster activity is to set up teams in your class that will design and then present their posters to the class. Some teachers have teams set themselves up as competing businesses, complete with business cards, a business plan and a budget. In the past this activity has been set up in cooperation with other schools and the top design from each school displayed at a professional basketball game

Objectives

In this activity students will: Overview the basic components of a basketball shoe, like outsole, midsole, and upper, and discuss how science helps to improve their design, Understand what sport researchers, like biomechanists, exercise physiologists, and material scientists, might study, Overview the machines that sports researchers use to evaluate the effectiveness of the shoe and its components, Produce a poster that displays new shoe design as well as an understanding of the science behind the shoe, and Understand the interaction between the look of the shoe (form) and the performance of the shoe (function).

Materials

Poster material or project display board (36" x 48") Coloring materials Old shoe, or "exploded shoe" if you have it Different types of shoes from other sports Poster Scoring Rubric Other materials as needed

Figure 2 - Student using computer to design shoe for poster. The design of the poster may be as simple or as complex as time and money allow. For example, by strictly following the sample poster format included with this activity you can get by with just poster board and coloring pencils. Other teachers have students use science fair project display boards, bits of cloth and other building materials, even computers to build a 3-D model of the shoe.

Procedure

The total time allotted to this project should be a minimum of one week. Most schools who have used the poster design activity in the past have set aside two weeks. Many schools also have worked with other departments, like the art and PE department, to use this activity as a theme to integrate disciplines. Divide the class into teams of two. Recommend that students resist dividing themselves into "stereotypical" groups like all boys, or all girls, or all basketball players. The best poster designs seem to come from teams that are comprised of one member who is artistic while the other is more into science. Also, an interesting aside, when the teams are divided into boy vs. girl teams (because the boys seem to think they KNOW basketball better), the girls tend to clean the boys' clocks. Use an old shoe or exploded shoe (one that has been separated into its basic parts) and have the students brainstorm the following: What parts of the shoe are most important to athletic performance? How might specific parts be tested to determine their contribution to performance? What types of injuries might a shoe prevent? What types of injuries might a poorly designed shoe cause? What types of materials go into making up the different parts of a shoe? What are the types of things a basketball player might be looking for in a shoe? What are the types of things students look for in a shoe? Note: You may provide the information in this guide under Shoe 101, Science Behind the Shoe, and the Glossary as a resource for your students or have them research on their own to gather more information to support their brainstorming efforts. Next have the students brainstorm the movements associated with basketball and relate the part of the shoe they think is most important to each movement. Provide the teams with a copy of the sample poster (figure 3) as well as the rubric, in table 1, you will use to evaluate their poster. Tell students that their poster must contain the following sections: Graphic of their design - Show and explain the shoes special features as well as the benefits associated with the special features. Movements associated with basketball - List and explain the movements specific to playing basketball. Science behind the shoe - Explain what biomechanics and exercise physiology are and how they relate to shoe design. Tools of sports science - List and explain at least two (like video analysis and the impact tester) tools and methods sport scientists use. Open section - Each team should decide on what to include here - examples from past posters include overview of sports injuries to jobs in sports research. Have students present their posters to the class.

Discussion and Follow-up

This activity is relatively straightforward. Discussion is usually centered around the team presentations to the class. It is a good idea during the team presentations to have the students not presenting at the time write down two things they really liked and one thing they would change to help improve each poster. It is also fun to have the teams present their poster designs to parents and other students in grade levels below them. This not only gives your students some experience explaining their projects to other people, but also shows the younger students that older kids are having fun with science and that science is cool! This activity can stand on its own with no follow-up. There are however other activities that build on this activity and help you to experience some of the science that was overviewed in the design of the poster. The next logical step is to try and set up your own sport research lab in the science classroom. Activities are provided in this guide that will get you started on a low tech as well as a high tech approach to building such a lab. Another idea to help your students develop their posters, is to have speakers come into class, or take a field trip to sport science facilities. Some possibilities are: Have college or professional players come talk to the kids about what they look for in a shoe. Have a college or professional team's trainer come in and talk to students about injuries and other aspects relevant to their job. Arrange a field trip to a sports medicine clinic. Arrange a field trip to a sports research facility at a local college. Have kids collect product sheets from athletic shoe stores and see how different companies present their products. Have the kids rate the shoe that reflects the best use of science. Design shoes for other sports.

Evaluation Rubric

The judging will be based on the following criteria: Explanation of the science (biomechanics and physiology minimum) behind shoe design. (15 points) Explanation of movements common to basketball. (15 points) Explanation of tools (impact tester and video analysis minimum) of sports science. (10 points) Understanding of criteria 1, 2, and 3 as reflected in the team's shoe design. (40 points) Presentation neatness and creativity. (20 points) Total Points Possible is 100.

| Menu | Introduction | Shoe Design | Lab Tools | Activities | Glossary | References |