Description This wooden catapult is based on drawings and written accounts of the original roman catapults of old. Catapults were originally invented by the Greeks over 2000 years ago! The catapult works by storing energy in the crossbeam and then releasing it all one go. The projectile keeps moving forward do to Newton’s Laws of motion. Teaching ideas for the Roman Catapult Wooden Kit Measure how far different mass projectiles can travel (make sure that they’re soft!) Have a competition on who can land the projectile in the middle of a circle. Research the differences between catapults, onagers and trebuchets over the ages. How were sieges conducted in different centuries? Discuss potential vs. kinetic energy. Learn about trajectories and gravity What is the mathematics behind trajectories? Can you make a larger version based on the design? How does Newton’s Laws of Motion apply in the movement of the projectile? School science visit that complements this science resource Forces, Friction & Movement science incursion
