Learning kitGrades 6-8

Physical science and math

Make a Fair Claw Machine

Play a real claw machine, lose, and read why the prize dropped. Then put one prize on the Grip Bench and find the exact squeeze where friction stops holding its weight, bend the prong tips so they cradle instead of squeeze, let a hundred robots play to measure how often your machine pays out, and build a machine of your own that is fun and fair. Ages 11 to 14.

Time
About 60 minutes on screen in two or three sittings, plus ten minutes with a sock and an orange in step 3.
Steps
6 steps, 6 of them in Claw Game Maker
You need
A computer or Chromebook with a mouse, trackpad or touch screen (the machine is 3D, so a newer Chromebook is happier). For step 3: a soft toy or a rolled sock, and something round and smooth like an orange or a tennis ball.
Unlock the kit, $5 I have a code

$5 for one learner: every step, the Claw Game Maker activities that check the work, the printable lesson, and the certificate with a page of the learner's own work.

A pink claw machine in Claw Game Maker seen through its glass from where a player stands: a chrome three prong claw hangs over a pile of teddy bears, a duck and a capsule ball on a snowy floor, with the joystick and red drop button on the panel below.

The 6 steps

These open once the kit is unlocked.

  1. 1Play, lose, and read whyIn Claw Game MakerThis is a real claw machine, not a cartoon of one. The prizes have weight, the prongs push and rub, and a prize that slides out slides out for a reason. Play it three times. Try to win, but the point of this step is to lose at least once and read why.
  2. 2The squeeze where it slipsIn Claw Game MakerTake the luck out. The Grip Bench puts one prize alone on the floor, grabs it in the middle and lifts at a grip you set. Start strong, then turn the grip down a little each time until the bear slides out. Guess before every pull: that is how you find out what you really think.
  3. 3Squeeze or cradleIn Claw Game MakerThere are two ways to hold a prize: squeeze its sides and let friction do the work, or curl the tips under it and carry it like a cup. Try both with your own hand first, then bend the claw's tips in the app and watch the bench line move.
  4. 4Let the robots playIn Claw Game MakerOne play is luck. A hundred plays is a measurement. The robot players aim at a prize with a set wobble, drop, and count. Guess first: out of twenty careful plays, how many will win? Then run a hundred and see how close you were.
  5. 5Build your own, and make it honestIn Claw Game MakerNow it is your machine. Give it a name on the sign, pick its colors, set its grips, and fill it with the prizes you want. Then run the honest machine check: it lifts every prize in the box with your own claw, alone, at your Carry grip. A prize no one could ever win does not belong in a fair machine.
  6. 6Is it fair? Win it and sayIn Claw Game MakerSome real machines are set to grip weakly most of the time and at full strength only every so many plays. Yours is not: your grips are the same every play, and players lose for reasons the replay can show. Measure your machine with the robots, win a prize from it yourself, and then write your answer: what makes a claw machine fair?

Work on a computer. The apps need a keyboard and a bigger screen than a phone: a laptop, desktop or Chromebook. You can pay here and open the emailed link on the computer.

One learner

Unlock the kit, $5

  • All 6 steps, worked on screen, with a lesson you can print if you like paper
  • Claw Game Maker activities that check the work as it is done
  • A numbered certificate with a page of the learner's own work: your plays, your bench tests, your robot run, your explanations, and the machine you built

We email a link that opens the kit on any computer. No account needed. We keep the email only to send the kit and certificate links: privacy.

Have a discount code?
Co-ops and classes: unlock it for a group

One payment and one code. Each learner types the code to unlock the kit on their own computer, and gets their own certificate at the end. Your pack page shows who has started and finished.

See a sample certificate (PDF) · Already paid? Find your link

Questions

What does the learner do in Make a Fair Claw Machine?

It has 6 steps: 1. Play, lose, and read why; 2. The squeeze where it slips; 3. Squeeze or cradle; 4. Let the robots play; 5. Build your own, and make it honest; 6. Is it fair? Win it and say. Play a real claw machine, lose, and read why the prize dropped. Then put one prize on the Grip Bench and find the exact squeeze where friction stops holding its weight, bend the prong tips so they cradle instead of squeeze, let a hundred robots play to measure how often your machine pays out, and build a machine of your own that is fun and fair. Ages 11 to 14.

What age is it for?

Grades 6-8. About 60 minutes on screen in two or three sittings, plus ten minutes with a sock and an orange in step 3..

What is needed?

A computer or Chromebook with a mouse, trackpad or touch screen (the machine is 3D, so a newer Chromebook is happier). For step 3: a soft toy or a rolled sock, and something round and smooth like an orange or a tennis ball.

Is there a certificate?

Yes. A numbered certificate with a page of the learner's own work, for your records or a portfolio. It is not course credit.

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