Design a jetpack

Consider how a jetpack works and sketch an idea for a wearable jetpack

In this activity learners will make use of the theme of football on the moon to design a jetpack that can be worn by either the players or referee during a moon football game. They will look at jetpack design and the different parts of a jetpack. They will then sketch an idea for a wearable jetpack for use during the game.

This is one of a series of resources that are designed to allow learners to use the theme of football on the moon to develop their knowledge and skills in Science, Design & Technology and Engineering. This resource focusses on learners looking at jetpack aviation to design a jetpack that the players or referee can use during a game of football on the moon.

The teacher will introduce the theme of playing football on the moon and the challenges that would be faced when doing this, before introducing and explaining how a jetpack works. Learners will then have time to go through the design brief and sketch their design ideas before reporting back to the class in an informal style or as part of a formal presentation.

This activity can be simplified (particularly for less able students) by providing sentence starters for annotations/labelling of sketches and/or providing templates for learners to draw around, such as images of the referee and players.

As an extension learners can make a life size model of the jetpack or design a spacesuit to be work by the players and/or referee.

This activity is designed to take between 50-80 minutes.

The engineering context

Travelling and potentially living on the moon presents all sorts of challenges for engineers to overcome. For example, how will we breathe, how will we cope with much lower gravity, how will we play sports and keep fit?

Suggested learning outcomes

By the end of this free resource students will be able to design a wearable jetpack for a game of football on the Moon; know the different parts of a jetpack; and understand how jetpacks function and the technology needed to make them work.

All activity sheets and supporting resources are free to download, and all the documents are fully editable, so you can tailor them to your students’ and your schools’ needs.

The activity sheet includes teacher notes, guidance, useful web links, and links (where appropriate) to the national curriculum in each of the four devolved UK nations; England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales.

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