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Session 25: Field Test Day

Racquet Ball Launcher Project — Milestone 5 of 6

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Session 25

Field Test Day

Today Is the Real Test

Not a lab day. Not a practice run.

Your calibration model gets tested for real, under pressure, with no do-overs.

How It Works

  1. You receive 1 target distance at a time — 3 total
  2. Using only your model, choose your settings
  3. Attempt the launch
  4. Repeat for targets 2 and 3

Margin of Error

± 3 yards — the same number you calibrated against back at the Session 15–16 kickoff.

This has not changed.

What's Being Measured

Not your farthest throw.

What's Being Measured

Predictive accuracy — can you hit an unknown target using only data you already collected?

If You Miss

A miss is not the end of your grade.

How you explain it, next session, is worth just as much as hitting the target.

Before Your Attempt

  • Know your usable range from Sessions 20–24
  • Bring your calibration curve/model with you
  • Agree as a team on your settings before you commit

Safety Reminder

Bungee-cord protocols from Sessions 14–15 still apply on the field, not just in the makerspace.

After Your 3 Attempts

Record your results — target, settings chosen, actual landing distance, hit or miss.

You'll need this for Session 26.

Next Up

Session 26: Reflect & Defend

Explain your variable, your model, and your results — misses included.

'F' → Fullscreen

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Build

There's no build task today — today's "build" is the field test itself.

Your Recording Sheet

Target #Target DistanceSettings ChosenActual Landing DistanceHit / Miss
1
2
3

Fill this in immediately after each attempt, not from memory later — you'll need accurate numbers, not impressions, for Session 26.

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Checkpoint

Before you leave the field, confirm:

  • All 3 attempts are recorded, including any misses
  • The settings you actually used are written down, not just the target and result
  • Bungee safety protocols were followed on every attempt, not just the first
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Reflection

Answer these on your own. Reflections are individual, even when the rest of the session was team work.

  1. For any target you missed, what's your first guess at the cause — a limitation of your model, wind or field conditions, inconsistent execution, or something else? Say how you'd tell those apart.
  2. Session 26 asks you to defend your results either way. Which of today's three attempts do you think you'll have the most to say about?
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Submit

Submit your recording sheet and your reflection.

Milestone Complete