What happens when a classroom full of curious students meets an engineer with a passion for prototyping? At Antioch School, it led to an unforgettable lesson in innovation and problem-solving. Joe Althaus, prototype lead at Rushlight Ventures, recently brought hands-on engineering to life for the “Older Group” students with an air-powered rocket launch experiment.
The project was simple enough: Students built paper rockets ahead of time with the intent to use a pneumatic launcher to explore engineering concepts like lift, weight, thrust, and drag. Yet when launch day came, in what could only be described as a comedy of errors, things did not go as planned. Many of the rockets did not fit the launcher, the system malfunctioned, and excitement turned to frustration.
For Althaus, this wasn’t a setback; it was the perfect teachable moment. Drawing from nearly two decades of engineering experience, he guided the class through troubleshooting and adjustments. Together, they worked on creating new rockets that would fit, assessed individual components of the launcher, and made the kinds of modifications that engineers face every day in real-world projects.
After several attempts, the students’ persistence paid off. The next rocket shot nearly 100 feet into the air, a thrilling moment that brought cheers from the entire class.
“What began as a potential failure turned into a wild success,” said Althaus.
For the students, the experience was both eye-opening and empowering. They experimented with different pressures, testing the impact of various launch angles, and tweaked rocket designs to see which could achieve the highest or farthest launch. The lesson transformed into a dynamic session of prototyping and iteration, mirroring the trial-and-error process central to engineering and design.
“I’m so grateful to Joe for this collaboration,” said Elaina Vimmerstedt, an arts and sciences teacher at the school. “The children got to apply concepts we’d been studying to a thrilling project, while also getting to practice the invaluable skills of problem-solving, iteration, and persistence. No perfectly executed plan could have set up a better natural challenge for them to work through. It was so gratifying for them to solve the problems and ultimately see spectacular launches.”
Beyond launching rockets, the project introduced students to the real-life challenges of engineering and innovation, lessons that will stick with them long after the school bell rings.
This collaborative effort highlights Rushlight Ventures’ commitment not only to technological innovation but to community engagement and inspiring the next generation of problem-solvers and entrepreneurs.