The Most Complicated Way to Flip a Coin: Engineering a Rube Goldberg Machine

What began as individual coin-flipping machines turned into one giant collaborative chain reaction. This spring, FSW’s 6th grade class brought creativity, engineering skills, and a whole lot of duct tape to a Rube Goldberg challenge.

What does it take to flip a coin?

For our 6th and 7th graders, the answer included marbles, ramps, strings, dominoes, pulleys, and more than a few unexpected chain reactions.

As part of a spring engineering collaboration between math and science, Middle School students took on the challenge of designing and building their own Rube Goldberg machines—overly complex contraptions built to perform one very simple task: flip a coin. Working in small groups, students brainstormed their designs, gathered materials, and set to work turning recycled odds and ends into working sequences of cause and effect.

Each group’s solution looked a little different. Some relied on gravity and rolling momentum; others used counterweights and chain reactions. All required patience, problem-solving, and a willingness to iterate when things didn’t go quite as planned. “There were definitely moments where we thought it would never work,” one student shared. “But when it finally flipped the coin, it was so satisfying.”

Once each team had completed a successful test of their coin-flipping machine, they decided to take the challenge one step further: linking all the individual machines into one giant Rube Goldberg system that stretched across the classroom. This impromptu final collaboration tested students' communication, timing, and creative thinking, and resulted in only one manual reset.

Getting one machine to trigger the next was often trickier than expected. Groups had to adjust the height of ramps, redesign handoffs, and coordinate the sequence from start to finish. The room was full of trial runs, minor collapses, and moments of celebration as the giant machine came together.

“It was chaotic in the best way,” said teachers Rob and Jesse. “Students were troubleshooting, adapting, and cheering each other on. And when that last coin finally flipped, it was pure joy.”

The project brought together elements of physics, design thinking, and collaborative learning, all while embracing the playful, roundabout spirit of a classic Rube Goldberg.

In the end, it wasn’t just about flipping a coin. It was about building something bigger together, step by step (by step by step by step).