Wednesday
Wednesday: Build Lab: Pack the Boxes
Three empty boxes sit in a row on the Blueprint Table. Rocket is already pouring cubes into the first.
"Stop!" Raven says, laughing. "Build Lab has rules. Measure first, then pack, then predict before you count."
"Predict?" Rocket asks. "I can just count them."
"What do you notice when a count and a formula disagree?" Raven asks. "One of them slipped."
Nova hovers above the boxes, her light marking each edge in turn. "Edges first," she says. "In cubes, not centimeters."
Rocket lines cubes along the bottom of Box A. "Five long. Four wide. Three tall."
"Then predict," Raven says, pencil ready.
"Sixty," Rocket says, and starts packing to prove it.
Your mission
Pack three boxes with same-size cubes. Measure each edge in cubes, predict the volume with l × w × h, then pack and count.
- Three small boxes with straight sides: a lidded container, a small gift box, a tea box emptied and wiped.
- About 80 same-size cubes: sugar cubes, dice or small blocks, kept in a tray.
- A ruler for a second check in centimeters.
- Your Blueprint Book and a pencil.
Work at the table with shoes on. Pick up any cube that falls before it gets stepped on.
Boxes are opened by hand. No cutting is needed today.
- Pick a box. Line cubes along its length, width and height. Write the three counts.
- Predict the volume: multiply the three counts. Write the prediction.
- Pack the bottom layer and count it. Then stack layers to the top.
- Count every cube. Write the count next to your prediction.
- Repeat for the other two boxes. Circle any box where the two numbers differ.
The crew's lab table
These are the crew's own counts from the Blueprint Table, written in Raven's Blueprint Book.
| Box | Long | Wide | Tall | Predicted | Counted |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Box A | 5 | 4 | 3 | 60 | 60 |
| Box B | 6 | 3 | 2 | 36 | 34 |
| Box C | 4 | 4 | 4 | 64 | 64 |
Box A matched: 5 × 4 × 3 = 60, and Rocket counted 60. Box C matched too.
Box B did not. The formula says 36, but the count was 34. Two cubes were missing from the back corner.
When the count and the formula disagree, check the packing first. Gaps hide where you cannot see them.
- Read the question.
- Tap your answer.
Box A is 5 by 4 by 3 cubes. How many cubes fill it?
Box C is 4 by 4 by 4 cubes. How many cubes fill it?| What the lab shows | True or false? |
|---|---|
| 5 × 4 × 3 = 60 | ? |
| 6 × 3 × 2 = 34 | ? |
| A count lower than the formula can mean a gap in the packing. | ? |
| The formula only works when you pack the box first. | ? |
Three boxes packed and checked. Tomorrow the crew sizes the real storage bins and stacks two into a shelf.