Racing through time

In this activity, produced in association with The Bugatti Trust Museum and Study Centre, learners will learn about the achievements of Bugatti racing driver Elisabeth Junek. They will then calculate how far her Bugatti Type 35, and other historical Bugatti cars, could travel in a set time at top speed. Finally, they will compare this performance to that of a several common modern cars.

This activity could be used as a main lesson activity to teach about how to calculate distance travelled from a given speed and time. It could also be used as part of wider scheme of learning focussed on the use of mathematics in practical, Engineering based contexts.

Activity: Design a chicken coop!

Students will learn about the Bugatti family and pioneering female racer Elisabeth Junek, then apply their understanding of speed, distance, and time by calculating how far various Bugatti and modern cars travel in short time intervals.

Resources required:

• Pens
• Calculators

Step-by-step guide to the activity:

Step 1: Introduction to the Bugatti family (5-10 minutes)

Teacher to use presentation slide 3 to introduce Ettore Bugatti as a designer, engineer and founder of Bugatti Automobiles.

Step 2: Introduction to Elisabeth Junek (5-10 minutes)

Teacher to use presentation slide 3 to introduce Elisabeth Junek, a famous female racing driver and her Bugatti Type 35 car. Discuss her achievements and why, especially in the 1920s, these were so important.

Step 3: Speed, distance and time (10-15 minutes)

Teacher to use presentation slides 5-7 to show how distance travelled in a straight line by an object, in a set time, can be calculated when its speed is known.
Teacher to show the walking example and explain how to calculate the distance travelled in 0.5 seconds.

Teacher to then ask learners to complete example 2 – 1924 Bugatti Type 35, and go through the solution with them.

Step 4: Distance calculations for Bugatti cars (20-30 minutes)

Learners to calculate the distance travelled at their top speed, in 0.5 seconds, by Bugatti cars throughout history, as shown on presentation slides 8-13.

Step 5: How Bugatti cars compare to other cars (20-30 minutes)

Learners to use presentation slides 14-15 and complete the worksheet by calculating the distance travelled in 2 seconds by a range of everyday modern cars, and comparing them to the Bugatti vehicles:

• Volkswagen Golf
• Vauxhall Corsa
• Ford Fiesta
• Formula 1 car

The Engineering Context

Engineers need to be able to apply mathematical formulae and calculations in engineering contexts, such as the use of the speed, distance and time formula.

Engineers need to be able to learn from the designs of the past. This helps them understand what worked well and what didn’t, and how they can then produce designs that build on what has come before.

Suggested learning outcomes

• To understand the achievements of Elisabeth Junek as a Bugatti racing driver
• To be able to calculate the distance travelled by different historical Bugatti vehicles in a set period of time
• To compare the distances travelled with other, modern cars

Download our activity sheet and other teaching resources

All classroom activity sheets and supporting teaching 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 teachers’ notes, useful web links, and links (where appropriate) to the national curriculum in each of the four devolved nations; England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales.

You can download our step-by-step instructions below as a classroom lesson plan and PowerPoint presentation.

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