Activity Overview
This Coin Catching Magic Trick walks a fine fine between Magic and Science. This trick may take some timing to perfect for young magicians but is sure to wow the crowd. The object is to rest a coin on your elbow and snap your arm forward and catch it. The trick is that you will be catching the coin with the same hand as the elbow on which the coin rested.
This experiment/ magic trick is based on the science of inertia. Since the coin is at rest, it tends to remain at rest, so when your elbow moves quickly it literally just drops out from underneath the coin, leaving the coin in mid air for a moment. Gravity still pulls the coin down but inertia is what gives the coin a very slow start before dropping. You hand is faster than the coin in this situation because your hand is already in motion and stays in motion.
Materials Needed
How to Do It
- Place a coin on your elbow by bending your arm so that your arm is parallel to the floor.
- In one sudden and quick motion, drop your arm forward which will cause your open hand to snap forward.
- At this very same moment, the coin will separate from its place on your elbow.
- Grab the coin with the hand of the arm that it once rested on.
