bendsciencestation.org · Web viewIntro: This is a 3 or 4 part lesson plan that uses ramps and marbles to investigate forces and develop vocabulary to describe forces and velocity

Developed by: Melissa Hoover and BSS StaffDeveloped for Grade Level: Kindergarten

Intro: This is a 3 or 4 part lesson plan that uses ramps and marbles to investigate forces and develop vocabulary to describe forces and velocity.

In part 1, students will understand that velocity is the speed of an object and velocity is affected by the angle of a surface. They will also discover that different objects move at different rates of speed depending on the size and type of material they are made of.

In Part 2, students will use photogates and labquests to actually measure velocity and perform a simple challenge.

In Part 3, we go beyond slope and see how the type of the marble used varies speed. This is partnered well with the FOSS Balance and Motion kit because it contains 3 types of marbles of the same size.

Part 4 can be a design challenge day where students are challenged to design a ramp and marble system that will stop rolling inside a target area. This links initial velocity to rolling distance (inertia).

Title: Ramps and Marbles Part 1

Applicable Teacher Standards:

K-PS2-2. Analyze data to determine if a design solution works as intended to change the speed or direction of an object with a push or a pull.

OBJECTIVES

Students will understand that velocity is the speed of an object and velocity is affected by the angle of a surface. They will also discover that different objects move at different rates of speed depending on the size and type of material they are made of.

MATERIALS

Wooden Blocks (7 per partner group) Small balls or marbles of various types (students bring from home)

Wrapping paper tube ramp (half class set) Masking Tape

LABQUEST SETUP - (Use for Parts 2-4)

HELPFUL HINTSConsider location of experiment- carpet or dirt will be helpful to slow down the path of the ball.

SETUP PROCEDURE

1. Tape a wrapping paper tube to a block and then to the floor with a wide open space in front of the ramp.

Note: BSS did not have a tube, so we used a long shallow battery box with an open end to try this out.

STUDENT PROCEDURE1. Begin with a discussion around speed and create a Word Bank. What is speed?

2. Show the students how to let go of the ball consistently (without pushing) by bringing ball to top of the ramp and holding it in place with one finger. Simply lift your finger off to allow the ball to roll due to gravity and not due to pushing. It can help to have a back wall to the ramp to mark the “starting position” too.

3. Partners should set up a ramp and then take turns rolling their balls down the ramp. Mark the distance it traveled with a piece of tape or extra block.

4. Revisit Word Bank. Why are some balls traveling farther than others? How can we make the balls travel faster? Slower? Farther? Words to add- fast, slow, steep, shallow, soft, hard, light, heavy

5. Allow students to add two blocks under the top of their ramps and see what happens to the ball. Mark new distance.

6. Wrap up the discussion by creating a true statement about the day’s experiment- “A steeper ramp will cause a ball to roll farther than a shallow ramp.” Ask students to hypothesize about the speed of the ball. What happens to the speed when the ramp height increases or decreases?


Title: Ramps and Marbles Part 2Applicable Teacher Standards:


K.CC.7 Compare two numbers between 1 and 10 presented as written numerals.

OBJECTIVES

Students will understand that velocity is the speed of an object and velocity is affected by the angle of a surface.

MATERIALSPhotogate (half class set) LabQuest (half class set)

Wooden Blocks (7 per partner group) Class Data Poster (Scale 0-5m)

Wrapping paper tube ramp (half class set) Masking Tape

Rulers with flags attached to end (sticky notes or tape)

Small balls or marbles, all the same size and weight (half class set)

LABQUEST SETUP - (Use default settings)Sensor(s): Photogate

Sensor Setting(s):

Mode: Select mode and switch to “gate”. Enter diameter of object being tested (0.04m=4cm). Must be changed for any new object if you need to accurately measure velocity.

HELPFUL HINTSPhotgate Switch- make sure the labquest is reading “unblocked” when set up. If it is reading “blocked” there is something in the lightpath between the legs of the photogate.

Units of Measure- change to ft/sec. to see bigger readings (helpful for kinders)

Dropping the ball- use two fingers, hold it against the top of the ramp, and release evenly, without applying any force

Photogate Intro- prove that the device actually does what you say by pulling the ruler through as described below. Allow exploratory time

LQ SETUP PROCEDURE2. Photogate plugs into DIG 1 port.

3. Upload Velocity Feet file from BSS or follow steps 3-6 below for each Labquest

4. Select Mode: Photogate Timing ; Photogate Mode: change to Gate; enter diameter of object being tested; hit OK

5. Select Table Tab-Table-New Calculated Column: Make new name (Velocity Feet), units to ft/s, displayed precision to 0 and make sure decimal places is checked, equation type to AX, column for X to velocity, A to 3.28, Select OK.

6. Remove Gate Time Graph- Graph, Show Graph, select Graph 1 or 2 Only, depending on which graph has the ft/s y axis

7. Save File to Thumb drive- File, Save, USB, make new name. You can then plug this thumb drive into each LQ and open the saved file.

STUDENT PROCEDURE7. Begin with a discussion reviewing the previous lesson and Word Bank.

Questions: “What is speed? How can we make an object go faster/slower by adjusting the height of the ramp?” Introduce the term “velocity”.

8. Assign roles and have partner pairs pick up the labquest and the photogate. Show students how to wake up the labquest, use the stylus and locate the play button.

9. Introduce the photogate- tell students that it measures the speed/velocity of an object. Model how to stand up the photogate and, holding the ruler on its edge, pull it through the photogate slowly and watch the line on the graph of the labquest. Then pull it through at a high speed and watch the graph. What happens? (velocity goes up)

10.Tell students they will set up their ramps as they did on Day 1, with 1 block under the top of the ramp and the ramp taped to the floor and the edge of the block. Set up the photogate right at the base of the ramp. Model how to hold the ball with 2 fingers touching the top of the ball while their partner holds a ruler in front of it. Pull up the ruler to give a controlled release.

NOTE: Depending on the ball used and the space used for the experiment, you may need to tape the photogate in place. Also, depending on the slope of the ramp, steeper slopes may cause the ball to bounce once hitting the table. Try to avoid this bouncing. Placing the photogate as close to the end of the ramp as possible should help alleviate weird measurements due to bouncing.

11.Show students how to read the graph and watch the line move with each test. Students can run several tests. Record the velocity on the class chart (should be about 3 ft/s. if using a rubber bouncy ball)

12.Ask the students to add 6 blocks (or other large number) to their stack and predict what will happen to the velocity (will go up). Have students mark their predictions on the class chart with a sticky note. Let students test this out then add results to class chart (about 10 ft/s.)

13.Now ask students to hypothesize how many blocks would be needed to come up with a speed midway between these two points (6 ft/s or something similar). Challenge students to achieve this speed and document results on class graph.

14.Gather students to discuss and construct a true statement summarizing today’s results: A steeper ramp will increase the velocity of an object traveling down it and a shallow ramp will decrease the velocity.

DATA


Title: Ramps and Marbles Part 3Applicable Teacher Standards:


K.CC.7 Compare two numbers between 1 and 10 presented as written numerals.

OBJECTIVES

Students will understand that velocity is the speed of an object and velocity is affected by the weight of an object.

MATERIALSPhotogate (half class set) LabQuest (half class set)Wooden Blocks (7 per partner group) Class Data Poster (Scale 0-5m)Wrapping paper tube ramp (half class set)

Masking Tape

Small balls or marbles, all the same size but different materials- wood, glass, steel (half class set). If you have a FOSS balance and motion kit available, there is a perfect set of marbles for this activity.

LABQUEST SETUP - (Use default settings)

Sensor(s): PhotogateSensor

Setting(s):Mode: Select mode and switch to “gate”. Enter diameter of object being tested (0.04m=4cm). Must be changed for any new object.

HELPFUL HINTS

Photogate Switch- make sure gate is unblocked on labquest

Units of Measure- change to ft/sec. to see bigger readings (helpful for kinders)

Dropping the ball- use two fingers, hold it against the top of the ramp, and release evenly, without applying any force

SETUP PROCEDURE8. Photogate plugs into DIG 1 port.

9. Upload Velocity Feet file from BSS or follow steps 3-6 in lesson 2 for each Labquest

STUDENT PROCEDURE15.Begin with a discussion reviewing the previous lesson and Word Bank.

Questions: “What is velocity? How can we increase the velocity of an object?” Introduce the term “weight”. How will the weight of something affect its speed.

16.Show students the 3 types of balls and ask them to make predictions about the speed that each will travel.

17.Have students set up their ramps again and test the 3 different balls, recording the speeds on their record sheets. Students should test each ball a minimum of 5 times to be sure they are getting a similar reading and use the same number of blocks for their ramp each time.

18.Close with a discussion about the results.

Which ball had the highest velocity? Lowest velocity? Why?

Did some students have different velocity readings? Why? (different number of blocks for ramp height)

19.Tell students to begin thinking about a design plan for tomorrow’s lesson. What is another way that you can increase the velocity of your ball? (distance)

DATA

Student Name _____________________________________________

My Prediction

Which ball will have the highest velocity? Rate 1, 2 and 3.

____________ ____________ ____________Why?

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

Ball Velocity(ft/s)

# of blocks used

Was your prediction right? Why?

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

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bendsciencestation.org · Web viewIntro: This is a 3 or 4 part lesson plan that uses ramps and marbles to investigate forces and develop vocabulary to describe forces and velocity