GROUP MEMBERS: AMY MOUA AND LUCY THURMAN

What causes the car to slow down?

PHYSICS FOR ELEMENTARY TEACHERS (PHYS -1034-02)

MRS. MELODY J. THOMAS

Amy Moua Lucy Thurman

Team Members

Central Park Elementary

Benton County School of the Arts

Friction and Motion (4 different surfaces)

Friction and Motion(3 different sandpapers)

Students measuring distance of different surfaces.

Students will conclude what stops the car.

Relation to the concept of physics: Learning and testing friction.

The students were given three different courses of sandpaper, a car, ramp, and four blocks. The first experiment the students did was build a ramp that contained a height made out of three blocks, let the car roll on the ramp and they measured the distance the car went on each piece of sandpaper. The students did the same on the next experiment but made the ramp a little bit higher by adding a fourth block.

The concept of physics that was involved was learning about friction and testing friction.

Lesson Topic

T H E S TAT E S TA N D A R D T H AT S AT I S F I E S F O R T H E L E S S O N W E TA U G H T I N S E C O N D G R A D E I S P S . 6 . 2 . 1 .

P S . 6 . 2 . 1 I S I N V E S T I G AT E T H E R E L AT I O N S H I P B E T W E E N F O R C E A N D M O T I O N .

State Standards

Amy’s Handouts

and Worksheets

The students used “a” to show their thinking on what causes the car to stop. (Before the experiment)

The students used “b” to show what they learned in their group that causes the car to stop. (After the experiment)

On both “a” and “b” the students were allowed to draw, write, or both to show their thoughts.

a)

Amy’s Handouts

and Worksheets

This is the handout that the students used during group time to collect their data. There were four different surfaces the students used, so the students used one space for each of the surfaces.

Lucy’s Worksheets

and Handouts

This was the worksheet I created that the students used for their experiment. The first three questions, the students were to predict on how far the car would go with three blocks and four blocks under the ramp and if the car went further overall with three or four blocks under the ramp.

The last two questions, the students filled out as they did the experiment. This is where the students collected their data.

Lucy’s Worksheets

and Handouts

This is the worksheet filled out by a student. I had the students put their group number on the paper instead of their names.

Amy’sInitial Ideas

In the video, Amy is talking to the students trying to get some ideas on why the car slows down? The students then give her some answers.

Amy’s Experiment

This is a video of Amy and her group doing the experiment. Amy guides them through on how to carry out the experiment. The group also takes turns on taking part in the experiment. At the end of each experiment the students write down their measurements on the worksheet they were handed.

Amy’s Summarizing

Questions

Amy is getting the class’ attention so they can talk about their conclusions. Amy then tells them what is used that makes the car slow down.

Lucy’s Initial Ideas

Lucy is getting the students attention and motivation to learn about the experiment. The students were very eager to give her responses on why a car slows down.

Lucy’s Experiment

Lucy is going around the classroom helping the students get their ramps set up correctly. The students then do the experiment and write down their measurements on their worksheet that they predicted what would happen on.

Lucy’s Summarizing

Questions

Lucy is getting the students back to their desks and ready to focus again. The students are giving feedback to Lucy on what they discovered during the experiment. Lucy tells the students why the car slows down.

Ramp with three blocks Ramp with four blocks

Smoo

th

Med

ium

Rough

02468

1012141618

4 in.8 in.12 in.

Smoo

th

Med

ium

Rough

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

4 in.8 in.12 in.

Predictions on how far the car will go on different surfaces of sandpaper with the height being changed

Students results with three blocks

Students results with four blocks

Smoo

th

Med

ium

Rough

6.4

6.6

6.8

7

7.2

7.4

Mean

Smoo

th

Med

ium

Rough

6

6.5

7

7.5

8

8.5

Mean

Results from the experiment

Amy's Conclusion Lucy’s Conclusion

I thought it went well. I enjoyed my time in the classroom with the students. The only part during the experiment was when my other group members, from my other class, started interrupting me and took over. I felt the students learned what caused the car to slow down. I believe the students learned the definition of friction.

I think the lesson went really well. The students were very engaged and I felt comfortable teaching the lesson. The one thing I did not like about the experiment is the students desks were not completely flat and the floor which caused the cars to roll off the desks sometimes. The students and I got through that rough spot and were able to accommodate with the desks to keep the cars on the sandpaper. I think the students really liked the experiment. The students were all trying to get my attention at some point to tell me different stories on how they could relate this experiment to things they have done. There were students that actually learned that friction is what causes the car to slow down.

Conclusion