Advance Preparations: Cut a window in the plastic cup or milk carton. The window must be large enough for all three marbles to pass through without contact.
Begin the lesson by displaying various pictures of roller coasters. Ask students questions: “How many of you have seen this type of ride? Tell me about the ride. Was this a fast ride or a slow ride? What happens when the ride is at the top? What happens when it starts down? Do you think there is a force being applied? It is a push or pull or both? When is there a push? When is there a pull?”
Tell students they are going to work in groups to design and measure to see if a force such as a push or a pull affects an object. Does it make it travel faster, slower, longer, or shorter distances? Does it matter if the object is large or small?
Divide students into groups. Give each group a balance and unifix cubes. Tell students they will be determining the mass of each marble. Note: This may be the first time students have been introduced to the word mass. Students at this grade level may use weight interchangeably with mass. This is age appropriate. They should, however, be given the opportunity to hear the word and to practice using the term. Allow students time to determine the mass of each object and discuss their findings.
Students are to conduct three trials with each marble and record the distance by using the Measurement sheet (S-K2-15-2_Measurement Sheet.doc) placed under the milk carton or plastic cup. Note: The measurement uses nonstandard measurement identified as “units of measure.”
Divide students into groups of two to four students. Students are to record the distance traveled by each marble on the Rolling On worksheet (S-K2-15-2_Rolling On.doc) as they conduct three trials for each marble. They are to select the books and set up the investigation, then record their findings and independently answer the questions at the end of the data sheet.
Demonstrate how to set up the investigation:
At the conclusion of the investigation, discuss with students their results. Discuss their responses on their student sheets.
Extension:
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For students who might need opportunities for additional learning: Students may select other items to use for the Rolling On experiment. They must be sure to use three different sizes of the new item all made out of the same material. An example would be three different sized rubber balls. Students will then conduct the experiment, measure, record their data, and share their results.
- For students who might need opportunities for additional learning: Select one item and change the slope by adding or removing books. Discuss the results.
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For students who may be going beyond the standards: Give students three different balls such as a table tennis ball, small bouncy ball, and a tennis ball. Have students take a deep breath and blow each ball. Measure the distance each ball traveled. Discuss with students the amount of force (puff of wind) it took to move each ball.