The first class had the chance to do the activity that the other classes finished last week. They tested out objects in motion where only one part was acted upon by a force to stop it, and quickly saw the importance of seat belts--when a small clay "person" (or blob) was added to the top of the car, that person went flying when the car hit the barrier. The faster the car went, the farther the blob flew. We made balloon rockets, demonstrating Newton's 3rd law (for every action, there is an opposite and equal reaction--the air comes out of the balloon, the balloon flies the opposite way.) and then we tested them with less air, demonstrating the 2nd law--Force=mass x acceleration. Less air coming out, less distance traveled. We explored the 1st and 2nd laws with activities about speed, velocity, and acceleration. Hopefully everyone has a little better understanding about the differences between these 3 terms now.
One of the favorites was another test of the 1st law: will the blocks, and cups, actually stay at rest when cards between them are pulled out? Most groups found that the blocks, with their heavy mass, didn't move as much, but the lighter cups were easily affected by small amounts of force, possibly even including air currents from the kids moving in the area.
Additional ActivitiesVideos
Real Life Examples of Newton's Laws A couple of the classes got to watch this video, but for anyone who wants to see how the different laws of motion affect objects, this is a good one. Crash Course: Newton's Laws This 11 minute video goes more into depth for everyone who wants to know a little more, or if you want more clarity. 1st Place Mousetrap Car Using Science Mark Rober makes physics fun! Books: What If?: Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions "Hilarious and informative answers to questions you never thought to ask." Recommended by one of the students! Everything You Need to Know About Science I highly recommend this book for the middle school age. It's more fun than a text book, but does a great job as an overview of the science topics they'd be introduced to during these years if they were in school. It could be used to go along with the topics we're studying in class. Activities Make a catapult--Make a simple catapult and see Newton's Laws of Motion in action!
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May 2020
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