Marie's+Unit+Plan

Marie's Unit Plan

First Lesson

**__ Blasting Balloons __** New York State Standard 4 Students will understand and apply scientific concepts, principles, and theories pertaining to the physical setting and living environment and recognize the historical development of ideas in science. Materials: Balloon, a Straw, Masking Tape, Paper, Fishing Line, Worksheet, Vocabulary Sheet
 * < Physical Setting - Key Idea 5 (Energy/Matter - Forces) Energy and matter interact through forces that result in changes in motion ||  ||

Procedure: Anticipatory Set: “What helps a plane fly through the air (besides a motor)?” “What makes something aerodynamic?” “Can you think of other vehicles that are aerodynamic?” Briefly describe the four properties of aerodynamics.

Directions: “We’ve planned an activity for you to experiment with aerodynamics using a carbon-dioxide fueled vehicle (hold up a balloon).” -Break into teams of 3 or 4 -Hand out supply kits -“Your goal is to create the fastest and farthest moving vehicle out of the materials provided. You must transport one piece of paper to the other side of the room on the fishing line, using your vehicle. Any questions?”

Activity

Closing: Share results. Talk about what would have worked better. (worksheet)

Worksheets:

**__Vocabulary__**


 * Aerodynamic:** a branch of dynamics that deals with the motion of air and other gaseous fluids and with the forces acting on bodies in motion relative to such fluids


 * Lift:** helps a body stay in the air (counters gravity)


 * Weight:** (gravity) net gravitational force exerted on that object by all other objects


 * Thrust:** accelerant or propeller of the system


 * Drag:** acts to oppose the motion of the object, counters the intended direction and the thrust

Name_


 * 1) Draw your vehicle.


 * 1) What makes your vehicle aerodynamic? Circle the properties.

Lift Weight Thrust Drag


 * 1) Did you use a long balloon or short balloon?

4. How was your paper situated?

5. What were the results?

6. What changes would you make?

Marie,

First of all this sounds like an engaging and exciting activity to gain students interest. I am wondering though what is the standard that the student's must meet in this lesson; because, I am trying to figure a way to use this lesson and develop a PBL to go along with it.

Jennifer

Second & Third Lesson Plans

This will be taught to a 5th grade classroom. I will divide the class into groups of four to five students. I will explain to students that the following activity will help them understand how friction can be increased and decreased. Each group should receive three to four matchbox cars, foam board, a beach towel, masking tape, a yardstick, several large, thick books (that equal about a foot when stacked), two textbooks, and a Friction Activity Sheet. The groups will be observing and recording how the matchbox cars move on two surfaces: a smooth surface and rough surface.

Grade level: 3-5

Subject area: Science

Standard:

Understands motion and the principles that explain it.

Benchmarks:

Knows that when a force is applied to an object, the object either speeds up, slows down, or goes in a different direction.

Grade level: 3-5

Subject area: Science

Standard:

Understands motion and the principles that explain it.

Benchmarks:

Knows the relationship between the strength of a force and its effect on an object (e.g., the greater the force, the greater the change in motion; the more massive the object, the smaller the effect of a given force).

Students will understand the following:

1. Friction is a force that opposes motion, or makes it difficult for an object to move across a surface.

2. The amount of friction depends on the surface type and the force pressing two surfaces together.

3. Everyday life provides examples of how friction both helps and hinders everything we do.

The problem that I will pose to the students: "Will the matchbox car move faster on the smooth surface or the rough surface?" Then I will show them the two surfaces they will be testing, the plain foam board and the beach towel. They will also have to conclude "Will it be easier to move one or two textbooks across your desk with your pinky?" Demonstrate how students will move the textbooks across their desks and have them complete the prediction section of their activity sheets. Remind students to record their observations on the activity sheet as they did in the first activity.

First the students will create a "ramp" by placing a stack of books (about 1 foot high) under one end of the foam board. (You may want to place a brick or heavy object at the other end to keep the board from sliding.) This will be to test the first problem, will the car move faster on the smooth surface of the rough surface. Students will be looking at how a surface can affect the car speed.

Once this activity is completed, they will then move onto the textbook test and record their answers.

To reinforce the concepts demonstrated in the hands-on activities, on the board list the two factors that determine the amount of friction there is between two surfaces (surface type and force on a surface). Explain that friction plays many roles in our everyday lives. Sometimes we try to increase friction, while other times we try to decrease the amount of friction.

Using sports as a starting point to think of some examples. In some sports and recreational activities, you may want to increase or decrease the amount of friction present. Using what students have learned about surface type and force on the surface, create a T chart of sports and activities where increasing the amount of friction is helpful and those in which it is better to reduce the amount of friction. (For example: gymnasts use chalk on their hands to reduce friction between their hands and uneven bars; cleats help football players have better traction while running; bobsledders need to be light to travel faster in the Olympics; swimmers shave their arms and legs to increase their speed in races.)

Students will create a mini news article for a recreation or sports magazine about how friction plays a role in a sport of their choice. Students will need to include a colorful, creative picture of the sport in action and describe in a paragraph of four to six sentences how friction affects a player's performance in that sport. Have students present their articles and display them on the SmartBoard, with a clip of that sport or activity in action.

A three-point rubric will be used to assess students' news articles about friction in sports:


 * **Three points: **includes a colorful, creative picture of the sport in action; explains what role friction plays in terms of helping or hindering the activity; discusses how friction is either increased or decreased by a surface type and by the force/mass of an object


 * **Two points: **displays minor misunderstandings in explaining friction's role and/or how to increase or decrease the amount of friction


 * **One point: **displays major misunderstandings of the role and/or how to increase or decrease friction