Off the Rails (4th-5th)Forces and MotionGrades 4-5
Storyline
Using their knowledge of forces and motion, the crew will fend off pesky GAL-Delilahs that are disassembling train tracks in Taipan.
After RALF and his robotic friends go head-to-head with a swarm of a GAL-Delilahs, the crew will determine which of our forces are most in need of backup by analyzing balanced and unbalanced forces in action. Then, when tensions escalate and the GAL's raise up a track with a train on it, students will observe patterns in data to figure out how far the train will go if released from a certain height in order to decide where to put protection to keep the train from crashing.
Phenomenon
Patterns in motion can be observed and measured to predict future motion.
Science and Engineering Practices
Analyzing and Interpreting Data
Analyze and interpret data to make sense of phenomena, using logical reasoning, mathematics, and/or computation.
Analyze data to refine a problem statement or the design of a proposed object, tool, or process.
Use data to evaluate and refine design solutions.
Planning and Carrying Out Investigations
Make observations and/or measurements to produce data to serve as the basis for evidence for an explanation of a phenomenon or test a design solution.
Make predictions about what would happen if a variable changes.
Crosscutting Concepts
Patterns
Students identify similarities and differences in order to sort and classify natural objects and designed products. They identify patterns related to time, including simple rates of change and cycles, and to use these patterns to make predictions.
Cause and Effect
Students routinely identify and test causal relationships and use these relationships to explain change. They understand events that occur together with regularity might or might not signify a cause and effect relationship.
Systems and System Models
Students understand that a system is a group of related parts that make up a whole and can carry out functions its individual parts cannot. They can also describe a system in terms of its components and their interactions.
Disciplinary Core Ideas
PS2.B: Types of Interactions
The effect of unbalanced forces on an object results in a change of motion. Patterns of motion can be used to predict future motion. Some forces act through contact, some forces act even when the objects are not in contact. The gravitational force of Earth acting on an object near Earth’s surface pulls that object toward the planet’s center.
PS2.A: Forces and Motion
The effect of unbalanced forces on an object results in a change of motion. Patterns of motion can be used to predict future motion. Some forces act through contact, some forces act even when the objects are not in contact. The gravitational force of Earth acting on an object near Earth’s surface pulls that object toward the planet’s center.