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South Carolina ETV
1101 George Rogers Boulevard
Columbia, SC 29201-4761
Phone: 803-737-3545

Toying Around with Newton's Laws (Grade 8)

Master Teacher

Ashley Holmes

Time Allotment

Two 50-minute class periods

Overview

Have you ever wondered what really makes something move? What makes your favorite simple toys move and work? Isaac Newton probably had these same thoughts as he was experimenting with the world around him. He experimented so much that three laws of motion are credited to him. This lesson will explore these vital laws of motion.

Subject Matter

Physical Science

Learning Objectives

Students will be able to:

• Identify balanced and unbalanced forces that affect the movement of objects.
• Identify Newton's three Laws of Motion.
• Apply Newton's Laws of Motion to how simple toys operate.
• Design a contraption utilizing Newton's Laws of Motion that will launch a marshmallow five meters.

South Carolina Curriculum Standards

(These Standards can be found online at http://www.myscschools.com/offices/cso )

IV. Physical Science

Unit of Study: Forces and Motion

A. Motions and Forces

2. An object that is not being subjected to a force will continue to move at a constant speed in a straight line. If more than one force acts on an object along a straight line then the forces will reinforce or cancel one another depending on their direction and magnitude. Unbalanced forces will cause changes in the speed or direction of an object's motion.

•  Analyze the direction and effects of forces in a variety of situations (e.g., gravity and friction).

•  Compare and contrast forces that are balanced and unbalanced.

f. Predict what happens to an object at rest or an object in motion when
unbalanced forces act upon it.

g. Apply Newton's Laws of Motion to the way that a rocket works.

Media Components

Video

The following four video clips from the series Exploring the Laws of Motion look at each of Newton's Laws of Motion and provide students with several real world applications of each law.

Download "Introduction to the Laws of Motion" (:58); "Newton's First Law of Motion" (7:08); "Newton's Second Law of Motion" (2:40); and "Newton's Third Law of Motion" (3:43)

To access these clips, log on to your account at ETV's StreamlineSC Web page ( http://etv.streamlinesc.org ). In the search by keyword box, type in Exploring the Laws of Motion and hit go. Click the program title and that takes you to a list of the program's video segments. Download the four segments.

(Note to Teacher: If you don't have an account with ETV's StreamlineSC , check with your media specialist about signing up for an account.)

Web Sites

Newton's Law

http://www.ic.arizona.edu/~nats101/newton.html

This site identifies Newton's three Laws of Motion while also providing short animations of each of law. An online quiz is available on this site also.

The Physics Classroom: Newton's Laws

http://www.physicsclassroom.com/mmedia/newtlaws/cci.html

This site offers several examples of inertia and provides animations of balanced and unbalanced forces.

Zoom: 3 Puck Chuck

http://pbskids.org/zoom/games/3puckchuck/3puckgame.html

This site offers a fun way to explore Newton's Laws of Motion. Students get to smack, whack, and track pucks using various amounts of force.

Materials

Various simple toys for students to experiment with (yo-yo, whirly-bird, pinwheel, remote control car, spinning top, gyroscope, and any other toys that could demonstrate motion or movement)

Per Group:

• Materials to create a "launcher":
• 1-meter stick
• 1 roll of string
• 1 plastic spoon
• 1 protractor
• masking tape
• 3 paper clips
• 1 marshmallow

Equipment

• Computer with Internet access to share video from ETV's StreamlineSC
• LCD projector

Prep for Teachers

• Make sure that you have access to ETV's StreamlineSC . If you are do not have access, check with your district technology person. Every school in South Carolina has a school code to gain access.
• Gather toys for the Introductory Activity and materials to create the "launcher."
• When using media, provide students with a Focus for Media Interaction , a specific task to complete and/or information to identify during or after viewing of video segments, Web sites, or other multimedia elements.

Introductory Activity

Step 1: Ask the students if they have ever wondered about the answers to the following questions:

1. What makes something move? (force of some kind, a push or pull)

2. How does it continue to move? (the amount of force put on it, power of some kind, a push or pull)

Step 2: Have the students pair up or work in groups of three. Provide each pair or group with a simple toy. Tell the students that they are going to explore how these toys work. Let the students figure out how each toy operates through simple experimentation.

Step 3: After exploring with the toys for a couple of minutes, let each group present their findings to the class. While each group is presenting, have them demonstrate to the class how the toy works and provide an explanation about what they think is making the toy move.

Learning Activity

Step 1: Tell students: "Now that we have explored some simple toys and how they move, let's take a closer look at the scientific laws behind the movement of objects. We are going to watch a video clip that explains some of these scientific laws. Listen for some of the examples of the laws provided in this clip."

Step 2: Provide the students with a Focus for Media Interaction , asking the students to listen for examples of the Laws of Motion.

Step 3: PLAY the video clip "Introduction to the Laws of Motion." PAUSE the video when the picture of Isaac Newton appears on the screen.

Step 4: Ask the students to share some of the examples of the laws that were demonstrated in the video? (laws that for brakes to be applied by a train traveling around a curve, laws for a bicyclist to lean into a curve so he doesn't crash, laws that cause people to feel pulled going around a corner, laws that cause people to fall forward when a car finally stops, laws that make it hard for a car that has run out of gas to move and get started again and to stop it once it has moved)

Step 5: Ask the students to share any other examples of natural laws that they can think of. (Accept all answers.)

Step 6: Ask the students who is responsible for identifying these natural laws? (Isaac Newton, the English scientist and mathematician) Point to his picture that is still on the screen.

Step 7: Students will now take a closer look at each of Newton's three Laws of Motion. Provide the students with a Focus for Media Interaction by asking them to identify Newton's First Law of Motion and to look for some examples of it.

Step 8: PLAY the video clip "Newton's First Law of Motion."

Step 9: PAUSE when you see the satellite moving and you hear, "the craft will be able to change speed and direction." Ask the students to share what they gathered from Newton's First Law of Motion. (Inertia: an object that is moving will stay moving until acted on by a greater outside force, things will keep doing what they were doing.) Ask the students what were some of the examples of inertia demonstrated? (sledding, playing pool, satellites in space) Ask the students to share any other examples of inertia that they can think of. (Accept all answers.)

Step 10: You are ready to play the next video segment entitled "Newton's Second Law of Motion." Tell students they are going to continue to learn about Newton's laws. Provide the students with a Focus for Media Interaction by asking them to identify the variables or factors that are important in understanding this law and how they are related. RESUME PLAY.

Step 11: PAUSE after you hear, "how much it accelerates depends on the strength of the force and the mass of the ball." You will see a picture of Earth. Ask the students what variables are mandatory in understanding Newton's Second Law. (mass, force, and acceleration) Ask the students how these variables are related. (How much an object accelerates depends on the strength of the force and the mass of the object.)

Step 12: Tell students Mass and Weight are often used incorrectly. Ask them: "Do you know the difference between the two?" (Accept their ideas.) Then say: "Let's find out and see if we were right." RESUME PLAY. PAUSE after you hear, "mass is a measure of an object's inertia" and see the Earth below the definition. Say: "So were we right?" (Accept all answers.)

Step 13: Ask students to predict what will happen if you add more mass to an object. ( Accept all answers and predictions.) Then provide the students with a Focus for Media Interaction by asking them to see if their predictions were correct. RESUME PLAY. Allow the clip to continue to play to the conclusion of "Newton's Second Law of Motion."

Step 14: You are ready to view the final video clip-"Newton's Third Law of Motion." Ask students how does the Space Shuttle make it into orbit? What are the forces that allow it to continue moving into space? ( Accept all answers and guesses.) Provide the students with a Focus for Media Interaction by telling them to watch and see if their answers were correct.

Step 15: RESUME PLAY to find out what allows this launching of the Space Shuttle to occur. PAUSE after you see the shuttle launch into the sky and you hear, "an opposite and equal force moves the rocket upward." Ask the students what forces get the shuttle into space? ( Accept opposite and equal force, lift and thrust, fuel and exhaust.) Ask the students if they can think of other situations where an opposite and equal force made something move. (Accept all answers.)

Step 16: RESUME PLAY at the toy car. Continue to play until you hear "What do you think will happen to the car when the string is burned?" PAUSE. Ask students what they think will happen. (Accept answers, the car will move forward, the weight will fly out of the back of the car.) Provide students with a Focus for Media Interaction by saying: "Let's see what happened." RESUME PLAY. PAUSE when you see the man with the rifle.

Step 17: Discuss with the students what happened to the car and the weight. Allow the students to explore why this happened and how Newton's Third Law of Motion is applied here. Provide the students with a Focus for Media Interaction by telling them to think back to their examples of Newton's third law. Let's see if we named any listed in the video. RESUME PLAY. STOP when you see the roller coaster.

Culminating Activity

Step 1: Tell students now that they have explored and learned more about Newton's three Laws of Motion, they are going to try first hand to use them in a contraption that they will build. Say: "You are going to design a launcher with a limited amount of supplies. Your goal is to build anything with these supplies that will launch a marshmallow five meters. You must use all of the materials that you receive in some way. They may simply be attached to your device."

Step 2: Each group needs the following items: a 1-meter stick, a roll of string , 1 plastic spoon, 1 protractor, masking tape, 3 paper clips, and 1 marshmallow.

Step 2: Tell the groups they have ten minutes to construct a contraption with all of the items listed that will launch the marshmallow five meters. When their contraption is built, they will need to explain how Newton's Laws of Motion apply to their device and explain whether all of Newton's laws are demonstrated in their launcher. They will need to identify examples of each law.

Cross-Curricular Extensions

Math: Have the students calculate the speed, acceleration, and force of the launchers that they create.

History: Research the history and uses of catapults and trebuchets. What were they used for and how did they demonstrate Newton's three Laws of Motion?

Community Connections

• Take a field trip to an amusement park or county fair. Have the students find Newton's three Laws of Motion in the rides at the park or fair.
• Invite an engineer into the classroom to discuss how he/she uses Newton's Laws of Motion to create products.