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Investigation

Kinetic and Potential Energy: Skate Park Engineers

In these lessons, students tackle the challenge of designing a skate park ramp for the town’s mayor, exploring how variables like mass, speed, and height affect kinetic and potential energy. Using the Sled Wars Gizmo, students model energy relationships, analyze data to refine their designs, and apply concepts of energy transfer to ensure the ramp meets safety standards. Through this process, they gain a deep understanding of kinetic and potential energy while engaging in hands-on, inquiry-based learning.

Lesson Options

Designed for Middle School Students

Series

In this three-part series, students become junior engineers tasked with designing a safe and exciting skate park. Using the Sled Wars Gizmo, they investigate how mass, speed, and ramp height affect kinetic and potential energy, as well as the transfer of energy during collisions. Students collect and analyze data, build and revise models, and apply their understanding to a real-world engineering challenge. Along the way, they deepen their grasp of core ideas like energy transfer, energy conservation, and the relationship between motion and energy.

Standalone

Kinetic Energy: Ramp It Up!

In this standalone investigation, students take on the role of skatepark designers exploring how mass and speed influence kinetic energy. Using the Sled Wars Gizmo, they collect data and interpret graphs to uncover patterns showing how energy changes with different variables. Students use their findings to design a ramp that’s safe and fun, justifying choices with evidence and practicing skills in data analysis, modeling, and constructing explanations. The focus is on understanding the relationship between kinetic energy, mass, and speed, as well as energy transfer during motion.

Potential Energy: Mystery of the Cracked Phone

In this standalone investigation, students play the part of investigators trying to solve why one phone cracked and another didn’t after being dropped. Using a new version of the familiar Things on Shelves Gizmo, developed specifically for this investigation, they explore how mass and height affect potential energy and how that energy transfers when objects fall. Students collect and analyze data, build and revise models, and connect their discoveries to real-world impacts. This investigation builds understanding of potential energy, gravitational energy, and energy transfer in collisions.

Lesson Materials

Kinetic and Potential Energy: Skate Park Engineers

Supplementary Scientific Background Key Vocabulary Usage Guide Teacher Guide

Kinetic Energy: Ramp It Up!

Key Vocabulary Teacher Guide Scientific Background Usage Guide

Potential Energy: Mystery of the Cracked Phone

Teacher Guide Scientific Background Key Vocabulary Usage Guide

Cell Energy Cycle

Explore the processes of photosynthesis and respiration that occur within plant and animal cells. The cyclical nature of the two processes can be constructed visually, and the simplified photosynthesis and respiration formulae can be balanced.

Flower Pollination

Observe the steps of pollination and fertilization in flowering plants. Help with many parts of the process by dragging pollen grains to the stigma, dragging sperm to the ovules, and removing petals as the fruit begins to grow. Quiz yourself when you are done by dragging vocabulary words to the correct plant structure.

Growing Plants

Investigate the growth of three common garden plants: tomatoes, beans, and turnips. You can change the amount of light each plant gets, the amount of water added each day, and the type of soil the seed is planted in. Observe the effect of each variable on plant height, plant mass, leaf color and leaf size. Determine what conditions produce the tallest and healthiest plants. Height and mass data are displayed on tables and graphs.

Plants and Snails

Study the production and use of gases by plants and animals. Measure the oxygen and carbon dioxide levels in a test tube containing snails and elodea (a type of plant) in both light and dark conditions. Learn about the interdependence of plants and animals.