Lesson 15 of 84 · Energy
Experiment⭐ 30 XP⚡ Spark LabSpeed, Velocity, and Acceleration
Speed, Velocity, and Acceleration.
🎯 Your mission
Predict it first. Then prove yourself right (or wrong).
⚡ The twist
The opposite of what you expect is often what happens.
Mind = Blown
🔥 A bolt of lightning is 5 times hotter than the surface of the sun.
Make a hypothesis first
Predict: what happens if you double the force?
What You'll Learn
Speed measures how fast an object moves (distance divided by time). Velocity includes both speed and direction. An object changing direction is accelerating even at constant speed.
Key Words
- circuit
- voltage
- current
Materials Needed
- blocks
- spring scale
- stopwatch
- pencils
- toy cars
- ramps
Safety First
- Protect your work surface with newspaper or plastic.
- Adult supervision recommended.
- Do not taste any materials.
Steps
Study the diagram and label the parts you recognize.
Create a Rube Goldberg machine with at least 5 steps that demonstrates energy transfer from one form to another.
Observe what happens and describe it in detail.
Record your observations in your science journal with measurements and descriptions.
Check Your Understanding
Question 1
1 of 3What is velocity?
Where you see this in real life
You use this every time you flip a light switch, ride a bike, or kick a ball.
Stretch Challenge
Try this in real life this week.
Time how long a small ball rolls down something, then change the slope and try again.
For the dinner table
“Show me something at home that uses this kind of energy.”
Next Smart Experiment
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