Seesaw Science
An inquiry lab about 1st class “seesaw” levers
Problem:
What is the relationship between distance and weight for balancing a seesaw?
Materials:
Meter stick
Pennies
Small, empty film canister
Object to use for fulcrum
Masking tape
Procedure:
1. Using the fulcrum and the meter stick, build a seesaw. Tape the fulcrum to the table
so that it remains stationary.
2. Choose the meter stick mark that will rest on the fulcrum as either 55 cm or 65 cm.
Record your choice. Position your meter stick so that it is on your chosen pivot point
with the 100 cm mark on your right.
3. Slide the film canister along the shorter end of the stick until the stick is balanced.
(This is called “zeroing” your meter stick.)
4. Copy the Data table into your notebook.
5. Place a stack of 8 pennies exactly over the 80 cm mark. Determine the distance the
stack of pennies is from the fulcrum. Record this distance in the distance to fulcrum
column for the right side of the seesaw.
6. Predict where you must place a stack of 5 pennies in order to balance your meter
stick. Test your prediction and record the actual position in the “position of pennies”
column for the left side of the see saw.
7. Determine the distance from the pivot point to the left stack of pennies. Record this
in the “Distance to pennies” for the left side of the seesaw.
8. If you use an imaginary unit of weight, the pennyweight (pw), then one penny
weighs 1 pw. Multiply the weight of each stack of pennies by the distance to the
fulcrum. Record the result in the last column of the data table.
9. Predict how the position of pennies in step 6 would change if you used 7, 12, 16, and
20 pennies. Test your predictions.
Seesaw Science - DATA TABLE
Your group’s pivot point position __________cm
Trial
Number
Side of
Seesaw
1
Right
1
Left
2
Right
2
Left
3
Right
3
Left
4
Right
4
Left
Number of
pennies or
(pw)
Position of
Pennies
(cm)
Distance to
fulcrum
(cm)
Weights of
Pennies x
Distance