© Rich Clarkson
Science
Students in grades 3 to 5 are beginning to become more competent in
exploring science concepts systematically. It is vital that science curricula
play up this emerging strength while not stifling the students’ childlike
wonder at the world around us. The two lessons in this unit show you
several ways to help students connect science to the everyday world
around them. Whether your students are sports fans or science enthusiasts or simply curious, these lessons will help them navigate a bridge from
commonplace events to fascinating core science concepts.
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Third Grade–Fifth Grade Science
LESSON
1
Friction Sleuth
Your students will explore how friction and the law of inertia affect everyday life.
National Standards: NS.K-4.2, NS.K-5-8.2
Skills: Observation, prediction, recording data
Estimated Lesson Time: 45 minutes
Teacher Preparation
• Duplicate the Friction Sleuth worksheet on page 271 for each student.
• Gather the supplies and arrange for the circumstances listed under Materials.
Materials
• 1 copy of the Friction Sleuth worksheet on page 271 for each student
• 1 pencil for each student
For each small group:
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•
•
•
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1 golf ball (or other sphere)
1 ramp (e.g., large textbook, piece of sturdy wood or cardboard)
1 ruler or meter stick
Smooth floor (to provide less friction)
Carpeted floor or other rough surface (to provide more friction)
Background Information
The law of inertia, also known as Newton’s first law of motion, states, “An object in
motion will stay in motion and an object at rest will stay at rest, unless acted upon by
another force.” This is certainly true of players and objects in sports. For example, a
kicked soccer ball will continue to move toward the goal unless it is acted upon by
another player, the friction of the ball against the playing field or some other force or
any combination of forces. Likewise, a soccer ball lying on the field will not move until
a force, such as a kick, acts upon it. Another example is a hockey puck hit or not hit by
a hockey stick.
Without friction, gravity or other forces, a pushed, kicked or thrown object would
continue moving indefinitely. In this lesson, students will explore how inertia is affected by friction or the lack of friction in both everyday life and sports.
(Note: Using the ramps in this lesson is vital to applying the same amount of force to
each object rolled; that is, when you release each object at the top of a ramp, gravity
will supply about the same force during each trial, controlling this potential variable
as best as is possible under classroom conditions.)
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Third Grade–Fifth Grade Science
Introduce the Lesson
Tell students that today they are going to explore how friction affects our lives.
Follow These Steps
1. Ask students what happens to a ball after they roll it down a slide. (It keeps going
a little ways after it leaves the slide.)
2. Ask, “Why does the ball stop?” (Gravel [wood chips, dirt] slows it down.)
3. Ask or explain why these (gravel, wood chips, dirt) have the effect they do:
friction, or the rubbing of one surface (e.g., the gravel) on another surface (e.g.,
the ball).
4. Ask what would happen to the ball traveling down the slide if there were no
friction. (It would continue forever.)
5. Tell students that this is inertia, or the tendency of objects in motion to stay in
motion unless acted upon by another force, such as friction.
6. Announce that today students will explore some situations in which friction plays
a role.
7. Divide the students into small groups of three or four. Distribute the Friction
Sleuth worksheet on page 271 to each student and the activity supplies to each
small group.
8. Review the worksheet instructions and allow or guide students to complete the
worksheet.
9. Discuss the results.
Extend and Vary the Lesson
• Have students write a story about a day they spent without friction. Encourage
them to describe every facet in detail, from getting out of bed in the morning to
brushing their teeth that night.
• Give students two balls that are the same size but have different surfaces (e.g., a
basketball and a soccer ball). Have them predict which ball will travel the farthest
(from a ramp), both along the same surface (rough or smooth), then try it and
compare the results. (Note: The weight of the ball isn’t as important as its density;
a marble will travel farther than a tennis ball of the same weight. Higher density
means less surface area for the same weight and therefore less friction, all else
being equal.)
• Have students make their own list of “Friction Sleuth Findings” (8-10 ways the
presence or lack of friction affected their lives) in the center of a poster board or
large sheet of construction paper. Direct them to illustrate their findings around
the edges of the poster.
• Allow advanced students the opportunity to try to reduce friction further on the
smooth surface in the main activity (the worksheet on page 271). (Adding oil, water or soap to allow surfaces to slide against each other with less friction.)
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Friction Sleuth
Name_____________________________________________ Date______________________
1. Predict whether the golf ball will roll farther along the carpeted surface or the smooth surface.
Record your prediction in the chart below.
Carpeted surface
Smooth surface
__________ cm
__________ cm
What I think will happen
What did happen
2. Set up the ramp on the carpeted surface.
3. Release the golf ball at the top of the ramp. (Do not push it—just let go of it.)
4. Use the ruler to measure, to the nearest centimeter, how far the golf ball traveled. Record this
data in the chart above.
5. Repeat steps 2-4 on the smooth surface.
6. Conclusion: Why do you think the golf ball traveled farther on one surface than on the other?
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From NCAA Basketball Fast Break: Lessons Across the Curriculum With the NCAA, © 2003, NCAA.
Third Grade–Fifth Grade Science
LESSON
2
Sounds in Sport
In this lesson, students will learn about some properties of sound while learning about
good sporting behavior.
National Standards: NS.K-4.2, NS.5-8.2, NPH.K-12.5, NPH.K-12.6
Skills: Observing, predicting, recording of data; understanding how to demonstrate self-control and respect for diversity in physical activity settings
Estimated Lesson Time: 45 minutes
Teacher Preparation
• Duplicate the Rah, Rah! worksheet on page 275 for each student.
• Collect the items listed under Materials.
Materials
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•
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1 copy of the Rah, Rah! worksheet on page 275 for each student
1 pencil for each student
1 drum
2 tablespoons raw (uncooked) rice
1 metal pot (any size)
1 large spoon
1 poster, overhead transparency or similar display of the internal structure of the
human ear
For the student activity on page 275 (for each pair of students):
• 1 ruler
• 1 bell (Teaching tip: To better regulate volume, you may wish to use a recorded
sound and a larger group of students [6–8] in a circle around the appropriate
sound player. In this case, each student should make and use his or her own sound
cone. The sound source will be farther from their ears, but if it is the same distance with and without the sound cone, it is okay.)
• 1 piece of construction paper (9 by 12 inches)
Background Information
Do you ever want your students to be better listeners? In this lesson they will practice
this important life skill as they increase their knowledge about sound. Specifically, sound
travels in waves, as your students may already know. These waves may be “collected”;
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Third Grade–Fifth Grade Science
for example, collecting sound waves is the function of the outer ear. Collecting the
waves concentrates them, making the sound easier for the human ear to hear.
Sounds are an important part of our lives. In sport, sounds may come from, for
example, balls bouncing, bats hitting balls, players calling instructions to one another,
water splashing or fans cheering. Stress to your students that sound can be an exciting part of sports when fans and participants are courteous.
(Teaching tip: If you have a student with a hearing impairment, invite [with parental
permission] him or her to share how he or she meets these challenges. Adapt the
lesson to use vibrations and lights to communicate with others.)
Introduce the Lesson
Tell students that today they will be exploring some properties of sound. Tell or remind them that sound travels in waves.
Follow These Steps
1. Scatter the rice on the surface (skin) of the drum, placing the drum where the
class can see and hear it.
2. Have a volunteer bang the pot with the spoon near the drum. (The pot should
be struck on its bottom, facing away from the drum, so that the air movement
caused by the spoon itself is not a factor.) Ask, “What happens?” (The rice moves.)
3. Ask, “Why?” (The traveling sound moves the air, which vibrates the skin, which
moves the rice.)
4. Display the diagram of the inner ear. Ask (or explain), “What part of your ear
looks and acts like the skin of the drum?” (The eardrum [tympanic membrane].)
5. Ask (or explain), “What happens when sound reaches your eardrum?” (The eardrum vibrates, which makes tiny bones in the ear vibrate and so on, until the nerves
connecting the inner ear to the brain send the sound message to the brain.)
6. Brainstorm a list of how sound plays a role in everyday life. (Music cheers us up
or calms us down; the bell rings, telling us it is time to start or end school; a foghorn
keeps ships from ramming into a bridge; an alarm clock wakes us up in the morning; chants cheer on our favorite team.)
7. Ask students why people cheer at a college basketball game, a sporting event or
concert. (To encourage their team to do their best, to show their excitement about
what is happening in the game or other event.)
8. Briefly discuss some appropriate and inappropriate things to say when cheering at a sporting event. (Appropriate—Good job! Keep trying! Inappropriate—What
a loser! What a klutz!) State that you expect your students to show good sporting
behavior at sporting events, on the playground, in the gym and in the classroom. (See also lessons 4 and 5 in the third grade–fifth grade physical education
and sporting behavior unit.)
9. Divide the students into pairs. Distribute the Rah, Rah! worksheet on page 275
to each student and the activity supplies to each pair.
10. Review the instructions and allow or guide students to complete the worksheet.
(Teaching tip: You may need to have groups take turns making their sounds to
prevent unnecessary distractions. Or you may wish to have students conduct
this experiment at a learning center one group at a time while the rest of the
class does something quiet.)
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Third Grade–Fifth Grade Science
11. Discuss the results. (Question 7: The sound cone collects and concentrates more
sound waves, so the bell sounds louder if it is rung with the same force as it is
without the sound cone.) Tell students that the sound cone is a simple megaphone. Ask, “What part of the human ear is the cone like?” (The outer ear.)
Extend and Vary the Lesson
• Brainstorm a list of sounds in nature (e.g., thunder, birds singing, crickets chirping and so on). Have each student research the sound and try to reproduce it with
the voice, a musical instrument or other sound-making tool. Share the sounds
with the whole class.
• Read a biography of Samuel Morse, inventor of Morse code. In what other ways do
people use sound signals? (A college basketball referee blowing a whistle to signal
a foul; a horn at basketball games to signal timeout.) Challenge partners to invent
and share their own sound signals.
• Brainstorm a list of things people have invented to amplify or collect sound. (Microphones, stereo speakers, hearing aids.) If possible, obtain discarded items and
open them up to show students their internal workings. (Caution: Cut off any electrical cords so that the item can never be reattached to power sources. Do not
allow students to touch parts if there is any chance a part may be sharp.)
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From NCAA Basketball Fast Break: Lessons Across the Curriculum With the NCAA, © 2003, NCAA.
Rah, Rah!
Name_____________________________________________ Date______________________
1. Make a sound cone from a piece of paper. Follow the size chart below:
Size of paper
Length of cone
Smaller opening (diameter)
Larger opening (diameter)
12 by 9 inches (30 by 23 cm)
12 inches (30 cm)
2 inches (5 cm)
4 inches (10 cm)
2. Predict whether or not the sound cone will make a bell sound louder. Record your prediction in
the chart below:
Without sound cone
With sound cone
What I think will happen
What did happen
3. Ring the bell about 12 inches from one of your partner’s ears. (The listener should gently plug
the other ear.)
4. Have your partner gently hold the small opening of the sound cone to his or her ear. (The
listener should again gently plug the other ear.) Ring the bell about 3 inches (8 cm) from the
wider opening. Be sure to ring the bell with the same force as you did in step 3.
5. Trade roles with your partner and repeat steps 3 and 4.
6. Discuss what you each heard. Which situation made the bell sound louder? Record your answer
in the chart above. If needed, repeat steps 3 and 4 for each listener.
7. Conclusion: Why do you think this situation made the bell sound louder?
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From NCAA Basketball Fast Break: Lessons Across the Curriculum With the NCAA, © 2003, NCAA.