Sci-Squad: Sports Educated: Case of the Winona
Warriors: Teacher’s Guide
Grade Level: 5-8
Curriculum Focus: Physical Science
Lesson Duration: Three class periods
Program Description
Sci-Squad, developed with funding from the National Science Foundation, entertains kids as it
familiarizes them with science content and processes. Sci-Squad members are Durnsford, Riley,
Erica, and Jake. These operatives solve scientific, yet humorous, dilemmas by performing
experiments, surfing the Web, making models, and doing field research. They also interview and
work with scientists and engineers. Their leader, Mother, gives the assignments and asks for their
solutions, evidence, and explanations. Here, the Sci-Squad explores levers, and how this simple
machine helps explain the mechanics of baseball.
Onscreen Questions
Before watching the video
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What science do you think is involved in baseball? (Answers will vary. Student responses will
probably include motion—hitting a ball and running the bases. They may also include some
misconceptions about speed, acceleration, and gravity. Do not discuss their ideas; simply record
ideas in the brainstorming session.)
After watching the video
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Does a bigger baseball bat let you hit a ball farther? (Answers will vary. Encourage students to
consider “bigger” in terms of the weight of the bat, its thickness, length, and the material from
which it’s made.)
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Why would a longer bat hit a ball farther? (A longer bat means a wider swing, and a wider
swing means a greater force.)
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How does the weight of the bat affect the distance the ball travels? (A lighter-weight bat can be
swung at a faster speed, making a ball go farther.)
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How is an arm like a lever? (The elbow and the shoulder are pivot points; the forearm or the
entire arm itself is the lever.)
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How is a baseball bat like a lever? (By holding the baseball bat, the wrist is the pivot point; the
bat itself is the lever.)
Sci-Squad: Sports Educated: Case of the Winona Warriors: Teacher’s Guide
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How does the length of your arm affect how you throw a ball? (The longer the arm the harder
and faster a ball can be thrown.)
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What conclusions did the group reach from their investigation? (Answers will vary. Sample
answers: A bat is an example of a lever; longer bats will make the ball go farther. An arm is an
example of a lever; a taller player would make a better pitcher. Baseball is a game of skill and
the team must practice.)
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Lesson Plan
Activity 1 : Levers
Much of this video focused on levers. A pitcher’s arm, a baseball bat, a catapult, a spoon, and a table knife
were examples. In science, a lever is a simple machine—a tool that makes work easier. In this activity,
students use a ruler, a block or rectangular eraser, and small objects or weights to explore how changing the
position of the fulcrum changes how the force needs to be applied to perform work.
1. Ask students to think about what they learned in the video about levers.
2. Engage them in a discussion about load and force, or effort. Remind them of Durnsford’s
pitching arm. What was the fulcrum? What was the load? What was the force, or effort?
3. Distribute the rulers, blocks, and other objects. Challenge students to first find the fulcrum
position that will balance different weights, with the heavier weight as the load and the
lighter weight as the effort.
4. Have students make sketches of each balanced lever, indicating which weight is the load
and which is the effort.
5. Ask students to draw conclusions based on their investigation. If the load weighs more than
the effort, where should the fulcrum be placed?
6. Depending on the age of your students, you may want to extend this to include the fact that
there are three classes of levers. Each class is determined by the positioning of the fulcrum
and the load.
Activity 2: Baseball Bats
Baseball provides many opportunities to apply mathematics. In this activity, the specifications for bat size and
shape provides the context for practicing geometry and measurement skills, while developing more
understanding of the physics of levers.
1. Before beginning, borrow many different bats from your PE teacher or local youth league
coach. Obtain several spring scales that can be used to weigh the bats.
2. Prepare an overhead transparency or copies of the bat specifications from the Major League
Baseball Official Rules.
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Sci-Squad: Sports Educated: Case of the Winona Warriors: Teacher’s Guide
3
The bat shall be a smooth, round stick not more than 2 3/4 inches in diameter at the
thickest part and not more than 42 inches in length. The bat shall be one piece of
solid wood.
Cupped Bats: An indentation in the end of the bat up to one inch in depth is
permitted and may be no wider than two inches and no less than one inch in
diameter. The indentation must be curved with no foreign substance added.
3. Review this information with students. Point out that weight is not specified.
4. Ask students to think about why a player might want a cupped bat. (It makes the bat
lighter, so they can swing faster and hit the ball farther.)
5. The “drop” of a baseball bat is the difference between weight and length. For example, a bat
that weighs 30 ounces and is 32 inches long has a drop of 30–32 or –2. Differences in drop
between bats can be felt when you swing.
6. Give each group one or two bats to measure, finding diameter, length, weight, and drop.
Challenge students to find circumference and work backward to obtain the diameter of a
bat.
7. Make a class table with the data. Ask students to look for patterns from which they can
draw conclusions. Do aluminum bats have smaller drops than wood bats? (You may need to
remind students that a negative number is less than zero.) Why does a smaller drop make
the lever (bat) more efficient?
8. Select several bats to take outside for students to swing. Can they feel a difference in the
drop between any of them?
Activity 3: Safety Equipment
With the longer arm, Durnsford’s pitching machine was able to throw the ball harder and faster. Fast balls
can be dangerous, and every season players are injured when they’re hit. This activity focuses on the safety of
equipment used in major league and youth league baseball. Before beginning this activity, review the
information from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission at
http://www.kidsource.com/CPSC/baseball.6.10.html
1. Share the information from the Web site with students. Ask them to think of any injuries
they know about or have suffered themselves playing baseball or softball.
2. Then ask students to work in groups to identify which pieces of equipment protect players
and from what. This should include gloves, batting helmets, leg pads, and catcher’s chest
pad and mask, the baseball caps that shield eyes from sun glare, and shoes that protect a
player from slipping.
3. After discussion, ask the groups to consider what else might or even should be available to
protect players from injuries. Challenge them to design this new piece of equipment. How
could they test their design?
Published by Discovery Education. © 2005. All rights reserved.
Sci-Squad: Sports Educated: Case of the Winona Warriors: Teacher’s Guide
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Internet Sites
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http://www.otal.umd.edu/~vg/amst205.F97/vj27/project6/id.html
Site presents the history and current status of baseball rules, including specifications for
bats. Also includes details regarding how major league bats are made.
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http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/egypt/raising/leverwave.html
Information on how levers work, including activities to use with students.
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http://www.kidsource.com/CPSC/baseball.6.10.html
Articles and statistics from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Board on injuries and
prevention of injuries with use of different types of youth baseball safety gear.
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http://www.mlbb.org
Official Web site of the Major League Baseball
Academic Standards
National Academy of Sciences
The National Science Education Standards provide guidelines for teaching science as well as a
coherent vision of what it means to be scientifically literate for students in grades K-12. To view the
standards, visit http://books.nap.edu.
This lesson plan addresses the following science standards:
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Physical Science: Motions and Forces
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Science and Technology: Understandings about Science and Technology
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Science in Personal and Social Perspectives: Personal Health, Risks and Benefits
Mid-continent Research for Education and Learning (McREL)
McREL’s Content Knowledge: A Compendium of Standards and Benchmarks for K-12 Education
addresses 14 content areas. To view the standards and benchmarks, visit link:
http://www.mcrel.org/compendium/browse.asp
This lesson plan addresses the following national standards:
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Science—Nature of Sciences: Understands the nature of scientific inquiry, Understands the
scientific enterprise
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Technology—Understands the nature of technological design
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Health—Knows essential concepts and practices concerning injury prevention and safety
Published by Discovery Education. © 2005. All rights reserved.
Sci-Squad: Sports Educated: Case of the Winona Warriors: Teacher’s Guide
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Support Materials
Develop custom worksheets, educational puzzles, online quizzes, and more with the free teaching tools
offered on the Discoveryschool.com Web site. Create and print support materials, or save them to a
Custom Classroom account for future use. To learn more, visit
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http://school.discovery.com/teachingtools/teachingtools.html
Published by Discovery Education. © 2005. All rights reserved.