TE Activity: Ball Bounce Experiment
Contributed by: Center for Engineering Educational Outreach, Tufts University
Summary |
Engineering Connection |
| Materials scientists and engineers identify the properties of many different materials and recommend what their best use may be. This activity demonstrates reverse engineering, where the properties of a finished product are determined by performing tests on the product. |
Contents
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| Grade Level: 4 (3-5) | Group Size: Not defined |
| Time Required: 100 minutes 2 or 3 class periods. |
Activity Dependency  :None |
Expendable Cost Per Group
:
Not defined |
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| Keywords: graphing, experiment, data, graph interpretation, graphing, teamwork | |
| Reviews: Read Reviews | Be the First to Write a Review | |
Related Curriculum
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| subject areas | Measurement Physical Science |
Learning Objectives (Return to Contents)
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- How to run an experiment
- How to collect data.
- How to present data.
- How to interpret graphs.
- How to graph results.
- Teamwork
Materials List (Return to Contents)
- 4 different balls to test: i.e. super ball, tennis ball, basketball, kickball, baseball etc.
- 1 stopwatch per group
- 1 yard stick per group
Introduction/Motivation (Return to Contents)
Could you play tennis with a baseball or soccer with a basketball? Think of sports that are played with a ball: volleyball, soccer, softball, football, bowling, golf, etc. What are some differences and similarities among the balls used for different sports? How do the materials and design of the ball affect its characteristics? A soccer ball is bouncy, flexible, and full of air, making it a great design to be kicked down a soccer field without injuring the players. A bowling ball is dense, heavy, and hard so that it can be rolled down a bowling alley to hopefully get a strike rather than a gutter ball. Each ball is designed with specific materials, making it appropriate for a particular sport. When engineers are given a design task, whether it is designing a new volleyball that can bounce twice as high or a new airplane or skyscraper, they must study and analyze the properties of the materials they would like to use. Some material properties to consider are weight, strength, hardness, and flexibility. To realize the importance of understanding materials and their properties, especially in the design of a ball, imagine being the golly in a soccer game that uses a bowling ball instead of a soccer ball. OUCH!!!
Procedure (Return to Contents)
Background Information
This lesson would coincide well with math graphing lessons.
Recommended Resources:
http://wwwslap.cern.ch/doc/NExS/html/node260.html
Directions
- Collect materials and copy worksheets.
- Explain the 2 tests that will be done to determine the bouncing properties of different balls.
- Divide the class into groups of 3 students. One student will be the recorder, one will drop the ball, and one will be the timekeeper.
- Assign each group a ball. After running both tests on that ball, the group will switch balls (rotate) and test a new ball until all balls have been tested by each group.
- Conduct tests
Test 1: Ball Bounce Height Comparison
The first time you drop the ball do not take a measurement, just watch where the ball goes so the next time the observer will know where to look. This will help to greatly increase the accuracy of the experiment. Drop a ball from one foot off of the floor, slightly in front of a yardstick. Measure the height the ball reaches after the first bounce and record. Repeat this test from 2 ft, 3 ft, and 1/2 ft. Do this test for each ball and record data. You may have to try more than once to accurately judge the height of the first bounce.
Test 2: Ball Bounce Time Comparison
Drop a ball from a height of 3 ft, timing from when the ball is released until the ball stops bouncing. Record the time. Repeat this test for each ball. Talk with the students about coming up with a system for releasing the ball and starting the stop watch. Possible suggestions are to have the same student drop the ball and start the watch, or have the two students count down form 5.
- Graph group results. (if this activity is not able to be accompanied by a math lesson on graphing you can introduce the topic before the activity starts or perhaps after the class has recorded all of its data and worked through it as a group.)
- Compare results as a class.
Attachments (Return to Contents)
- Ball Characteristics Worksheet (doc)
- Ball Characteristics Worksheet (pdf)
- Ball Bounce Experiment 1 Worksheet (doc)
- Ball Bounce Experiment 1 Worksheet (pdf)
- Ball Bounce Experiment 1 Bar Graph (doc)
- Ball Bounce Experiment 1 Bar Graph (pdf)
- Ball Bounce Experiment 2 Bar Graph (doc)
- Ball Bounce Experiment 2 Bar Graph (pdf)
- Test Worksheet
- Test Worksheet
Investigating Questions (Return to Contents)
- Could you play basketball with a superball?
- Do smaller balls bounce higher?
- Do heavier balls bounce higher?
- Why are your results different from other groups results?
- Why do some balls bounce higher than others?
- What other tests can you perform with the balls?
- Why is the design of a ball important?
Assessment (Return to Contents)
Copyright
© 2004 by Worcester Polytechnic Institute including copyrighted works of other educational institutions; all rights reserved.Supporting Program (Return to Contents)
Center for Engineering Educational Outreach, Tufts UniversityLast Modified: September 26, 2008