The Benefits of Inclined Planes: Heave Ho!
Students discover the scientific basis for the use of inclined planes. Using a spring scale, a bag of rocks and an inclined plane, student groups explore how dragging objects up a slope is easier than lifting them straight up into the air. Students are also introduced to the scientific method and basic principles of experimentation. To conclude, students imagine and design their own uses for inclined planes.
This inclined plane makes it easier to load/unload the truck.Copyright FreeImages.com http://www.freeimages.com/
Engineers continually look for and design new tools to make life easier. Students are introduced to this idea by exploring tools that they know and see everyday, in particular the inclined plane. Students act as engineers when they think of and then design tools or machines using incline planes with the purpose to simplify some task in their lives.
After this activity, students should be able to:
- Explain that an inclined plane reduces the effective "weight" of an object.
- Explain how to read a spring scale.