Rockets
Grade Level: 8th
Subject: Science
Time Frame: 16 weeks (August- December)
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Essential Questions
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- how does the time it takes a rocket to go up and to come back down compare?
- what does the rocket do in between the time it is going up and time it is coming back down? How fast is it moving at its highest point?
- can we figure out how fast the rocket left the fround from how long it is in the air?
- can we figure out how high a rocket goes based on how long it is in the air?
- what detmines how fat the rocket leaves the ground?
- why is the rocket more likely to get damaged if it hits concrete, rather than soft grass?
- how does air-resistance affect the motion of the rocket?
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By the end of the unit, students will know:
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- how to calculate various unknowns when launching a stomp rocket
- Newton's Laws of Motion
- conservation of momentum
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By the end of the unit, students will be able to:
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- construct and present arguments using evidence to support the claim that gravitational interactions are attractive and depend on the masses of interacting objects
- develop a model to generate data to test ideas about designed systems, including those representing inputs and outputs
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Chapter: Rockets
# of Days: 2
Topics:
- rockets
- questions about rockets
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Chapter: Constant Speed Motion
# of Days: 16
Topics:
- motion in one dimension
- formulas and solving problems
- constant speed
- distance vs. time graphs
- average speed
- position and displacement
- velocity
- position-time graph
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Chapter: Acceleration
# of Days: 19
Topics:
- instantaneous velocity
- accelerations
- velocity-time graphs
- finding the displacements from velocity-time graphs
- free fall- acceleration due to gravity
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Chapter: Force
# of Days: 17
Topics:
- force
- net force
- balanced and unbalanced forces
- Aristotle
- Galileo
- Newton's laws of motion
- weight- force of gravity
- friction
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Chapter: Momentum
# of Days: 9
Topics:
- momentum
- momentum change and impulse
- conservation of momentum
- collisions and explosions
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Chapter: Explaining and Launching
# of Days: 6
Topics:
- questions about rockets
- motion of rockets
- dynamics of rockets
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Standards
PS2.A; PS2.B; ETS1.B