This lesson is an extension of Mystery Science Force Olympics Mystery 3. In this extension, students will create a wrecking ball using the Lego WeDo 2.0 kit and program it to knock down a wall. Students will experiment with different variables (like speed, distance and string length) to answer the question: "How can you knock down a wall?" (credit Mystery Science Mystery 3 guiding question). This activity should be done over multiple days (viewing mystery, building the robot and programing and experimenting). Building instructions for the wrecking ball arm are attached as picture steps.

Throughout this module, students study the anchor phenomenon—tugboats moving cargo ships—and build an answer to the Essential Question: How do tugboats move cargo ships through a harbor? As students focus on two concepts, they build a model that represents the movement of tugboats and cargo ships through New York Harbor. Students develop an understanding of what makes objects start to move, how pushes and pulls can change the way objects move, and what happens when two objects bump into each other. By the end of the module, students use their knowledge of pushes and pulls to explain the anchor phenomenon, and they apply learned concepts to a new context in an End-of-Module Assessment. As a result of these experiences, students begin to develop an enduring understanding that pushes and pulls can start, stop, and redirect an object’s movement.

With PhD Science®, students explore science concepts through authentic phenomena and events—not fabricated versions—so students build concrete knowledge and solve real-world problems. Students drive the learning by asking questions, gathering evidence, developing models, and constructing explanations to demonstrate the new knowledge they’ve acquired. The coherent design of the curriculum across lessons, modules, and grade levels helps students use the concepts they’ve learned to build a deep understanding of science and set a firm foundation they’ll build on for years to come.

Cross-curricular connections are a core component within PhD Science. As an example, every module incorporates authentic texts and fine art to build knowledge and create additional accessible entry points to the topic of study.

Three-dimensional teaching and learning are at the heart of the curriculum. As students uncover Disciplinary Core Ideas by engaging in Science and Engineering Practices and applying the lens of Cross-Cutting Concepts, they move from reading about science to doing science.

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This is a supplement to the activity outlined in Lesson 4 of Mystery Science's Force Olympics. In this activity, students will be bowling with a sphero ball to see how speed impacts force. This activity can be done over multiple days or could be done all in the same day. It could also be used as a supplement to the bumper bowling activity or a replacement activity.

The SOLID Start project (Science, Oral Language, and Literacy Development from the Start of School) develops professional development opportunities for K-2 teachers that integrates science and literacy. The project also develops standards-based, integrated science and disciplinary language and literacy curriculum materials designed for K-2 children.
***MUST CREATE A FREE ACCOUNT TO USE MATERIALS.***

Area: Force and Motion

This Kindergarten unit is the SECOND in the curriculum of three (3) units developed to address the Kindergarten science standards of the Michigan Science Standards related to Force and Motion.

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A force must act upon an object in order for motion to occur. The movement of objects is determined by a push or a pull. Pushing moves something in the direction of the push. When more force is applied to a stationary object, more movement will be observed. When less force is applied to the same object, less movement will be observed. The harder the push on a stationary object, the further the item goes. Pulling something has a similar action. The harder you pull on a stationary object, the faster something moves along.  Anything with mass slows down because of that weight. This is inertia. The larger something's mass is, the more inertia it has and the more force you need to make it move. (A beach ball might be larger than a bowling ball but the bowling ball has more mass.)

Students will explore what they know about position, by asking and answering questions about their own position in relation to other people and objects.  Students observe how things move around the school €“ how they move, and how fast they move.  Students will consider their daily activities and the motions that accompany them.  Students begin to describe motion by collaborating with peers to conduct investigations that explore moving objects and acting out different motions.  Students understand that they, too, are in motion and exert forces.  Students analyze and interpret information while observing objects in motion, classify them by speed, and recognize that speed can change, in order to answer the question, how fast does it go? Their knowledge of speed expands as they plan and conduct investigations with several objects moving at different speeds. They begin thinking about the concept of speed changing, such as slowing down and speeding up.  Students use ramps and objects such as toy cars, marbles, etc. to understand that objects move at different speeds and change speed, while exploring cause and effect.  Students are introduced to the concept of force as a push or pull.  They work cooperatively to make a variety of objects move and begin to recognize that it takes a push or a pull to make an object move.  Students will classify forces they use every day as pushes or pulls.  Students then begin modeling cause and effect by showing how changing the force exerted on an object can change its speed.  Students plan and conduct investigations using ramps resting on stacks of one, two, and three books.  They predict and measure the effects of changing the height of the book stacks.  They also push the cars with their hands on a flat surface to achieve different speeds.  Once they understand the cause and effect of force on speed, students work collaboratively to explore how they can use forces to change the speed of and stop moving objects.  Students expand on the concept that forces have strength and direction.