Lesson Plan : Bottle Rocket Experiment
Teacher Name: | Kirk Wyckoff |
Grade: | Grade 7-8 |
Subject: | Science |
Topic: | Using Newton's Laws of Motion: Bottle Rocket Experiments |
Content: | Newton's Laws A. First Law Objects at rest will stay at rest, or objects in motion will stay in motion, unless acted upon by an unbalanced force. B. Second Law The acceleration of an object is directly related to the force exerted on that object and oppositely related to the mass of that object. C. Third Law For every action, there is always an opposite and equal reaction. |
Goals: | Use Newton's Laws during building and launching of bottle rockets Calculate velocity and altitude of rocket launches using formulas Determine the best design for a bottle rocket |
Objectives: | Students will attempt to: Use Newton's Laws during building and launching of bottle rockets Calculate velocity and altitude of rocket launches using formulas Determine the best design for a bottle rocket |
Materials: | Rockets Away booklet 2 liter plastic pop bottle corrugated cardboard 160 grams of hardware such as washers or nuts 6 bobby pins stopwatch velocity and altitude summary charts/graphs tire pump or air compressor various tape such as packaging tape or duct tape scissors launching system |
Introduction: | History A. 1200 AD- Used in the Middle East. Called "Chinese Fire Arrows" Made of tubes stuffed with gun powder that when ignited, exploded and produced hot gasses that pushed the rockets into flight. B. 1687, Sir Isaac Newton published a book of principles which have become known as Newton's Laws of Motion. C. Only since the 1700's, have rocket experimenters actually understood the scientific principles behind the motion of rockets. D. Rockets were used in the War of 1812, which inspired the Star Spangled Banner |
Development: | Students begin building rockets (2 one hour class periods) Follow guidelines in booklet to construct fins and attachment to bottles. Use recorded data to decide which weight, air, water ratio's work best. |
Practice: | Launching. (about 20 launches in an hour) Allow students to launch at least twice changing only one variable at a time. Record the times and let students calculate the height and velocity as well as complete a graph of their launches. Take a final test on the unit. Extra grades can be taken from several things such as calculations, graphs, following directions for building, etc. |
Accommodations: | Help will be given to some students who can't construct the bottle rockets. |
Checking For Understanding: | Students take a short quiz and then do bottle launches as a demonstration and for collecting data. |
Closure: | Using a spreadsheet program, make a launch recording data chart. |
Evaluation: | Teacher gives feedback on individual student progress and success of bottle rocket flight |
Teacher Reflections: | Discuss various bottle rocket flights that students observed. Ask questions on varied amounts of water and air pressure used on the flights and how it might have altered its outcome. |
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