Tuesday, April 14th: Train Problem Solution

How did we do on the train problem?

Watch the video below to check your answers:

After reviewing your answers and reflecting on your understanding, send Ms. Dolan an email adolan@hccs481.org or ms.dolans_science.  Or you can comment below on this blog, but be sure to include your first name and last initial so I know who you are!  

Rate yourself on a scale of 1-3.  Give a brief explanation to explain your rating.

3 = I got all of the answers correct.  I get this!

2 = I got some of the answers wrong.  

But after watching the video, I think I understand.

1 = I'm feeling lost and confused on all of this.

Monday, April 13th: Train Problem

Let's put it all together!

We've learned about different forms of energy: kinetic & potential.

Click here to review the different forms of energy

We've learned about the different kinds of forces. 

Click here to review our class notes on the different forces

We've learned about Newton's 3 laws of motion.

Click here to review Newton's 3 laws

_______________________________________

Now, Imagine This Situation:

A train is traveling along at 65 miles per hour.  Suddenly it needs to break.  As the breaks are applied, sparks fly off the train’s wheels.

The table below describes some properties of the train and the surrounding area before and after the brakes are applied:

Before Brakes Are Applied	After Brakes Are Applied
No sparks	Sparks fly off the wheels and brake pads
Brake pads make no sound	Brake pads make sound
Brake pads are cold	Brake pads are hot
Wheels are warm	Wheels are hot
Rails are warm	Rails are warmer
Train is moving fast	Train is moving slow

Directions:

Use the word bank at the bottom of each sentence to fill in the blanks of this paragraph that explains what happened.  You can print a handout of these problems here.  Or, just write the letters A-K with your answers.  Send Ms. Dolan a picture to adolan@hccs481.org or ms.dolans_science

When the engineer applied the brakes, kinetic energy was transferred from the (a)___________ to the (b)____________.  

Air

Brakes

Ground

Rails

Wheels

When the brakes were applied, energy was transformed from (c)______________ energy to (d)_____________ energy.  

Gravitational

Electrical

Mechanical Motion

Nuclear

Thermal

We know this energy transformation happened because the wheels moved (e)___________ and both the rails and wheels got (f)___________.   

Colder

Faster

Hotter

Slower

The force that stopped the train was (g)___________. 

Normal

Centripetal

Friction

Gravity

Because of Newton’s (h) _____ law, it would have taken a lot less force to stop the train if it had been moving slower.  Also, a (i)__________ train would have been easier to stop. 

First

Second

Third

Bigger

Smaller

Because of Newton’s (j) _____ law, once the train was moving it “wanted” to just keep on moving.  

First

Second

Third

Because of Newton’s (k) _____ law, we know that the rails push up on the train with the same amount of force as gravity pulling down on the train.

First

Second

Third

Friday, April 10th: Let's Get Outside!

Today is Nature Journal Day!  

Hopefully there won't be rain or earthquakes this time! 

Going outside has been shown to be good for our physical health and good for our mental and emotional health.  There are lots of things to notice in nature if you take the time to look!

Today's Nature Journal Task:  Shapes in Nature

1.  Take a walk through your neighborhood, yard, park, or apartment complex.  Try to find a safe place to walk where there is some nature to observe.  It's ok if you only have a small space to explore. Stay outside for at least 15 minutes. 

2.  As you walk, look for natural (not man-made) objects. 

3.  Look for at least 10 different shapes.  Draw or trace the objects you find.  You can print this journal page or make your own. 

4.  For each drawing, include a label to identify what each object is and to describe any details you notice. 

5.  Send a picture of you out in nature and a picture of your nature journal to Ms. Dolan.

Email: adolan@hccs481.org     Instagram: ms.dolans_science

Have a fantastic weekend!

Thursday, April 9th: Newton's Laws Concept Check

Awesome job on the scavenger hunt, 8th graders!
I know I didn't get everyone's responses yet and not all the photos and videos came though, but here is a taste of what your classmates gave as examples.  (It's fun to see all your pets!)

Now it's time to show off what you know!

For this task, you may use any notes or resources that you have EXCEPT people.  Please do not ask family members or friends to help you with this.  I want to see what YOU know!

Click on this link to answer the questions:

Newton's Laws Quiz

If the link or Google Form doesn't work, you may use this PDF version.  Print it and write your answers OR write your answers on any sheet of paper.  Then email or DM your work to Ms. Dolan.

adolan@hccs481.org   or    ms.dolans_science

Wednesday, April 8th: Newton's Laws Scavenger Hunt

First, check your answers to yesterday's practice problems here: 
Answer Key


Newton’s laws are at work all around us all the time!  

Grab your phone and seek out some examples. 

Directions:

• Take a photo or video to model each of Newton’s Laws. Have fun and be creative!

• For each photo, write a brief description that identifies which law you are modeling and how the situation you photographed fits that law. 

• If you can’t take or send pictures or videos, that’s ok.  You can write down and describe examples of Newton’s three laws.

• Send your examples to Ms. Dolan.  Email adolan@hccs481.org or Instagram ms.dolans_science 

• In your message, please let me know if it is ok to share your pictures with your classmates.

Example:

Newton's First Law:  
An object (or cat) at rest will remain at rest until acted on by another force. 

Newton's Second Law:
 It will take less force (strength) to accelerate (lift) the 12 pound weight on the left.
It will take more force (strength) to accelerate (lift) the 35 pound kettle bell on the right.
Force = Mass x Acceleration

Newton's Third Law:
When the tennis ball hits the floor,
the floor will hit the ball with equal and opposite force,
making the ball bounce.

Tuesday, April 7th: Using Newton's Second Law

** A note from yesterday.  Several of you commented that it's hard to match pictures with laws.  I agree with you.  Remember that ALL THREE laws will apply to any motion (and any picture of motion).  So there will always be more than one correct answer.  The most important thing will be for your to EXPLAIN YOUR THINKING. **  
-Ms. Dolan. :-)

-------------------------------------------------------------

Newton’s second law tells us that  F = M x A (Force = Mass x Acceleration)

So if we know two of the three numbers, we can figure out the third.  

Let’s practice doing this. 

Example Problem 1: 

A 4kg soccer ball accelerated at 8m/s² when Isaiah kicked it.  What was the force (in Newtons) of Isaiah's kick?

Example Problem 2:

Katie pushed a 30kg box with a force of 10N.  How fast did the box accelerate?

Example Problem 3:

Lucas pulled a wagon with 84 Newtons of force.  The wagon accelerated at 7 meters per second per second.  What was the mass of the wagon?

Your Assignment:

Solve the problems on this page.  (The example problems are the first 3 pages.  Your practice problems are on the 4th page.) Show all of your work.  

Send a picture of your finished page to Ms. Dolan: Email adolan@hccs481.org or Instagram ms.dolans_science

Answers will get posted tomorrow.  

Monday, April 6th: Checking our Work on Newton's Laws

Happy Monday, 8th Graders!

Thanks to all of you who completed and sent me your Newton's Laws practice page.  

Today your goal is to check your work and review Newton's Laws of Motion.  Don't focus just on getting the right answer.  Make sure you understand and can explain examples of Newton's 3 Laws.

VIDEO 1:
In this video, I go over the first page of practice problems, titled "Which Law?":

Here's a HANDOUT of the slides in the video.

Here is an ANSWER KEY to the first page of practice problems.

VIDEO 2:
In this video, I go over the second page of practice problems, titled "Newton in Pictures":

Here is a HANDOUT of the slides in the video.

Here is an ANSWER KEY to the second page of practice problems.

Today's Assignment:
Send me an email message (adolan@hccs481.org), Instagram message (ms.dolans_science), or leave a comment below to tell me these TWO things:

• On a scale of 0 to 5 (0 = I'm lost!; 5 = I totally get it!), tell me how well you are understanding Newton's Laws of Motion.  Give a brief explanation for your number.

• Tell me what, if anything, would be helpful for you to understand better (more practice, more diagrams, more videos, time to ask questions, etc.)