Implementing VEX GO STEM Labs

STEM Labs are designed to be the online teacher’s manual for VEX GO. Like a printed teacher’s manual, the teacher-facing content of the STEM Labs provides all of the resources, materials, and information needed to be able to plan, teach, and assess with VEX GO. The Lab Image Slideshows are the student-facing companion to this material. For more detailed information about how to implement a STEM Lab in your classroom, see the Implementing VEX GO STEM Labs article.

Goals and Standards

Goals

Students will apply

How data can be used to make accurate predictions.
How to observe cause and effect relationships.

Students will make meaning of

How an unbalanced force, such as gravity on an inclined plane, causes an object to move.
Using data to highlight or propose cause-and-effect relationships.

Students will be skilled at

How to test, measure, and record data.
Changing the height of the Inclined Plane.

Students will know

How to conduct an investigation to provide evidence of the effects of balanced and unbalanced forces on the motion of an object.

Objective(s)

Objective

Students will identify a cause and effect relationship between gravitational force and the movement of an object on an inclined plane.
Students will conduct an investigation to provide evidence of the cause and effect relationship of balanced and unbalanced forces on the motion of an object.

Activity

Students will observe the cause and effect relationship of the height of the Inclined Plane and distance a Blue Wheel will travel when rolled down the Inclined Plane. Through testing in Play Part 1 and 2, they will determine that the height of the Inclined Plane affects the force of gravity on the wheel, which affects the distance traveled of a rolling wheel.
Students will make predictions then test how far a wheel travels after rolling down an Inclined Plane in Play Part 1. In Mid-Play Break, students will discuss the results from Play Part 1, reiterate the purpose for the investigation, and discuss how to improve predictions. In Play Part 2, students will make predictions for two additional heights of the Inclined Plane and then test and record those predictions using their Data Collection Sheet

Assessment

Students will recognize that the different heights of an Inclined Plane affect the gravitational force on an object. Students will share their learning in the Data Collection Sheet and in discussions during Mid-Play Break and Share sections.
In Play Part 2, students will analyze data collected in the first trial test to make more accurate predictions for two additional tests. Students will be able to see an improvement in their predictions as documented on their Data Collection Sheet.

Connections to Standards

Showcase Standards

Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS)

NGSS 3-PS2-1: Plan and conduct an investigation to provide evidence of the effects of balanced and unbalanced forces on the motion of an object.

How Standard is Achieved: Throughout the Play section, students will plan and conduct an investigation to explore the cause and effect relationships between the height of the Inclined Plane and the distance that the Blue Wheel will travel. The investigation will consist of making predictions and then testing and documenting how far a Blue Wheel will travel when rolled down different heights of an Inclined Plane on their Data Collection Sheet.

Additional Standards

Computer Science Teacher Association (CSTA)

CSTA 1B-DA-07: Use data to highlight or propose cause-and-effect relationships, predict outcomes, or communicate an idea.

How Standard is Achieved: In Play Part 1, students will make a prediction for how far the Blue Wheel will travel based on an observation from the Engage section. The students will then test and document their prediction and measure how far the Blue Wheel travels on their Data Collection Sheet. During the Mid-Play Break, the students will communicate their ideas surrounding the cause and effect relationships involving the Inclined Plane, gravity, and the distance traveled of the Blue Wheel. In Play Part 2, students will use the data they gathered during Play Part 1 to formulate more accurate predictions for two additional heights of the Inclined Plane.

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