Simple Machines Unit Study

Kit Contents The following are included in the kit and are to be returned to HCOS:
1. Parent Guide also available on the website with live links: http://www.onlineschool.ca/rooms/library/resource_kits/index.php 2. Putting it in Motion 3. Castles Under Siege! 4. Simply Science Simple Machines 5. Spring Scale 6. Pulley The Art of the Catapult, by William Gurstelle is available from the HCOS library. So you want to build a catapult? This book shows you how to construct some basic types of catapults. Written for the skill level of an average 10 year old, just some simple, basic fun projects that help kids develop mechanical skills and have fun too!

You will also need: Access to the internet Worksheets can be downloaded from the Discovery Education website. They are linked to the video clips. http://www.discoveryeducation.ca They are also available on the library website: http://www.onlineschool.ca/rooms/library/resource_kits/index.php Please get your password from your online teacher for the Discovery Education website. The video clips are referred to throughout the unit.

Some websites that you may find useful in your study of Simple Machines: http://www.edheads.org/activities/simple-machines/ a great interactive site that explains simple machines concepts well http://www.fi.edu/qa97/spotlight3/spotlight3.html a site that gives photo examples of simple machines using Lego. http://www.mos.org/sln/Leonardo/InventorsToolbox.html the Simple Machines explanation portion of the Museum of Science, Boston website about Leonardo daVinci (main page: http://www.mos.org/sln/Leonardo/LeoHomePage.html http://www.tooter4kids.com/Simple_Machines/index.htm a fun site for kids! Dear Parents, 8/1/2013 Revised

This Unit Study contains 13 lessons to cover the learning outcomes listed at the end of this guide. The lessons vary in length, but expect them to take 1 to 11/2 hours, depending on the activities you choose to do. If you do two or three lessons per week you should be able to complete the unit within the load period. The books are easy for your student to read, but you will need to prepare ahead of time for the activities. You may want to have your child collect all of the items needed and put them in a box before you start the unit. This is a fun, hands-on unit that would adapt well to a co-op setting. The lessons are a guide; do not feel you must do all activities or worksheets Have your child keep a Simple Machines Learning Log or Lapbook for recording their findings for the different experiments and activities. Digital photos could be accompanied by 2-3 sentence explanations of the days activities. Keep a Simple Machines Glossary in a notebook, recording related vocabulary words as they arise. There is a glossary in the back of the Putting it in Motion book. Vocabulary is simply explained in Castle Under Siege. If you have Knex, Lego, Meccano, or other building toys involving wheels and gears, it would be great to use them during this unit. Some lessons include more activities than youll need; feel free to omit and/or modify as necessary.

The Worksheets and Quizzes referred to are available for download on the Discovery Education website. They are linked to the video clips. Print off what you need ahead of time. They is also in this guide for your reference, please do not write on them. There are Portfolio submission ideas on the last page of the guide for your reference.

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Here are some options to use to record your childs learning and to submit for portfolios. There are many websites and yahoo groups which have a lot of information as well as free resourcesjust do a search!
Big Book of Books and Activities: an illustrated guide for teachers, parents, and anyone who works with kids! by Dinah Zike is available from the HCOS library.

http://www.dinah.com/

About Lapbooks and Lapbooking

Lapbooking is the term for taking a paper file folder and refolding it so that there are two covers on the front. It is held vertically, with the 11 inch long side being held in a vertical position. It is refolded so that one cover opens to the left and the other cover opens to the right. This lapbook is dedicated to one topic of study. The child then makes miniature books and little folded flaps about content of that subject area. Those little books are glued to the inside of this lapbook. Extensions can be made, with card stock paper or tag board paper, to make the lapbook have more surfaces in which to place books. The cover can be decorated.

About Notebooks and Notebooking

The big difference between notebooks and lapbooks is that in lapbooking the information is made into tiny books which are glued inside of a file folder. With notebooking a child may make little books but they are glued into pages which are 3 hole punched and put inside of a 3 ring binder notebook. With notebooking, regular pages can be added as well as pressed leaves or other objects. In other words the notebook pages might just be flat and not have "mini books" in them. Also some people use notebooks like scrapbooks and can add in things like pressed flowers, real dried leaves, photographs your family took, et cetera. Notebooking can cover a whole subject such as Ancient History and may hold an inch thick stack of papers, while lapbooking is smaller/thinner and holds less information. Subjects for lapbooking may cover smaller topics such as Ancient Egypt or Pyramids. Sites for lapbooks & notebooking: Homeschoolshare has many free resources! http://www.homeschoolshare.com/lapbooking_resources.php
www.knowledgeboxcentral.com Lapbooking 101

http://lapbooking.wordpress.com/ Lapbook lessons http://www.lapbooklessons.com/

Flapbooks http://www.unitstudies.com/books/index.aspx

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Simple Machines Unit Daily Activity List The following list of lessons is one way of using the resource kit materials to effectively cover the Ministry Learning Outcomes related to Simple Machines.

Lesson 1:

What is Motion?

Read and discuss/think through Putting it in Motion p. 4-6

Do Exploration activity on page 6 and record your results in your Simple Machines Learning Log. Read pages 7 9 Putting it in Motion

Lesson 2:

Energy

Read Putting it in Motion page 10

Do the Exploration Activity on page 10.

Read Putting it in Motion pages 11 14

Do Exploration Activity on page 14 and record your results in your Simple Machines Learning Log.

Read Putting it in Motion pages 15 17 Build a marble track that uses kinetic energy to make linear, circular, rotational, and oscillating motion. Youll need paper tubes, masking tape, pipe insulation, marbles, and your imagination. Or, do the Marble Maze challenge from Discovery School. It can be accessed at http://
school.discovery.com

Identify when the marble has potential energy and when it has kinetic energy.

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Lesson 3:

Friction

Read and discuss/think through Putting it in Motion p. 22-26

Do Exploration activity on page 26 and record your results in your Simple Machines Learning Log.

OR do the activity on the following page.

Read and discuss/think through Putting it in Motion p. 27 29

On the Discovery Education Website watch: Discovering Simple Machines: Work and Energy

http://www.discoveryeducation.ca/
This video contains 9 segments What are Work, Force, and Energy? [01:24] Two Kinds of Energy: Potential and Kinetic [03:57] Rubber Band Toy [00:45] Ski Jump [01:03] Trampoline [00:50] Rollercoaster [01:19] Friction [01:46] A Brief Review of Work and Energy [01:18] Video Quiz: Discovering Simple Machines: Work and Energy [02:34]

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Try experimenting with bearings. You'll need:

soup can (empty or full) marbles (about 12) pencil plasticine clay lid that fits over bottom of soup can

Add balls of clay to ends of pencil. Attach pencil to lid with clay. Place lid on can. How well does it spin? Remove lid and place marbles on can.

Replace the lid and spin again. What changed?

To find more helpful tidbits from teachers for understanding scientific concepts, see the Science Props cluster.

What would happen if you used more or less marbles? What if you substituted ping pong balls for marbles? or BB's? Take a closer look a bicycle wheel - can you guess where the bearings are? Visit a local artist who creates kinetic sculptures or whirligigs.

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Lesson 4:

The Six Different Simple Machines

Read Putting it in Motion pages 30-33

Do Closer to Home activity on page 32 and record your results in your Simple Machines Learning Log.

Read p. 4-7 in SIMPLY SCIENCE SIMPLE MACHINES Read p. 20 - 25 in SIMPLY SCIENCE SIMPLE MACHINES Read p. 4-5 in CASTLE UNDER SIEGE!
Discovery Education watch: Discovering Simple Machines: Lever, Wheel and Axle, Pulley Optional: Do the Pre-test or Video Quiz for the above; it is included in the parent guide and also on the library website as a PDF if you want to print a copy.

Lesson 5:

Wedges

The wedge is really an inclined plane turned on its side. But instead of helping you move things to a higher level, a wedge helps you push things apart. The blades of a knife or a shovel are both wedges. A wedge can also be round, like the tip of a nail, or the tines on your fork. Basically, the wedge works just like a ramp: The narrower the wedge (or the sharper the point of a wedge), the easier it is drive it in and push things apart. But here's the trade-off: To split something apart really wide, you have to push the wedge a long distance. from http:// teacher.scholastic.com/dirtrep/simple/wedge.htm Read p. 16 - 17 in SIMPLY SCIENCE SIMPLE MACHINES Read p. 6 - 7 in CASTLE UNDER SIEGE! Watch Simple Machines: Wedge on Discovery Education website Collect a number of wedges from the house ie. knife, shovel, scissors, axe, chisel, nail, pin Answer the following questions in your Simple Machines Learning Log: 1. What is the purpose of the tool? 8/1/2013 Revised

2. Where is the force applied? 3. How would you do the work without the tool? 4. How does the tool change the work and make it easier? 5. Draw a picture of the tool and indicate where the force is applied.

Lesson 6:

Inclined Planes

The inclined plane is the simplest of simple machines because to make it work, nothing moves. You move! Another name for an inclined plane is a ramp. It can be as simple as the driveway leading to your school or as sophisticated as the staircase in the Empire State Building. A ramp works by helping you lift things more easily up to a higher level. It can be really difficult to carry a box of stuff up a ladder. But carrying that same box up a staircase is an easier job. Remember, there's always a trade-off. The way an inclined plane works is that to save effort, you must move things a greater distance. If you compare the length of a ladder to that of a staircase going to the same height, you'll find the ladder is much shorter. But it takes a lot more effort to climb a ladder than to simply walk up a flight of stairs. The ancient Egyptians figured this out over 3,000 years ago when they built their pyramids. They used long, shallow ramps to help them move the heavy stones to the top! from http://teacher.scholastic.com/dirtrep/ simple/plane.htm

Read p. 12- 13 in SIMPLY SCIENCE SIMPLE MACHINES Read p. 8 - 11 in CASTLE UNDER SIEGE! Read Putting it in Motion, pages 38-39

Do Exploration on page 38.

Make ramps of different heights and predict which will cause an object to descend at a faster rate. Graph results.
Discovery Education watch: Work, Energy, and the Simple Machine: Inclined Plane, Wedge, Screw Read and do Mechanical Advantage of an Inclined Plane page 5, of Inclined Plane, Wedge and Screw PDF document included in the parent guide or print it from the library website. http://www.onlineschool.ca/rooms/library/ resource_kits/index.php Optional: Pre-test, Video Quiz and Quiz for Inclined Plane, Wedge, Screw

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To learn about how the Egyptians used ramps to build pyramids, go to http:// www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/egyptians/great_pyramid_04.shtml

Lesson 7: First, Second, and Third Class Levers

In its simplest form, a lever is a stick that is free to pivot or move back and forth at a certain point. Levers are probably the most common simple machine because just about anything that has a handle on it has a lever attached. The point on which the lever moves is called the fulcrum. By changing the position of the fulcrum, you can gain extra power with less effort. A good example of a lever is a see-saw. Let's say that you're really light, and you want to lift a really heavy person on the opposite side. If you put the fulcrum in the middle, you won't have a chance. But if you slide the fulcrum closer to the heavy person, it will be easier to lift. Where's the trade-off? Well, to get this helping hand, your side of the seesaw is much longer (and higher off the ground), so you have to move it a much greater distance to get the lift.. from http://teacher.scholastic.com/dirtrep/simple/ lever.htm

Read and discuss/think through Putting it in Motion p. 34-37 Do Exploration activity on page 34 and record your results in your Simple Machines Learning Log. Read p. 10- 11 in SIMPLY SCIENCE SIMPLE MACHINES Read p. 12 -13 in CASTLE UNDER SIEGE! Watch: Discovering Simple Machines: The Lever [03:26] Discovering Simple Machines: Lever, Wheel and Axle, Pulley A Lever Makes Work Easier [00:15] The Three Main Parts of a Lever: Fulcrum, Resistance, and Effort [00:50] The Three Classes of Levers: First, Second, and Third [02:21]
Read Discovering Simple Machines: Lever, Wheel Axle, Pulley pages 3-5 in the parent guide or PDF on the library website. Do the activities. Draw an example of each type of lever or build it from Knex Build your own drawbridge and take a picture of it.

Lesson 8:
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Screws

The screw is really an inclined plane in the round with a wedge at the tip. Think of a typical screw. The wedge is the pointed end. The inclined plane is the thread that wraps around the screw. Screws are used in many different places to hold things together. Basically, a screw is like the ramp and the width of the thread is like the angle of an inclined plane. The wider the thread of a screw, the harder it is to turn it. And here's the trade-off: If you've ever had to put in a screw with really narrow threads, you've probably found that you have to turn it a really long time to get it to go anywhere. Just like in a ramp, the easier the effort, the longer the distance you have to move something! from http://teacher.scholastic.com/dirtrep/simple/ screw.htm

Read p. 14 - 15 in SIMPLY SCIENCE SIMPLE MACHINES Read p. 14 - 15 in CASTLE UNDER SIEGE! Do Make a screw activity on page 14 Read and discuss/think through Putting it in Motion page 40 Do Exploration Activity on page 40 and record your results in your Simple Machines Learning Log.
Review: Discovery Education watch: Work, Energy, and the Simple Machine: Inclined Plane, Wedge, Screw Research Archimedes Screw on the internet and write a paragraph about it. Read and do Inclined Plane, Wedge, and Screw Quiz on page 6, of Inclined Plane, Wedge and Screw PDF document included in the parent guide or on the library website.

Lesson 9:

Wheels and Axles

A wheel and axle is really two machines in one because you can use each part in different ways. The first way is to roll something along. Wheels help you move an object across the ground because they cut down on the amount of friction between what you're trying to move and the surface you're pulling it against. (The axle is the object that attaches the wheel to the object it's moving.) Since only the very bottom of the wheel touches the ground, there is less surface area to rub and less friction. Imagine pulling a little red wagon without any wheels! Generally speaking, the bigger the wheel, the easier it is to make something roll. The second way of using a wheel is like a lever in the round. A door knob or a faucet on a sink are really round levers, and the "fulcrum" is in the middle where the axle turns. Imagine if a door knob was replaced with a little rod. It would be

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much harder to open the door! Once again, there's a trade-off: The larger the diameter of the wheel, the less effort you need to turn it, but you have to move the wheel a greater distance to get the same work done. from http:// teacher.scholastic.com/dirtrep/simple/wheel.htm

Watch: Discovering Simple Machines: The Wheel and Axle [01:36]

Read Discovering Simple Machines: Lever, Wheel Axle, Pulley page 6, Wheel and Axle, in the parent guide or PDF on the library website.

Read p. 18 - 19 in SIMPLY SCIENCE SIMPLE MACHINES Read p. 16 - 17 in CASTLE UNDER SIEGE! Read Putting it in Motion, pages 42-43
Design a car out of Lego, Knex, or materials from around the house. What changes can you make to the wheel and axle to make the car run most efficiently?

Lesson 10:

Lever

Read p. 18 -23 in CASTLE UNDER SIEGE!

Simple Machines of the Medieval Ages http://dev.nsta.org/pubs/sciconnect/article3c.asp Can you name all of the simple machines? Create your own Catapult or Trebuchet. There are many resources on the internet. One possible style is given on the next page. Read: The Art of the Catapult, by William Gurstelle Take pictures of your catapult and add them to your Learning Log.

Lesson 11:

Gears

Read Putting it in Motion, pages 44-45

Visit http://www.dynamicscience.com.au/tester/solutions/hydraulicus/gears.htm Discovery Education: Watch - Simple Machines: Gear Systems [06:22] TEAMS: Forces and Motion: More About Machines Read and do Discovering Simple Machines: Lever, Wheel Axle, Pulley page 7, Wheel and Axle, in the parent guide or PDF on the library website.

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Spend some time playing with Knex toys or Spirograph and experiment with them.

Activity: Marshmallow Catapult Materials: one-cup milk carton, scissors, graph paper, one 2-inch rubber band and other rubber band sizes as requested, toothpick, 2 pencils, tape, small match box, mini marshmallows, hole punch Procedure: (see diagrams below) 1. Cut off the top of the milk carton and then cut the carton as show in diagram 1. Cut holes the size of a pencil in both sides and in the back. 2. Push a rubber band through the hole in the back and hold it in place with a toothpick. Push a pencil through the holes in the sides. 3. Cut the tray of a match box in half lengthwise. If you don't have a matchbox make one out of a 3 by 5 card and tape. Using tape, attach the box to the sharpened end of the second pencil with the pencil to the outside. 4. Select one of the three rubber bands to complete the remainder of the procedure. 5. Lay the pencil across the other with the eraser end facing the front of the catapult. Loop the rubber band over the eraser end. Fold the front flap of the milk carton in, crease it, and tape it down. 6. Do a trial test of your catapult to make sure it works properly. Place a marshmallow in the holder, pull back the pencil, an then release. Make any adjustments needed, and modifications to make the catapult work better. 7. Your assignment is to make your catapult throw the marshmallow 10 meters.

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Lesson 12:

Pulleys

Watch: Discovering Simple Machines: Pulley Discovering Simple Machines: Lever, Wheel and Axle, Pulley The Pulley [01:33] The Fixed Pulley [00:41] The Movable Pulley [00:26] The Block-and-Tackle Pulley [00:26]
Read p. 8 - 9 in SIMPLY SCIENCE SIMPLE MACHINES Read p. 25 - 27 in CASTLE UNDER SIEGE! Read and do activities in Putting it in Motion, pages 46-49 Do Exploration Activity on page 46 OR Read and do Discovering Simple Machines: Lever, Wheel Axle, Pulley pages 8 & 9 in the parent guide or PDF on the library website. Do Post Test on page 10.

Lesson 13:

Compound Machines

Read 26 29 in SIMPLY SCIENCE SIMPLE MACHINES Do the Quiz on page 30 and add it to your Learning Log.

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 Discovery Education - Watch: Simple and Compound Machines Work, Energy, and the Simple Machine: Compound Machines
Read Work, Energy and the Simple Machines: Compound Machines in the parent guide or PDF on the library website. Do the video quiz, and the Home Hunt. Other activities are optional. Create your own Rube Goldberg Machine Visit the Rube Goldberg site at https://www.google.ca/search?q=rube+goldberg +machine&client=firefox-a&hs=miX&rls=org.mozilla:enUS:official&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=zKD2UYu3PMWJiwKhnoGo Cg&ved=0CEgQsAQ&biw=1431&bih=711 http://coolmaterial.com/roundup/rube-goldberg-machines/ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dFWHbRApS3c How are Rube Goldbergs designs examples of compound machines? (Or would they be better described as inefficient, overly-complicated ridiculous contraptions?) Visit http://www.google.ca/search?q=compound+machines&client=firefoxa&hs=xds&rls=org.mozilla:enUS:official&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=pKT2UbuwJ-7ligKkjoGADA &ved=0CDsQsAQ&biw=1431&bih=711 and discuss how the examples shown there are examples of compound machines. Create a household tool that incorporates at least three simple machines. Be able to explain how each simple machine reduces the amount of energy required to get work done.

Portfolio Submission Guidelines: Students will submit three samples for each portfolio. Please submit at least one experiment log in each portfolio.

An evaluation of the fairness of an experiment (Fair testing involves isolating variables, eliminating bias, repeating results, and scrutiny of the intended question. A simple example is gravity-racing soup cans, where the start, ramp angle, ramp surface, and lane are equal; so only the soup can brand (variable) is tested in the gravity race.) An experiment log that identies all of the steps in an experiment including a testable question, a hypothesis, materials, procedures, controlling variables, manipulating one variable, observations, and conclusion. A chart or graph showing the students observations, experiences, or thinking.

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A chart that classies objects, events, or organisms based on criteria determined by the student. Written notes or observations including the students ideas about what the outcome of an experiment would be An oral recording of the student discussing any of the above content. A photograph of the student doing an experiment or a photograph of a project Any artwork the student has created as he made observations. A written (or oral) summary of any reading the student has done on the above topics. A labeled diagram

Provincial Learning Outcomes for Grade 5 Physical Science: Forces and Simple Machines Students will demonstrate how various forces can affect the movement of objects. They will demonstrate how using simple machines, including lever, wedge, pulley, ramp, screw, and wheel, can give them a mechanical advantage. Students will design their own compound machine using at least two of the simple machines. They will describe how simple and compound machines are used in daily life in BC communities.

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