The students will complete a probe that asks them to consider where gravity is found, and how gravity on Earth would affect a hypothetical situation.
The students will watch a video of an astronaut on the moon and consider what caused the astronaut to move a certain way.
The students will use a mathematical equation to discover weight as a measure of gravitational force and how mass affects gravitational force. Students will create a model to investigate how gravity causes objects to interact in the solar system.
Students will create a model to investigate how gravity causes objects to interact in the solar system.
Students will use internet simulations and readings to describe how gravity influences the movement of celestial bodies in our solar system.
Students will use a kinesthetic model and internet simulation to illustrate gravity assist and satellite movement in our solar system.
Students will apply their knowledge of gravitational force to predict critical speeds of planets in another solar system in the universe.
Students will use kinesthetic models and readings to explore causes of tides on Earth in relation to gravity.
In this cycle, students will construct an explanation that answers the guiding question: What are the rules that govern whether something falls or orbits in the solar system? Students will answer this guiding question by applying mathematics and computational thinking to determine the relationship between mass, distance, and gravitational force. They will develop and use models to explain the relationship between gravitational force, inertia, and the orbital motion of objects in our solar system. Students will use simulations and informational resources to explain that gravity is an attractive force that increases with increasing mass of interacting objects and decreases with increasing distance between interacting objects. Additionally, the gravitational force of a massive object, such as the sun, holds objects in orbit. Next, students use solar system models to explain the relationship between gravitational force and the use of gravity assist to transport satellites in space.
In the next concept, students analyze and interpret data to determine scale properties of objects in our solar system. Specifically, students will investigate that the solar system consists of the sun, planets, their moons, and asteroids that are held in orbit around the sun by its gravitational pull on them.