Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board – Ascension of Our Lord S.S. Science Dept.
SPH3U1 UNIT 3: ENERGY AND SOCIETY
LESSON: AMAZING RACE ACTIVITY: DETOUR – GIZMO OR PASCOUSE THE LAW OF CONSERVATION OF ENERGY TO DETERMINE
FINAL SPEED OF A CART/ROLLER COASTER
SPH3U1
Minds On: 15 min
Action: 55 min
Consolidate: 5 min
Science Curriculum Expectations (revised 2008):
A1.1 formulate relevant scientific questions about observed
relationships, ideas, problems, or issues, make informed predictions,
and/or formulate educated hypotheses to focus inquiries or research
(IP)
A1.2 select appropriate instruments (e.g., probeware, calorimeters,
pendulums, solenoids) and materials (e.g., drag sleds, electric bells,
balls, ramps), and identify appropriate methods, techniques, and
procedures, for each inquiry (IP)
D2.1 use appropriate terminology related to energy transformations,
including, but not limited to: mechanical energy, gravitational
potential energy, kinetic energy, work, power, fission, fusion, heat,
heat capacity, temperature, and latent heat [C]
D2.3 use the law of conservation of energy to solve problems in
simple situations involving work, gravitational potential energy,
kinetic energy, and thermal energy and its transfer (heat) [AI]
D2.4 plan and conduct inquiries involving transformations between
gravitational potential energy and kinetic energy (e.g., using a
pendulum, a falling ball, an object rolling down a ramp) to test the
law of conservation of energy [IP, PR]
Total=75 min
Ontario Catholic School Graduate Expectations
The student will become a collaborative contributor who a) works
effectively as an interdependent team member b) thinks critically
about the meaning and purpose of work.
Learning Goals:
Students will:




Activate prior learning on Kinetic Energy, Gravitational
Potential Energy, Total Energy, Law of Conservation of
Energy
Use technology (PASCO or HP MINI NOTES with
GIZMO or BOTH) to collect and/or analyze data
MATH CONNECTION: Create and interpret data
expressed as a graph
Connect physics concepts to real world applications.
SPH 3U1 – UNIT 3 – ENERGY AND SOCIETY
TEACHER:
Photocopy Pasco
Activity Cart on a
Ramp for Detour
Activity.doc and
Gizmo Activity
RollerCoaster GIZMO
for Detour Activity.doc
and have students
decide which one
they will do. Get
prize ready for first
team to complete
activity and step on
mat (prize example –
food, cool science
glasses
STUDENTS:
Homework (DAY
BEFORE):
Amazing Race Activity
: ROADBLOCK –
DETERMINE THE
EQUILIBRIUM
TEMPERATURE OF
WATER/BRASS using
the Law of
Conservation of Energy
Prior use of terms and
concepts include:
Thermal energy (Eh),
Kinetic Energy (Ek),
Gravitational Potential
Energy (Eg), Total
Energy (Et), Law of
Conservation of
Energy.
DI – Students have a
choice between a
variety of technologies
in order to achieve
expectations.
Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board – Ascension of Our Lord S.S. Science Dept.
Assessment
Opportunities
Minds On… Whole Class 
15 MIN
Lesson Concepts
 Use Smartboard Notebook Lesson to review Eg, Ek, Law of
Conservation of Energy
 Teacher/Students discuss energy transformations in the pictures
 Discuss/role play any potential career opportunities as derived from
conversations
Action!
55 MIN
Provide oral
feedback to students
during discussion.
Use photocopies of
PASCO or GIZMO
ACTIVITY
Whole Class Activity : Complete the AMAZING RACE DETOUR
ACTIVITY

Students form groups of 2 and choose an activity – PASCO or
GIZMO.
 Students gather appropriate technology and begin task

STUDENTS DO SELF CHECK OF PREDICTION
 EXIT TICKET: Student complete the handout for formative and
summative evaluation, as outlined on handouts (summative marks
assessed where indicated on handout – otherwise formative feedback
is given)
Provide oral
feedback to students
while they set up and
do their activity
Students check their
predictions with a
self-check of
understanding of
physics concepts and
math skills.
Teacher evaluates
the lab activity
questions as outlined
in handouts
TAKE
PICTURES/VIDEO
TO DOCUMENT
THE FUN FOR
HP/ISTE !!!!
First group to successfully complete activity wins prize after
standing on the Amazing Race Simulation Mat
Consolidate
Debrief
5 MIN
Homework
Whole Class  Discussion
Lead a discussion regarding what factors affect the speed of a
cart/rollercoaster on a track, and what factors do not affect speed of the
cart/rollercoaster.
Home Activity or Further Classroom Consolidation
TEST REVIEW HANDOUT TO BE COMPLETED BY TOMORROW
SPH 3U1 – UNIT 3 – ENERGY AND SOCIETY
Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board – Ascension of Our Lord S.S. Science Dept.
Law of Conservation of Energy of a Cart on a Ramp
Name: _______________
Purpose:
To predict and measure final velocity of a cart on a ramp using the Law of Conservation
of Energy and Pasco GLX or SPARK technology.
PRE-LAB: Create a ramp as shown above and measure the height where the cart will start.
Minds-On Questions:
Type(s) of Energy at the top of the Ramp when the cart is stopped?________________________
Height of cart at top: _____________________
Type(s) of Energy at bottom of Ramp: _______________________________________
Prediction: In the space below, predict the speed of the car at the bottom of the ramp using the law
of conservation of energy. Place your answer in the box below and do a self-check using the teacher’s
computer before continuing.
Materials:
Pasco Track, GLX or Spark, motion sensor
Method: Write your steps here in 3rd person, past tense.
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
SPH 3U1 – UNIT 3 – ENERGY AND SOCIETY
Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board – Ascension of Our Lord S.S. Science Dept.
SPH 3U1 – UNIT 3 – ENERGY AND SOCIETY
Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board – Ascension of Our Lord S.S. Science Dept.
Results (Observations):
Speed at bottom of ramp from GLX (actual speed): ________________________________
% Error Calculation
Before putting everhything away, increase the mass of your cart and repeat the experiment. What was the
new speed at the bottom of the ramp? __________________________________
Analysis:
1. How much energy was “lost” from the system?
______________________________________________________________________________
2.
What type(s) of energy was it lost
as?_________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________
3. Sketch what you think the Eg vs t, Ek vs t and Etotal vs times should look like for your cart if there
was no friction on your cart.
4. Did the final speed of the cart change when you changed the mass of the cart? Explain why or why
not.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
Go to the Application question on the back of the last page.
SPH 3U1 – UNIT 3 – ENERGY AND SOCIETY
Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board – Ascension of Our Lord S.S. Science Dept.
SPH 3U1 – UNIT 3 – ENERGY AND SOCIETY
Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board – Ascension of Our Lord S.S. Science Dept.
FORMAL EVALUATION – APPLICATION (
1.
APP /5):
The Behemoth is a steel roller coaster at Canada's Wonderland. It is a Hyper Coaster designed and
developed by Swiss manufacturer, Bolliger & Mabillard. If you were an engineer working for Bollinger
and Mabillard, what would need to know about energy in a roller coaster when it comes to you designing
the next roller coaster for Canada’s Wonderland. Explain how this energy relates to how high you can
make the first, second, third, nth hill. What other factors would need to be considered in the design?
APP - /5
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________
CART ON A RAMP
SPH 3U1 – UNIT 3 – ENERGY AND SOCIETY
Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board – Ascension of Our Lord S.S. Science Dept.
Name: ______________________________________
Date: ________________________
Student Exploration: Roller Coaster Physics
Vocabulary: friction, gravitational potential energy, kinetic energy, speed
1. As long as a system is frictionless, what do you know about the total energy (E) of the
system? _________________________________________________________________
Gizmo Warm Up and Predictions
Using the Law of Conservation of Energy, predict the speed of a 35g car at the bottom of
a 100cm hill if it is initially released from rest. Show your work below. Express your
answer in cm/s in the box at the bottom. Show the teacher your prediction before getting
your computer.
Prediction Answer
Get your HP Mini-Note and Logon to explorelearning.com. Use your login credentials or
the class code PLANU7RNK3 and start your RollerCoaser Physics Gizmo. NOTE: DO NOT
ANSWER THE QUESTIONS ON THE COMPUTER >>> ANSWER THE QUESTIONS ON THIS
SHEET!!
ACTIVITY A - Gizmo Warm-up –
The Roller Coaster Physics Gizmo™ shows a toy car on
a track that leads to an egg. You can change the track or
the car. For the first experiment, use the default settings
(Hill 1 = 70 cm, Hill 2 = 0 cm, Hill 3 = 0 cm, 35-g car).
1. Press Play (
) to roll the 35-gram toy car down
the track. Does the car break the egg? _________
SPH 3U1 – UNIT 3 – ENERGY AND SOCIETY
Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board – Ascension of Our Lord S.S. Science Dept.
2. Click Reset (
). Raise Hill 1 to 100 cm, and click
Play again. Does the car break the egg? _________
3. Click Reset. Lower Hill 1 back to 70 cm and select the 50-gram toy car. Click Play. Does
the 50-gram car break the egg? _________
4. What factors determine whether the car will break the egg? Expain using the concepts of
Energy. __________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
Activity B:
The speed of a
roller coaster
Get the Gizmo ready:
 Click Reset.
 Select the 35-g toy car.
Question: How good is your prediction?
1. Observe: Set Hill 1 to 100 cm, Hill 2 to 0 cm, and Hill 3 to 0 cm. Be sure the Coefficient of
friction is set to 0.00. (This means that there is no friction, or resistance to motion.)
A. Click Play. What is the final speed of the toy car (actual speed)? _______________
B. Determine your % error between your prediction above and the actual speed of the
roller coaster. Show your calculation below.
C. Try the other cars. Does the mass of the car affect its final speed? Explain your
answer.
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
2. Collect data: Find the final speed of a toy car in each situation. Leave the last column blank.
Hill 1
Hill 2
SPH 3U1 – UNIT 3 – ENERGY AND SOCIETY
Hill 3
Friction (µ)
Final speed
Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board – Ascension of Our Lord S.S. Science Dept.
100 cm
0 cm
0 cm
0
100 cm
30 cm
0 cm
0
100 cm
50 cm
0 cm
0
100cm
0 cm
0 cm
0.05
100cm
30 cm
0 cm
0.05
100 cm
50 cm
0 cm
0.05
3. Draw conclusions: When there is no friction, what is the only factor that affects the final
speed of a roller coaster? ____________________________________________________
What factors do not affect the final speed of a roller coaster?
________________________________________________________________________
What factors doaffect the final speed of a roller coaster?
_________________________________________________________________________
Activity C:
Energy on a roller
coaster
Get the Gizmo ready:
 Click Reset.
 Set Hill 1 to 100 cm, Hill 2 to 0 and Hill 3 to 99 cm.
 Set µ = 0 and select the 50-g car.
Question: How is energy expressed in a moving roller coaster?
2. Experiment: Turn on Show graph and select U vs t to see a graph of gravitational
potential energy (U) versus time. Click Play and observe the graph as the car goes
down the track.
A. What happens to potential energy as the car goes down the hill? _______________
B. What happens to potential energy as the car goes up the hill? __________________
3. Experiment: The kinetic energy (K) of a car describes its energy of motion. Click Reset.
Select the K vs t (kinetic energy vs. time) graph, and click Play.
A. What happens to kinetic energy as the car goes down the hill? _________________
B. What happens to kinetic energy as the car goes up the hill? ___________________
4. Observe: Turn on Show graph and select E vs t to see a graph of total energy (E) versus
time. Click Play and observe the graph as the car goes down the track.
Does the total energy of the car change as it goes down the hill? _____________________
5. Compare: Sketch the U vs t, K vs t, and E vs t graphs below.
SPH 3U1 – UNIT 3 – ENERGY AND SOCIETY
Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board – Ascension of Our Lord S.S. Science Dept.
6. Draw conclusions: Based on the graphs, how are potential energy, kinetic energy, and total
energy related to one another?
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
7.
FORMAL EVALUATION – APPLICATION (APP
/5):
The Behemoth is a steel roller coaster at Canada's Wonderland. It is a Hyper Coaster
designed and developed by Swiss manufacturer, Bolliger & Mabillard. If you were an
engineer working for Bollinger and Mabillard, what would need to know about energy in a
roller coaster when it comes to you designing the next roller coaster for Canada’s
Wonderland. Explain how this energy relates to how high you can make the first, second,
third, nth hill. What other factors would need to be considered in the design? APP - /5
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
GIZMO ACTIVITY
SPH 3U1 – UNIT 3 – ENERGY AND SOCIETY