Objects do not move on their own.
Plan and carry out an investigation to determine the cause and effect (strength and direction) of a push on an object.
Windy days change how the ball moves in soccer.
Click here for NGSS, CCSS-ELA, and California ELD standards.
How does wind push a soccer ball?
In Lesson 3: Cruising Discs, the force of the push was explored through the game of mini-shuffleboard. Different strengths of the force caused the disc to move lesser or greater distances in the game of mini-shuffleboard.
In this lesson, the students’ understanding of the strength of pushes is deepened by changing the cause of the push. (CCC) This lesson explores the phenomenon of pushes on a ball from high winds. (CCC)
While we cannot see wind, we can see what wind does to objects. We can investigate the phenomenon that windy days change the way a ball moves. The phenomenon of wind moving things can be investigated by blowing through two different-sized straws, causing a small ball or pom-pom to move at different speeds. (DCI) Collecting and analyzing data from blowing through two different-sized straws deepens students’ understanding of ways to change the strength of a push that, while invisible, can be felt by blowing through a straw. (SEP) When playing soccer, strong winds can push the ball in a different direction.
The second part of this lesson brings in the science and engineering practice of collaboratively designing and planning an investigation to determine how to change the direction that an object moves as well as how to change the strength of the push. (SEP)
This leads to Lesson 5: When Two Objects Collide. It explores how to use other players to get around a blocker. Investigations are used to figure out what happens when moving objects collide. Colliding objects change direction. (DCI)
Throughout the lesson, a flag () denotes formative assessment opportunities where you may change instruction in response to students’ level of understanding and making sense of phenomena.
Part I | 35 minutes | |
10 minutes | Engage | |
15 minutes | Explore 1 | |
10 minutes | Explain 1 | |
Part II | 45 minutes | |
30 minutes | Explore 2 | |
10 minutes | Explain 2 | |
5 minutes | Elaborate/Evaluate |
Ask questions about how a soccer ball can move without a person pushing the ball.
Kindergarteners may wonder if something or someone is flying above the field and hit the ball. Guide students toward another explanation for what is pushing the ball. If students do not suggest the wind, introduce that concept with the fan in the next step.
Using air in this part of the sequence provides students with a better opportunity to control the strength of the push. Students are more readily able to recognize when the puff push is greater versus lesser than when they use their own fingers or hands. The use of air as a force potentially moves students beyond grade-level in the DCI as they don’t yet know that air is made of particles.
Conduct an investigation to observe how the size of straws affect the distance an object travels.
This is an ideal opportunity to introduce or reintroduce the word pattern. Remind them that when we notice when something happens over and over, it may be a pattern. For example, the wider straw allows more air to hit the ball, moving it a greater distance than the thinner straw.
Students may keep their own straws in a different place such as their desk so they can use them for the next part of the lesson. Otherwise, replace their straws so that they avoid sharing germs.
Analyze and interpret data and look for patterns in the distance the ball traveled using two different-sized straws.
The guiding questions are designed to get the students to make the connection that a greater push of air causes the ball to travel a greater distance. A smaller push of air, or lesser push of air, causes the ball to travel a shorter distance. Students may notice that not all recorded distances are exactly the same. Lead a discussion of how the puffs might be different for different students.
Plan and conduct an investigation to test the effects of air puffs to change the direction of the ball’s movement.
Analyze and interpret data to determine the effects of the air puffs on the movement of the ball.
Construct an explanation about what caused the soccer ball to change direction in the video.
Leave the materials out for practicing pushes and pulls with the wind and rulers at the choice centers until students all seem confident with predicting the pattern of the path of the ball or pom-pom using the ruler and blowing using their own personal straws saved in their cubbies.
Have students interact with text to extend their understanding of pushes. These selections can be read aloud at any time after this lesson. Suggested books include the following:
Fiction:
Alborough, J. (2014). Duck in the Truck. Tulsa, OK: Kane Miller.
Euronews. (2015, November 20). Crazy wind-assisted own goal! Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BzutX8bm5mo
Merz, J. J. (2007). Playground Day! New York, NY: Clarion Books.
Shaw, N., & Apple, M. (2019). Sheep in a Jeep: 5-Minute Stories. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.