Vocabulary: acceleration, force, friction, mass, newton, Newton’s first law, Newton’s second
law, Newton’s third law, velocity
Prior Knowledge Questions (Do these BEFORE using the Gizmo.)
1. Imagine a horse pulling a cart. What would happen to the speed of the cart if several
bags of ce...
Name: Zaina ` Date: December 10, 2020
Student Exploration: Fan Cart Physics
Vocabulary: acceleration, force, friction, mass, newton, Newton’s first law, Newton’s second
law, Newton’s third law, velocity
Prior Knowledge Questions (Do these BEFORE using the Gizmo.)
1. Imagine a horse pulling a cart. What would happen to the speed of the cart if several
bags of cement were added to the cart?
The speed of the cart would be slow/decrease
2. Suppose several more horses were hitched up to the same cart. How would this affect
the speed of the cart?
The speed would increase
Although these questions may seem simple, they form the basis of Newton’s second law of
motion. The Fan Cart Physics Gizmo can be used to illustrate all three of Newton’s laws.
Gizmo Warm-up
The Fan Cart Physics Gizmo shows a common teaching
tool called a fan cart. Place fan A on the cart and turn it
on by clicking the ON/OFF button below.
1. Look at the blue lines coming from the fan. In
which direction is the air pushed?
The air is pushed towards the left (negative).
2. Press Play ( ) and observe the cart. In which
direction does the cart move?
The cart is moving towards the right
By blowing to the left, the fans exert a force on the cart that pushes it to the right. This
illustrates Newton’s third law: A force in one direction results in an equal force in the
opposite direction.
3. The velocity (v) of the cart is its speed and direction. Click Reset ( ). Select the BAR
CHART tab, and click Play. Does the velocity change or stay the same?
The velocity changes (its gets higher)
A change in velocity is called acceleration (a).
2019
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