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Unit U3
The Power of Per
Side Effects of Texting
Ratio, Rate, and Percentage
Find Your Natural Walking Pace
Breathing Rate and Heart Rate Correlations
Free Throw Strategy Study
Lab: Find Your Natural Walking Pace
Duration: Approximately 40 minutes
Students determine their rate of speed while walking at a natural pace (not a race). They collect data in a table, conducting multiple trials and controlling the variables, and then calculate an average and share their findings.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Students use proportional relationships (e.g., speed as the ratio of distance traveled to time taken) among different types of quantities to provide information about the magnitude of properties and processes.
Students understand the concept of a ratio and use ratio language to describe a ratio relationship between two quantities.
Students understand the concept of a unit rate and use rate language in the context of a ratio relationship.
Teacher Tips
- Do the lab yourself before trying it with students.
- Some students may need a language scaffold to share their data (see example sentence frames below).
- If you have students with mobility issues that would inhibit participation, devise some alternative testing criteria (besides walking) that all students can perform, and use it for all students (rather than singling out those unable to walk).
Materials
- a hallway or outdoor space where students can mark off a 20-meter walking course
- a measuring tape for measuring the course
- some removable tape, chalk, or cones to mark the course at the various lengths
- stopwatches for timing (students may have apps on their phones to use)
Safety Checks
- Review with your students all your school's safety protocols when doing labs.
- Emphasize that this is a walking—not a running—race.
Teacher Tune-ups
Teaching Notes
ACTIVITY OVERVIEW
- Introduce the lab (5 min)
- Establish the course (5 min)
- Data collection (15 min)
- Share the findings (20 min)
Introduce the lab (5 min)
This activity asks students to determine their rate of speed while walking at a natural pace.
Set up the courses (5 min)
Students work in pairs to establish the courses. Remind students that they are figuring out their natural pace. It is not a race.
In a hallway or outdoor space where students can mark off a 20-meter walking course, students will use a measuring tape for measuring the course and some tape, chalk, or cones to mark the course at the various lengths.
Step 1. Establish the course
You and your partner will need to measure and mark off a 20-meter walking course in the way shown in the diagram below. This course might be in a hallway or an area outside.
Data collection (15 min)
Students will be familiar with scientific processes, such as conducting multiple trials and controlling the variables. The table provides a space for students to record the data. Some students may need help averaging the time. They will need to divide 10 by their average time to get a per meter rate. For example, if it takes a student 5 seconds to walk the 10 meters, their calculation would be 10/5= 2, or a rate of 2 meters per second.
Step 2. Collect data
Make a chart like this one in your lab notebook or on your device.
Have your partner walk the 20-meter course. At the moment he or she moves past the 5-meter entry zone and into the 10-meter data collection zone, start your stopwatch. At the moment he or she finishes walking through the data collection zone and crosses into the 5-meter exit zone, stop your stopwatch.
Write down the number of seconds (round to the nearest hundredth) it took for your partner to walk through the 10- meter data collection zone.
Repeat this procedure and average the two times. Then trade jobs so your partner can collect data about you.
Share the findings (20 min)
Step 3. Share your findings
What did you discover?
Why is it important to have an entry zone and an exit zone?
Why is it necessary to conduct multiple trials and take an average of the two times?
Why does a higher number mean a slower natural walking pace?
Share the findings. Students can share their rates of speed. Other questions for students may include: Why is it important to have an entry zone and an exit zone? Why is it necessary to conduct multiple trials and take an average of the two times? Why does a higher number mean a slower natural walking pace?
Some students may need a language scaffold to share their data. Here are some examples of sentence frames that may be distributed strategically to students struggling with scientific language.
Sample sentence frames:
- I walked an average rate of ____ meters per second. My partner walked an average rate of ____ meters per second. Therefore, my natural waking pace is ____ than my partner’s.
- While I walked ____, my partner’s average pace was ____ .
BETA Version - Please send comments and corrections to info@serpinstitute.org
This project was supported by Science Sandbox, a Simons Foundation initiative dedicated to engaging everyone with the process of science.
Strategic Education Research Partnership
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info@serpinstitute.org