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Museum Rail Motion Records worksheet preview

Worksheet

Museum Rail Motion Records

Use model-train measurements from a science museum to compare motion patterns and predict future positions.

Grade 3ScienceInteractive · Printable

Aligned to3-PS2-2

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What’s included

  • Single worksheet
  • Auto-graded online
  • 1 NGSS standard
  • Printable answer key
  • 13 questions
  • Classroom-ready

Details

Format
Interactive · Printable
Grade
Grade 3
Subject
Science
Question types
Fill in the blank, Multiple choice, Sorting, Short answer

About this worksheet

What students practice

  • Students compare measured positions to find patterns in an object's motion.
  • Students use motion patterns to predict future positions.
  • Students support predictions with evidence from a motion record.

How to use

Read the museum setup together. Have students trace each train's motion with a finger, then use the records to answer and explain their predictions.

Curriculum

NGSS standard covered

3-PS2-2

Observe and measure an object's motion to find a pattern that predicts how it will move next.

Preview

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Name Date

Museum Rail Motion Records

Use measurements to find motion patterns and predict what comes next.

1. Follow the Blue Train

Read the setup and the blue train's record. Use its measurements to answer.

A Visit to the Motion Gallery

At a science museum, Nia visits an exhibit with two motorized model trains. A blue train travels on a straight, 90-centimeter track. A green train travels on a separate, straight, 200-centimeter track. Each track has a measuring strip beside it. The 0-centimeter mark is at the left end. Larger numbers are farther to the right.

A museum worker starts each train with its front at 0 centimeters. Nia uses a timer and records the position of each train's front every 2 seconds. She always reads the front, not the middle or the back. She watches from outside a clear cover and does not touch the trains.

The worker leaves each train's program unchanged while Nia watches. The blue train is programmed to make the same trip again and again. The green train uses a different program. Nia records one full blue trip and the first few green readings. For predictions on this sheet, suppose each train continues its recorded pattern without a new stop or a change in its program.

Blue Train: Time → Position of Front
0 seconds → 0 cm
2 seconds → 30 cm
4 seconds → 60 cm
6 seconds → 90 cm
8 seconds → 60 cm
10 seconds → 30 cm
12 seconds → 0 cm
1.

How much farther to the right was the blue train at 6 seconds than at 2 seconds?   cm

2.
Sort each time interval by the blue train's direction of travel.
From 6 to 8 secondsFrom 0 to 2 secondsFrom 10 to 12 secondsFrom 4 to 6 seconds
Toward the 90-cm endToward the 0-cm end
3.
Which pair of times shows the blue train at the same position, once going right and once going left?
  • A. 2 seconds and 4 seconds
  • B. 2 seconds and 10 seconds
  • C. 4 seconds and 6 seconds
  • D. 8 seconds and 10 seconds
4.
Where will the blue train's front most likely be at 16 seconds?
  • A. 0 cm
  • B. 30 cm
  • C. 90 cm
  • D. 60 cm

2. Read the Green Train's Graph

Each bar shows the position of the green train's front at one time. Use the graph, not the blue train's pattern.

Green Train Position0204060801000246810Time (seconds)Position (cm)
5.

How far did the green train move from 6 seconds to 10 seconds?   cm

6.
What position does the green train's pattern predict at 12 seconds?
  • A. 110 cm
  • B. 120 cm
  • C. 100 cm
  • D. 140 cm
7.
Which statement best describes the green train's recorded motion?
  • A. Its position increases by 20 cm every 2 seconds.
  • B. Its position increases by 20 cm every 1 second.
  • C. Its position decreases by 20 cm every 2 seconds.
  • D. Its position stays at 20 cm after 2 seconds.
8.
Nia claims the green train moved equal distances during equal 2-second intervals. Use measurements from two different intervals to support her claim.
9.
Another visitor will check Nia's measurements. Which plan makes the new record easiest to compare with hers?
  • A. Read the train's back every 2 seconds from the same starting mark.
  • B. Read the train's front at times chosen whenever it looks interesting.
  • C. Read the train's front every 2 seconds from the same starting mark.
  • D. Read the train's middle every 4 seconds from a new starting mark.

3. Compare and Predict

Use both records. Keep each train's own pattern in mind.

10.
At 6 seconds, which train's front was farther from its own 0-cm mark, and by how much?
  • A. The green train, by 30 cm
  • B. The blue train, by 60 cm
  • C. The green train, by 60 cm
  • D. The blue train, by 30 cm
11.

At 12 seconds, how much farther from its own 0-cm mark will the green train be than the blue train?   cm

12.
Predict the blue train's position at 18 seconds. Explain your prediction using the time for one full trip and an earlier position measurement.
13.
The worker changes the blue train's program so it pauses at one end. What should Nia do before predicting its new motion?
  • A. Use the old record because the track has not changed.
  • B. Measure several new trips to find the changed pattern.
  • C. Use the green record because both objects are trains.
  • D. Measure its length instead of recording its positions.

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