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Motion Clues at the Park Carousel

Use a model carousel's position records and turn times to find motion patterns, compare speeds, and make predictions.

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, Circle the answer, Sorting, Short answer

About this worksheet

What students practice

Students identify repeating patterns in an object's measured positions and times.
Students use motion records to predict an object's next position or number of turns.
Students explain when a change in conditions calls for new motion measurements.

How to use

Read the park investigation together. Have students trace the marker's route with a finger, then use the records and graph to answer independently.

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

Motion Clues at the Park Carousel

Use measured times and repeating positions to predict motion.

1. Follow the Marker

Read the investigation and the slow-setting record. Use the observations to answer.

A Small Carousel at City Park

At City Park's carousel plaza, a science club sets a battery-powered model carousel on a level table. No one rides this small model. A red marker is attached to its edge. Four picture cards stand around the table: a gate, a path, a flower, and a bench. As the model turns, the marker passes the cards in that order and then comes back to the gate.

Priya starts with the marker beside the gate. She switches on the slow setting and starts a stopwatch at the same moment. The club records which card the marker reaches at each observation time. They also measure the total time needed to finish one, two, and three full turns. One full turn ends when the marker returns to the gate.

Later, the club changes the model to its fast setting. They keep the same model, marker, card positions, and turning direction. They begin at the gate again and make a new record. During each run, the setting stays unchanged, and no one touches the moving model.

Slow-setting position record
Time after starting → Card beside the marker
0 seconds → gate
2 seconds → path
4 seconds → flower
6 seconds → bench
8 seconds → gate

Which pattern fits the whole slow-setting record?