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Testing Catchers for the School Garden's Plums

Compare plum-catcher designs using rebound data, then ask questions and predict energy transfers in safe model collisions.

Grade 4ScienceInteractive · Printable

Aligned to4-PS3-3

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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 4
Subject: Science
Question types: Fill in the blank, Multiple choice, Circle the answer, Sorting, Short answer

About this worksheet

What students practice

Students use motion and sound as evidence of energy transfers during collisions.
Students compare catcher designs using observations from controlled collision tests.
Students ask testable questions and predict how changes affect collisions.

How to use

Read the investigation and graph together. Have students compare the designs, then use the cup-test evidence to ask a question and make a prediction.

Curriculum

NGSS standard covered

4-PS3-3

Ask questions and predict what happens to energy when objects collide.

Preview

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Testing Catchers for the School Garden's Plums

Use collision clues to compare designs and predict energy transfers.

1. Compare the Catchers

Read the investigation. Use the graph and observations to answer the questions.

A Soft Landing?

The school garden has a small plum tree. The garden club wants to compare two catcher designs before trying them with ripe fruit. A catcher should keep a falling plum from bouncing high enough to leave its tray. For safe practice, the club uses one soft foam ball shaped like a plum. These tests compare bouncing, not damage to real fruit.

A moving object has energy. A collision happens when objects hit one another. During a collision, energy can transfer between objects. Changes in motion and sounds provide clues about energy. Scientists use these clues to ask questions and make predictions. A louder sound is not a measurement of the total energy involved.

First, Priya places a shallow plastic tray on the floor. This is Design A. She holds the bottom of the foam plum 30 centimeters above the tray's landing surface, then lets go without pushing. Mateo uses a ruler to measure the greatest height the plum reaches after its first bounce. The club repeats the drop three times. Students stand back and keep their hands out of the falling plum's path.

Next, Priya covers the bottom of the same tray with folded cloth to make Design B. She again releases the same foam plum 30 centimeters above the landing surface. The club uses the same ruler, floor location, and measuring method. Students record three more bounce heights. They also listen from the same place. Design A makes a clear tap during each collision. Design B makes a quieter tap. The club has not yet tested different cloth thicknesses, different release heights, or real plums.