INTEGRATING PHYSICS AND ALGEBRA

GRADE LEVEL - SUBJECT

9th Grade - Algebra

TIME FRAME:

One class periods

OBJECTIVES:

  1. To teach the students galileo's formula for projectile motion.

MATERIALS:

  1. Paper and pencils
  2. Computer
  3. Electronic Spreadsheet Software
  4. MATHCAD Software

    INSTRUCTION:

    1. Students will be taught that they must know how much time it will take to land, how high it will go, and how much time it takes the to rocket to go a specified distance.
    2. The students will be given galileo's formula:
      H(t) = -- gt2 + vt
       Where: H(t) = Height
      t = Time
      g = Force of Gravity
      v = Initial Speed
    3. The students will be given the forces of gravity for earth and other planets in our solar system.
    4. The students will be taught that the path from lift-off to landing will be a parabola.
    5. The students will be taught wo compute to solve these problems using pencil and paper.
    6. After mastery of this method, students will be taught to solve these problems with a regular spreadsheet formula and with MATHCAD (A software package which does most every type of mathematical problem).
    Aviation Group - AVIATION ACADEMY 2000
    Wooddale High School - Memphis, TN 38118