Student Exploration: Sled Wars Gizmo
Exam (elaborations)
, Name: Date:
Student Exploration: Sled Wars
Vocabulary: acceleration, energy, friction, kinetic energy, momentum, potential
energy, speed
Prior Knowledge Questions (Do these BEFORE using
the Gizmo.)
1. A firefighter is trying to break through a door. Is he
more likely to break through if he runs at the door
very slowly or if he runs at the door very fast?
Explain your answer.
He will more likely break through the door if he runs at
a faster rate because the force of him hitting the door at
a higher speed than at a lower speed is much greater.
2. Two firefighters are trying to break through a door. One firefighter is heavy,
and the other is light. If they run at the same speed, which one is more likely to
break through? Explain.
The heavier firefighter is more likely to break through because with more mass, there
will be a greater force acted on the door as it makes contact.
Gizmo Warm-up
The ability to crash through doors and cause other
changes depends on an object’s energy. With the Sled
Wars Gizmo™, you will explore the factors that affect the
energy of a sled.
The Gizmo shows a Yeti named Burt riding his sled
down a steep hill. Burt plays a game where he tries to
wreck as many snowmen as he can.
1. Use the slider to set the Snowmen to 5. Check that the height of the sled is 25.0
m. Click
Play ( ). How many snowmen does the sled destroy? 1.23
2. Click Reset ( ). Set the Red sled mass to 200 kg. Click Play. How many
snowmen does the sled destroy this time? 2.45
3. Click Reset. Drag the sled to the top of the hill so the starting height is 50.0 m.
Click Play.
Exam (elaborations)
, Name: Date:
Student Exploration: Sled Wars
Vocabulary: acceleration, energy, friction, kinetic energy, momentum, potential
energy, speed
Prior Knowledge Questions (Do these BEFORE using
the Gizmo.)
1. A firefighter is trying to break through a door. Is he
more likely to break through if he runs at the door
very slowly or if he runs at the door very fast?
Explain your answer.
He will more likely break through the door if he runs at
a faster rate because the force of him hitting the door at
a higher speed than at a lower speed is much greater.
2. Two firefighters are trying to break through a door. One firefighter is heavy,
and the other is light. If they run at the same speed, which one is more likely to
break through? Explain.
The heavier firefighter is more likely to break through because with more mass, there
will be a greater force acted on the door as it makes contact.
Gizmo Warm-up
The ability to crash through doors and cause other
changes depends on an object’s energy. With the Sled
Wars Gizmo™, you will explore the factors that affect the
energy of a sled.
The Gizmo shows a Yeti named Burt riding his sled
down a steep hill. Burt plays a game where he tries to
wreck as many snowmen as he can.
1. Use the slider to set the Snowmen to 5. Check that the height of the sled is 25.0
m. Click
Play ( ). How many snowmen does the sled destroy? 1.23
2. Click Reset ( ). Set the Red sled mass to 200 kg. Click Play. How many
snowmen does the sled destroy this time? 2.45
3. Click Reset. Drag the sled to the top of the hill so the starting height is 50.0 m.
Click Play.
