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  • Gravity

    Book Chapter |

    What goes up mush come down … as long as you aren’t floating in space, that is! So let’s explore the concepts of gravity. In this chapter, the lesson for grades K–2, through several activities and readings, students…

  • Gravity

    Book Chapter |

    There is always a force between the Earth and other masses. This force is called gravity or gravitation. Gravity affects all objects on Earth. It doesn’t matter if they are on the ground or in the air. In this chapter,…

  • Acceleration of Gravity 1

    Book Chapter |

    This lab is a Level 2 inquiry activity that should be taught after students understand acceleration but before they learn the equations for calculating the acceleration of a body dropped from a certain height. After…

  • Acceleration of Gravity 2

    Book Chapter |

    This lab is between a Level 2 and Level 3 inquiry activity in that it should be assigned after students understand acceleration but before they learn about the acceleration gravity. Because there are many sources of…

  • Experiencing Gravity

    Book Chapter |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students' ideas about gravity. The probe is designed to reveal whether students recognize that gravitational force is universal and that it works on every object in the…

  • Gravity Rocks!

    Book Chapter |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students' ideas about gravity. The probe is designed to reveal whether students recognize that objects closer to the center of Earth's mass experience the greatest…

  • Acceleration and Gravity

    Book Chapter |

    The purpose of this lab is to introduce students to the core idea of forces and motion by having them explore ”What Is the Relationship Between the Mass of an Object and Its Acceleration During Free Fall?” The Teacher…

  • What’s Up With Gravity?

    Journal Article |

  • Earth’s Shape and Gravity

    Book Chapter |

    It is not difficult to think of reasons why it is important for students to understand that a round globe represents our planet. After all, Earth is our home in space. Environmentalists remind us that it’s the only home…

  • Talking About Gravity

    Book Chapter |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about gravity. The probe is designed to determine whether students recognize that gravity is a universal force that exists everywhere on Earth and in…

  • Gravity in Other Planetary Systems

    Book Chapter |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about gravity. The probe is designed to find out if students recognize the effect of mass on gravitational attraction, and that neither a planet’s spin…

  • Lab 3: Gravity and Orbits

    Book Chapter |

    In this lab investigation, students are introduced to the disciplinary core ideas of (a) The Universe and Its Stars and (b) Earth and the Solar System as they explore the role that gravity plays in the motion of objects…

  • Where Do You Find Gravity?

    Book Chapter |

    The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit students’ ideas about gravity. The probe is designed to see if students recognize that gravity exists everywhere in space, not just on Earth.

  • There's No Such Thing as Gravity--The Earth Sucks

    Book Chapter |

    What happens when you drop an object on the ground? Though it might not be obvious, the object speeds up as it falls. That means it's accelerating and there must be a force acting on it. The force that's acting on it is…

  • Making light work of gravity: Scaffolding middle schoolers’ thinking to help them understand gravitational lensing.

    Journal Article |

    Although the NGSS has helped teachers conceptualize teaching science in a more integrated way, effectively scaffolding students’ thinking within and across lessons can still be a challenge for any middle school science…

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