Teacher Demonstration
Use the live model as a shared screen demonstration before students try their own predictions and observations.
Physics / Newtonian Mechanics
Simplified Atwood Machine for Computational Thinking purpose
Explore Intro Page as an interactive EJS simulation for mechanics.
1. Watch or Launch
Launch the Interactive
Open the simulation, adjust the controls, and compare what changes on screen before answering the concept-check questions.
2. Big Ideas
Key idea Ropes and pulleys can create turning effects when tensions act at a distance from an axle. The rotational outcome depends on the net torque about the pulley or pivot.
What Students Can Learn
- Identify the axle or pivot.
- Compare tensions and their moment arms.
- Use net torque to predict angular acceleration.
- Recognise when equal and opposite torques balance.
Guiding Question
Which side of the pulley produces the larger torque about the axle?
3. Try the Investigation
Identify the Axle
Mark the centre about which the pulley or beam turns.
Compare the Rope Forces
Decide which rope tension is larger and where it acts.
Predict Rotation
Use torque direction to predict clockwise or anticlockwise motion.
Check the Motion
Run the model and compare angular motion with your torque prediction.
4. Teacher Notes
Lesson Use
Use this after basic moments, as students can apply the same pivot-distance idea to rotating pulleys.
Discussion Prompts
Ask: Which forces produce torque about the axle? Which forces pass through the axle and produce no torque? What changes if masses are swapped?
Teaching Moves
Separate force balance from torque balance. A system can have forces and still have zero net torque, or vice versa.
5. Concept Check
These questions are generated from the topic and the concept illustrated by the simulation. Use them after students have explored the model.
Concept Score
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1. What determines the torque from a rope on a pulley?
2. If clockwise and anticlockwise torques are equal, what is the net torque?
3. Which point is used as the pivot for a pulley torque calculation?
4. What does a non-zero net torque cause?
5. What should a good explanation compare?
7. Learning Pulse
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