Teacher Demonstration
Use the live model as a shared screen demonstration before students try their own predictions and observations.
Physics / Newtonian Mechanics
Falling Basketbal (Conservation Of Energy)
Explore Falling Basketbal (Conservation Of Energy) 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.
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2. Big Ideas
Key idea Mechanical-energy Tracker activities connect motion evidence to energy stores. Height, speed, stretch, and rebound give clues about gravitational potential energy, kinetic energy, elastic energy, and losses.
What Students Can Learn
- Connect height changes to gravitational potential energy.
- Connect speed changes to kinetic energy.
- Recognise elastic storage or energy loss where the video shows stretch, bounce, or damping.
- Use before-and-after motion evidence instead of saying energy disappears.
Guiding Question
Where has the mechanical energy moved between the two moments being compared?
3. Try the Investigation
Choose Two Moments
Select a clear before-and-after pair such as top and bottom, before and after a bounce, or before and after maximum stretch.
Read Motion Evidence
Use speed, height, stretch, or rebound height as the visible evidence.
Name the Stores
Identify gravitational, kinetic, elastic, or thermal stores that fit the observation.
Account for Changes
Explain whether energy is conserved within the chosen system or transferred out by losses.
4. Teacher Notes
Lesson Use
Use this as an energy-accounting task anchored to real motion. Students should compare two moments rather than describe the whole video loosely.
Discussion Prompts
Ask: Where is speed greatest? Where is height greatest? Is there stretch or bounce evidence? What store gained energy?
Teaching Moves
Have students annotate two frames with energy-store labels, then write a conservation or transfer statement.
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
Correct first attempts build a streak and unlock higher point multipliers on this device.
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Answer each question once to build your streak.
1. What evidence suggests high kinetic energy in a motion video?
2. What energy store is associated with height?
3. If a bounce returns to a lower height, what should students discuss?
4. Why compare two moments?
5. What makes the conclusion strong?
Expert Challenge
Unlocks after 3 correct concept-check answers on this page.
1. In a bungee, basketball, or roller-coaster energy model, what is the best expert evidence for energy transfer?
2. At the lowest point of an ideal roller-coaster track, what should students usually check?
3. In a bungee model, why can speed be zero at a low turning point while force is not zero?
4. What is the expert critique of 'energy is lost because the ball does not reach the same height'?
5. When comparing two launches or drops, what should the student change first?
7. Learning Pulse
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