Physical Science · Energy
Kinetic & Potential Energy: Mass, Speed & Position
Use graphs to analyze how object-scale kinetic energy relates to mass and speed, then model how relative position changes gravitational potential energy in an Earth-object system.
Teacher workspace
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55 min~10 min prep5 materialsNGSS Middle School (Grades 6–8) Alignment · MS-PS3-1 · MS-PS3-2
Lesson Plan
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Lesson overview
What students will learn
- Construct and interpret graphs showing the relationship between kinetic energy and mass at constant speed.
- Construct and interpret graphs showing the relationship between kinetic energy and speed at constant mass.
Key science ideas
- A moving object has kinetic energy.
- At the same speed, an object with greater mass has greater kinetic energy.
- For the same mass, increasing speed increases kinetic energy strongly; the relationship is not linear.
Lesson at a glance
- Grade 6
- 55 min
- ~10 min prep
- MS-PS3-1 · MS-PS3-2
- 5 materials
What’s included
- Lesson Plan
- Investigation
- Teacher Slides
- Printable Worksheet
- Teacher Answer Key
- Interactive Activity
- Vocabulary