About the Science Reasoning Center

Highly Recommended
Like all our Science Reasoning Center activities, the completion of the Ballistics activity requires that a student use provided information about a phenomenon, experiment, or data presentation to answer questions. This information is accessible by tapping on the small thumbnails found on the bottom right of every question. However, it may be considerably easier to have a printed copy of this information or to display the information in a separate browser window. You can access this information from this page.





The Standards
The Ballistics activity compares and contrasts the trajectories of an airborne object in the absence and in the presence of air resitance. Factors that affect the amount of air resistance are covered. Questions target a student's ability to read a complex graph and to use equations, to use information regarding changes in object shape, area, and mass to predict the characteristics of the resulting trajectory, and to use the relationship between air resistance and object speed.


Success with the activity requires some degree of proficiency with respect to ...

• Asking Questions and Defining Problems (Science and Engineering Practice 1.2)
  Ask questions that arise from examining models or a theory, to clarify and/or seek additional information and relationships.
• Developing and Using Models (Science and Engineering Practice 2.3)
  Develop, revise, and/or use a model based on evidence to illustrate and/or predict the relationships between systems or between components of a system.
• Developing and Using Models (Science and Engineering Practice 2.4)
  Develop and/or use multiple types of models to provide mechanistic accounts and/or predict phenomena, and move flexibly between model types based on merits and limitations.
• Analyzing and Interpreting Data (Science and Engineering Practice 4.1)
  Analyze data using tools, technologies, and/or models (e.g., computational, mathematical) in order to make valid and reliable scientific claims.
• Constructing Explanations and Designing Solutions (Science and Engineering Practice 6.1)
  Make a quantitative and/or qualitative claim regarding the relationship between dependent and independent variables.
• Constructing Explanations and Designing Solutions (Science and Engineering Practice 6.3)
  Apply scientific ideas, principles, and/or evidence to provide an explanation of phenomena and solve design problems, taking into account possible unanticipated effects.
• Patterns (Crosscutting Concept 1.5)
  Mathematical representations are needed to identify some patterns.
• Cause and Effect (Crosscutting Concept 2.3)
  Cause and effect relationships can be suggested and predicted for complex natural and human designed systems by examining what is known about smaller scale mechanisms within the system.
• Systems and System Models (Crosscutting Concept 4.1)
  When investigating or describing a system, the boundaries and initial conditions of the system need to be defined and their inputs and outputs analyzed and described using models.
• Stability and Change (Crosscutting Concept 7.4)
  Change and rates of change can be quantified and modeled over very short or very long periods of time. Some system changes are irreversible.

While the Projectile Range activity addresses the six NextGen Science and Engineering Practices and the four crosscutting concept above, the activity drew its greatest inspiration from ACT's College Readiness Standards for Science Reasoning. The activity consists of 79 questions organized into 18 Question Groups that are spread across the four activities. Primarily a single strand strands (Evaluation of Models, Inferences, and Experimental Results - EMI) of the College Readiness Standards is addressed in this activity. The code given for the standard includes three letters to indicate the strand and three numbers to indicate the specific standard within that strand. Higher numbers are indicative of more complex science reasoning skills. The relationship between the questions and the standards is as follows:





Complementary and Similar Resources
The following resources at The Physics Classroom website complement the Ballistics Science Reasoning Activity. Teachers may find them useful for supporting students and/or as components of lesson plans and unit plans.

Physics Classroom Tutorial, Vectors - Motion and Forces in Two Dimensions, Lesson 2

Physics Video Tutorial, Vectors and Projectiles: Motion Characteristics of Projectiles

Physics Interactives, Vectors and Projectiles Chapter, Projectile Simulator

Physics Interactives, Vectors and Projectiles Chapter, Trajectory Simulator

Concept Builders, Vectors and Projectiles: Trajectory - Angle-Launched Projectiles

Concept Builders, Vectors and Projectiles: Which One Doesn't Belong - Projectiles

Minds On Physics, Vectors and Projectiles Module, Mission VP7 - VP10

The Calculator Pad, Vectors and Projectiles, Problem Sets VP11 - VP17 Return to Screen Reader Navigation