Acceleration
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👩 Teacher’s Guide
🎯 Objective
Students will be able to:
- Define acceleration and relate it to changes in velocity
- Calculate acceleration using a = δv ÷ δt
- Interpret positive, negative, and zero acceleration in context
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📝 Teaching Notes
- Key idea to emphasize: Acceleration is change in velocity per time.
- Common misconception: Thinking acceleration only means speeding up.
- Suggested teaching approach:
- Use braking car example (negative acceleration).
- Relate to v–t graphs (slope).
- Include direction changes as acceleration.
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💬 Discussion Starter
Ask students:
- How can two journeys have the same average speed but different motion?
- Why do units matter as much as the numbers?
- How can graphs tell a story about motion?
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🧒 Student Worksheet
Concept and Helping Material
Acceleration is the rate of change of velocity. It can be speeding up, slowing down (negative acceleration), or changing direction, measured in m/s².
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Vocabulary and Definitions
- — Rate of change of velocity.
- — Change in velocity.
- — Metres per second squared, SI unit of acceleration.
- — Acceleration opposite to motion (slowing down).
- — Constant acceleration over time.
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Hands-On Experiment or Activities
Activity 1: Ramp Acceleration
What You Need: ramp, toy car, marker points, stopwatch or video.
What You Do: Time the car between markers to see it takes less time each section as it speeds up.
Think and Talk: What changed? What stayed the same?
Activity 2: Braking Scenario
What You Need: v–t sketch cards.
What You Do: Sketch velocity decreasing to zero and identify negative acceleration.
Think and Talk: What changed? What stayed the same?
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Practice Questions (QA)
1. Define acceleration.
2. Write the acceleration equation.
3. What is the SI unit of acceleration?
4. Is slowing down an acceleration?
5. A car changes from 0 to 20 m/s in 5 s. Acceleration?
6. If acceleration is zero, what does that mean?
7. Can turning at constant speed involve acceleration?
8. What is uniform acceleration?
9. What does negative acceleration indicate in 1D?
10. How can you reduce uncertainty when measuring acceleration?
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Reflection
- Where do you see this idea in sports, travel, or everyday movement?
- What is one measurement or graph habit that would improve your answers?