Labs

Arbor Scientific introduces a growing collection of science labs, activities and experiments for physics and physical science teachers. Science labs are designed to cover important key concepts, and may be downloaded and used in your classroom. Whether you're a teacher or home schooling parent, these labs are designed for you. Science labs include teacher's notes with a brief concept review, tips, applicable National Science Content Standards, and a list of equipment. The student pages are ready to reproduce and use right away.

Motion on an Inclined Air Track

Posted on January 1, 2009 by admin

In this simple lab using an air track and two photogates, students will calculate the acceleration of a glider sliding on an incline, and calculate the force that caused the acceleration. Simple connected photogates are needed for this lab. They need to display the time they are blocked, and the time between. Note that “time between” is from the beginning of one gate to the beginning of the other.

This post was posted in Labs, Motion and was tagged with Motion, air track, incline
Magnetic Fields Inquiry

Posted on November 9, 2008 by Dr. Russell Harkay

We will explore magnetic field configurations and field strengths for permanent magnets in this inquiry exercise. Students will observe the curved field lines around a permanent magnet, and explore how field strength varies with distance. They will observe the magnetic field created by a current-carrying wire, as well as the current created in a wire when a magnet moves past it.

This post was posted in Labs, Electricity & Magnetism and was tagged with magnetic fields, magnets, field lines
Static Electricity

Posted on November 15, 2006 by Buzz Putnam

Static charge (electrons, in this case) can be physically transferred from one object to another through friction. Students will use rubber, glass, fur and silk to create positive and negative charges, and investigate how these charges cause forces.

This post was posted in Labs, Electricity & Magnetism and was tagged with static electricity, electrons, electricity, similar charges
Series Circuits

Posted on November 9, 2006 by Merrill Falk

Circuits Series Circuits Several properties of a series circuit will be demonstrated in this experiment. The primary concepts to be covered are: 1. Lamps in series reduce current flow. 2. Lamps in series increase the total resistance of the circuit. 3. The voltage across each bulb in a series circuit decreases as the number of bulbs in the circuit increases.

This post was posted in Labs, Electricity & Magnetism and was tagged with genecon, bulbs, series circuits
Spark Timer Motion

Posted on May 9, 2006 by Arbor Scientific

Students will use a spark timer to record the motion of two toy cars. The spark timer produces a physical record of the motion by making a mark on tape at set intervals. Students measure the distance between the marks and graph the motion.

This post was posted in Labs, Motion and was tagged with acceleration, velocity, spark timer motion, toy cars, graph
Measuring Constant Velocity

Posted on January 1, 2005 by Cary Busby

Measuring Constant Velocity- A moving object experiences a change in its position in a certain time. For constant velocity, the change in position over each equivalent time period is constant. Students will graph the position vs. time of a moving car. The graph will be a straight line whose slope is the car’s velocity.

This post was posted in Labs, Motion and was tagged with Constant Velocity
Analyzing Motion

Posted on January 1, 2005 by Mark Davids

Science students: Start your engines! “When I pull out the constant velocity cars, I usually hear a chorus of, ‘All right!’ from the class. That's what I think, too, because these powerful miniature dune buggies are so effective at helping my students really grasp what constant motion is and how to graph it.

This post was posted in Labs, Motion and was tagged with Constant Velocity, cars, analyzing motion

Labs

Motion on an Inclined Air Track

Magnetic Fields Inquiry

Static Electricity

Series Circuits

Spark Timer Motion

Measuring Constant Velocity

Analyzing Motion