Energy in Motion: Marble Collision Inquiry Lab
A hands-on inquiry lab in which 4th graders roll marbles down a track to investigate how energy transfers during collisions, using a hypothesis and data table to record evidence. It builds scientific inquiry, measurement, and claim-evidence reasoning, and is aligned to NYS P-12 Science Learning Standard SLS.4-PS3-2, making it well suited to a single extended science block or small-group lab stations.
Teacher Guide & Tips
- Introduce the inquiry question (How does marble size affect energy transfer?) before students build their track, and have them write a hypothesis using the starter sentence to ground their predictions.
- Discussion question: What evidence told you energy moved from one marble to the other, and how did you know it wasn't just the first marble rolling on its own?
- Scaffold for struggling readers: provide a word bank of key terms (energy, transfer, collision, stationary) and a labeled sample data table so students can focus on procedure rather than format.
- Extension for advanced students: have them design a fair test changing one additional variable, such as track height or release distance, and explain how it would change the energy transfer.
- Estimated time: about 45 to 60 minutes, including setup, trials, data recording, and a brief class discussion of results.
Energy in Motion: Marble Collision Inquiry Lab
A hands-on inquiry lab in which 4th graders roll marbles down a track to investigate how energy transfers during collisions, using a hypothesis and data table to record evidence. It builds scientific inquiry, measurement, and claim-evidence reasoning, and is aligned to NYS P-12 Science Learning Standard SLS.4-PS3-2, making it well suited to a single extended science block or small-group lab stations.
Teacher Guide & Tips
- Introduce the inquiry question (How does marble size affect energy transfer?) before students build their track, and have them write a hypothesis using the starter sentence to ground their predictions.
- Discussion question: What evidence told you energy moved from one marble to the other, and how did you know it wasn't just the first marble rolling on its own?
- Scaffold for struggling readers: provide a word bank of key terms (energy, transfer, collision, stationary) and a labeled sample data table so students can focus on procedure rather than format.
- Extension for advanced students: have them design a fair test changing one additional variable, such as track height or release distance, and explain how it would change the energy transfer.
- Estimated time: about 45 to 60 minutes, including setup, trials, data recording, and a brief class discussion of results.