Teacher Demonstration
Use the live model as a shared screen demonstration before students try their own predictions and observations.
Physics / Newtonian Mechanics
Ball Toss Video Model
Explore Ball Toss Video Model as an interactive EJS simulation for mechanics.
1. Watch or Launch
Launch the Interactive
Open the simulation, adjust the controls, and compare what changes on screen before answering the concept-check questions.
2. Big Ideas
Key idea Projectile dynamics links the observed trajectory to forces. In the ideal case after launch, gravity is the only force acting, so horizontal velocity stays constant while vertical velocity changes.
What Students Can Learn
- Separate launch conditions from forces during flight.
- Recognise gravity as the vertical force in the ideal model.
- Compare real or model trajectories with and without drag where available.
- Use force reasoning to explain the curved path.
Guiding Question
After launch, which force changes the projectile's vertical motion?
3. Try the Investigation
Set the Launch
Choose initial speed and angle, then predict the shape of the trajectory.
Track Components
Compare horizontal and vertical motion during flight.
Look for Drag Effects
If air resistance is included, compare the trajectory with the ideal case.
Explain with Forces
State which forces act after launch and how they change the motion.
4. Teacher Notes
Lesson Use
Use the model to connect kinematics graphs to force reasoning. Students often think a force continues in the launch direction; this challenges that idea.
Discussion Prompts
Ask: What force acts after the projectile leaves the launcher? Why does horizontal motion differ from vertical motion?
Teaching Moves
Separate during-launch from after-launch. Require forces only for the flight phase before describing the trajectory.
5. Concept Check
These questions are generated from the topic and the concept illustrated by the simulation. Use them after students have explored the model.
Concept Score
Correct first attempts build a streak and unlock higher point multipliers on this device.
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Answer each question once to build your streak.
1. In ideal projectile motion after launch, which force acts on the projectile?
2. What happens to horizontal velocity in the ideal no-drag model?
3. What causes the projectile's path to curve downward?
4. Why compare with and without drag?
5. What is a strong explanation of the flight?
Expert Challenge
Unlocks after 3 correct concept-check answers on this page.
1. A tracked ball has a slightly curved position-time graph, but a student concludes constant velocity from the video alone. What is the best feedback?
2. Why is choosing the same tracking point on the object important?
3. A Tracker graph has scattered points around a fitted straight line. Which conclusion is strongest?
4. What does setting the scale in a video analysis mainly affect?
5. A student gets different accelerations depending on the origin chosen. What should you check first?
7. Learning Pulse
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