Unit 2: Energy and Engineering

How can we use STEM to make thrilling experiences safe?


About

Unit 2 Contents

A. Unit Resources
B. Unit Information
C. Standards & Practices
D. Task Sets

2.1 How do we model and think through our problem?
2.2 How can we use system analysis to help us think about and predict a bungee jump?
2.3 How can we start mathematically modeling the energies in a bungee jump?
2.4 How can we model the elastic potential energy to determine how much the bungee cord will stretch during the jump?
2.5 Design an Experiment to Quantify the Strength of the Bungee Cord
2.6 How can we design and troubleshoot our app and test jump to iterate our design to get everything working?
2.7 Answering “How can we design an app for a thrilling, safe bungee jump ride for Oaks Park?” aka Jump Day
2.8 How can we determine if a video is real or fake?

Unit Outcome

This unit aims to elevate students' engineering and coding skills through engaging them in a three-dimensional learning progression that focuses on the big ideas around conservation of energy, along with energy transfers and transformations.

Anchoring Phenomenon

This storyline’s anchoring phenomenon is a bungee jump that ultimately serves as a springboard for students’ toy bungee jump.

Essential Question

How can we use STEM to make thrilling experiences safe?

Unit 2 Planner

The Unit 2 Planner Google Doc can be accessed using the link above. This planner contains links to all lessons, lesson materials, and teacher notes.

Unit 2 Storyline

A storyline shows the sequence of lessons and activities for a unit and is designed to help you understand how the unit progresses over time and to see what students are expected to learn and how they will represent their learning. 

This storyline has 4 sections for each Unit Task: 1)  Task Question, 2) Phenomenon or Design Problem, 3) What We Want to Figure Out, and 4) How we Represent it. The storyline shows the flow of the unit so teachers can easily see how the tasks are connected to each other and how each task allows students to progress towards a  more complete understanding of the Unit Phenomenon.

Unit Summary

To contextualize the Energy and Engineering unit, students are tasked to engineer an app and a bungee cord to optimize the enjoyment of a doll’s bungee jump. To do this, students first develop mathematical models through inquiry of gravitational, kinetic, and elastic energy. Once the patterns have been established, student use computational thinking to code a spreadsheet that will account for the initial conditions of the jump and predict the length of the bungee cord necessary to ensure a safe, thrilling jump.

How is the Unit Structured?

Unit 2 contains 8 task sets which will take approximately 6 weeks to complete.

Essential Questions and Phenomenon for the 8 learning tasks are discussed in the overview videos for Unit 2 Full Video (16:48 minutes) (ad-free version) and Shorter Video (5:39 minutes) (ad-free version) 

Unit 2 Webinar Overview of the Unit
Unit 2 Webinar Agenda

Unit Resources

Open Access Unit 2

  • This Google folder (English) - houses all documents for this unit that have been updated.

  • Google folder (Spanish) - coming soon

Unit 2 Student Packet 

Career Connected Learning

  • Coming soon

Vocabulary List

Tests, Quizzes, Rubrics and Keys

  • These are restricted documents. Restricted-access materials are for teachers only. You must request access. To request access to the restricted folder, please fill out this linked Google form.

Unit Information

Standards & Practices

    • HS-PS3-1: Create a computational model to calculate the change in the energy of one component in a system when the change in energy of the other component(s) and energy flows in and out of the system are known. [Clarification Statement: Emphasis is on explaining the meaning of mathematical expressions used in the model.] [Assessment Boundary: Assessment is limited to basic algebraic expressions or computations; to systems of two or three components; and to thermal energy, kinetic energy, and/or the energies in gravitational, magnetic, or electric fields.]

    • HS-ETS1-2. Design a solution to a complex real-world problem by breaking it down into smaller, more manageable problems that can be solved through engineering.

    • HS-ETS1-4: Use a computer simulation to model the impact of proposed solutions to a complex real-world problem with numerous criteria and constraints on interactions within and between systems relevant to the problem.

  • Appendix E

    This unit focuses on these Disciplinary Core Ideas

    • PS3.A: Definitions of Energy

      • Energy is a quantitative property of a system that depends on the motion and interactions of matter and radiation within that system. That there is a single quantity called energy is due to the fact that a system’s total energy is conserved, even as, within the system, energy is continually transferred from one object to another and between its various possible forms.

    • PS3.B: Conservation of Energy and Energy Transfer

      • Conservation of energy means that the total change of energy in any system is always equal to the total energy transferred into or out of the system.

      • Energy cannot be created or destroyed, but it can be transported from one place to another and transferred between systems.

      • Mathematical expressions, which quantify how the stored energy in a system depends on its configuration (e.g., relative positions of charged particles, compression of a spring) and how kinetic energy depends on mass and speed, allow the concept of conservation of energy to be used to predict and describe system behavior.

      • The availability of energy limits what can occur in any system.

    • ETS1.B: Developing Possible Solutions

      • Both physical models and computers can be used in various ways to aid in the engineering design process. Computers are useful for a variety of purposes, such as running simulations to test different ways of solving a problem or to see which one is most efficient or economical; and in making a persuasive presentation to a client about how a given design will meet his or her needs.

  • Appendix F

    This unit focuses on these Science and Engineering Practices

    • Using Mathematics and Computational Thinking Mathematical and computational thinking at the 9–12 level builds on K–8 and progresses to using algebraic thinking and analysis; a range of linear and nonlinear functions including trigonometric functions, exponentials and logarithms; and computational tools for statistical analysis to analyze, represent, and model data. Simple computational simulations are created and used based on mathematical models of basic assumptions.

      • Create a computational model or simulation of a phenomenon, designed device, process, or system.

      • Use mathematical models and/or computer simulations to predict the effects of a design solution on systems and/or the interactions between systems.

  • Appendix G

    This unit focuses on these Crosscutting Concepts

    • Systems and System Models

      • Models can be used to predict the behavior of a system, but these predictions have limited precision and reliability due to the assumptions and approximations inherent in models.

      • Models (e.g., physical, mathematical, computer models) can be used to simulate systems and interactions — including energy, matter, and information flows — within and between systems at different scales

  • Appendix H

    This unit focuses on these aspects of the Nature of Science (NOS)

    • Scientific Knowledge Assumes an Order and Consistency in Natural Systems

      • Science assumes the universe is a vast single system in which basic laws are consistent.

Other Unit Resources