Spotting Patterns to Predict Motion

Science · Forces & Motion · ages 8-9

Name ______________________ Date ____________

Look at the bars. Which ramp height made the ball roll the farthest?
- Low ramp
- Medium ramp
- High ramp
Mia wants to find a pattern in how ramps affect ball rolls. What should she do first?
- Guess the answer without testing
- Measure how far the ball rolls each time
- Only test the highest ramp
If a ball rolls farther every time the ramp gets taller, that counts as a pattern.
Circle one: True False
Sam tested three ramps and saw that taller ramps make the ball roll farther. He wants to check his prediction for a new ramp height. What should he do?
- Just guess and move on
- Roll the ball down the new ramp and measure the distance
- Assume the pattern is wrong since he hasn't tried it
A ball rolls 1m from a 10cm ramp, 2m from a 20cm ramp, and 3m from a 30cm ramp. Using the pattern, how far should it roll from a 40cm ramp, in meters?
Answer: ______________
A toy car goes faster every time it rolls down a steeper slope. What pattern does this show?
- Steeper slope = faster speed
- Steeper slope = slower speed
- Slope has no effect on speed
A ball rolls 1m for every 10cm of ramp height. Zara wants the ball to roll 6m. How tall should she make the ramp, in cm?
Answer: ______________
Leo measured his ball rolling 2m, then 4m, but only 1m on the third try, even though the ramp kept getting taller. What might have gone wrong?
- The pattern is broken forever
- Something may have changed, like the ramp surface or how the ball was released
- Ball height patterns are never reliable

Answer key

For grown-ups. Fold this page away before handing over the rest.

High ramp · The tallest bar shows the ramp that sent the ball farthest: the high ramp.
Measure how far the ball rolls each time · You need real measurements from several tries before you can spot a pattern.
True · A pattern is something that repeats in a predictable way, like taller ramp, farther roll.
Roll the ball down the new ramp and measure the distance · Testing the prediction means actually rolling the ball and measuring, not just guessing.
4 · Each 10cm of height adds 1m of roll, so a 40cm ramp should send it about 4m.
Steeper slope = faster speed · The data shows a clear trend: as the slope gets steeper, the car's speed increases.
60 · Using the pattern of 10cm ramp equals 1m roll, reaching 6m needs a ramp of 60cm.
Something may have changed, like the ramp surface or how the ball was released · When one measurement breaks the pattern, it's worth checking if something in the setup changed, not throwing out the pattern.