Here you will find all of the work we have done on our unit covering Pulleys and Gears.  I will try to include a brief explanation of the lesson, as well as any worksheets we have used.
 

Lesson 1

Uses of Pulleys and Gears

 

 We started our unit by looking at an image depicting several uses of both pulleys and gears.  In small groups we made a list of all of these uses we could find.  We then added our personal ideas to our list.  From there we merged our list with the lists put together by the other groups.  Once our master list was compiled we took the ideas and made a title page for our new unit.

 

Lesson 2

Making a Pulley System

 

 

 At the start of class we held a discussion on the importance of listening to instructions and how it relates to safety.  The reason we did so was because today was an experiment day.  We started by reading about a pulley system used in Africa to get water from a well.  We then paired up and used some basic supplies to reproduce the concept of that pulley system.  This led us to next classes challenge of...

Worksheet

Lesson 3

Improving a Pulley System

 

 ... improving upon the pulley system.  Today we continued with exploring how we can use some common items to make pulley systems.  We were given challenges in improving our design, and the entire period to work.

 

Lesson 4

Improving a Pulley System

 

 

 Today we started by documenting our activities over the past couple classes.  When we were down answering questions about our structure that incorporated pulleys, we then sat as a group to see a demonstration of what pulleys can do.  We saw a variety of setups, using single and multiple pulleys, and with the pulleys attached in different ways.  When feeling the required force to use each of these systems we noticed that as the system became more "complicated" it became easier to lift the mass.  At this point there was no explanation, as today was simply a demonstration.

 

Lesson 5

Pulley Information

 

 

 

 

 Our lesson today started by reading some information about pulleys.  We learned that pulleys can be fixed - attached to a structure, or moveable - move relative to the structure.  We also learned that when we combine pulleys they become a pulley system.  We were then left to ourselves to learn about mechanical advantage.  We did this by using the information on our papers and some pictures to come to the understanding that mechanical advantage is when a system makes it easier to move a load.  At the end of class we reviewed our answers on our worksheet, and discussed mechanical advantage as a group.

Worksheet               Answers

 

Lesson 6

Pulley Questions

 

 To start the lesson we were handed a worksheet and asked to work quietly on it.  We were told that while we were working something else was being set up.  As we worked through some questions about pulleys, and the information we learned last class, a pulley system was being assembled at the back of class.  When it was ready we gathered around, it was a triple fixed, triple moveable pulley system.  We each got a chance to feel the mechanical advantage produced by this system (it makes things 6 times easier to lift), and we also learned that there is a disadvantage.  When there is a mechanical advantage it takes more string to lift the load.  For our system with a mechanical advantage of 6, we had to pull the string 60 cm just to raise the load 10 cm.

Worksheet               Answers

 

Lesson 7

Pulleys in Action

 

 

 

 

 

 For the next two periods we wanted to look at real pulley systems being used in the world around us.  To do this we used the computers to view a variety of pulley systems.  As we looked at each system we answered a series of questions.  Included with the webpage we used was a video to help reinforce some of the information we have learned about pulleys. 

Webpage               Worksheet               Answers

Also today we were informed that we will be writing a quiz in a week.  The review was handed out and discussed in class today.

Review

 

Lesson 8

Pulley Play Time

 

 Today's class was set aside just to play with our pulleys.  There were no expectations given (other than of course following school rules and staying safe), which allowed us to explore what could be done in what ever fashion we wanted.  What we discovered was that pulleys are a lot harder to set up that we thought.  Remember to study for your quiz.

 

Lesson 9

Pulley Quiz

 

 Today's lesson was used to write our pulleys quiz.

 

 

Lesson 10

The Great Escape

 

 

 

 

 For our last activity using pulleys we were divided into two teams.  The scene was then set:  "You are trapped on the roof of a burning skyscraper.  The stairways are all blocked, there is no way to get down.  There is an adjacent building that is not on fire, but will be destroyed when the building you are on collapses.  Luckily for you, you brought all of your pulley supplies with you to the roof.  You need to get safely to the ground before the buildings are destroyed in exactly 30 minutes!"  Each student represented themselves with a Lego man and desks were used to represent the two buildings.  Teams then built pulley systems to transport all of the Lego men from one desk to the other, then down to the ground.

 

Lesson 11

Gear Information

 

 

 

 

 Our lesson today started by reading some information about gears.  We learned that gears have teeth that mesh together to transfer force and movement.  We also learned that when we combine three or more gears they become a gear train.  We were then to answer some questions about our reading and four types of gears.  At the end of class we reviewed our answers on our worksheet.

Worksheet               Answers

Homework - For next class we need corrugated cardboard.  Please try to bring some for yourself and someone else.

 

Lesson 12

Exploring Gears - Setup

 

 

 Today we discussed our next activity, which will involve making gears and observing what happens as we combine them.  Today we took some gear templates and used them to cut out some gears from the cardboard we brought to school.  We also did some predictions as to what would happen when we did our activity.

Cut-outs

 

Lesson 13

Exploring Gears - Experiment

 

 With our gears cut out last class we were ready to start exploring them today.  We followed our activity worksheet to test combinations of different gears to discover that the number of teeth has an affect on how much and how fast gears turn.  After we finished the required combinations of gears we were allotted time to test other combinations of our choosing.

 

Lesson 14

Exploring Gears - Questions

 

 

 Today we concluded our exploring gears activity by documenting what we have found.  We discovered that gears of different sizes will turn at different rates when meshed.  A small gear causes a large gear to spin slowly and fewer times, or a large gear will make a small gear turn quickly and more times.

Worksheet               Answers

 

Lesson 15

Gear Questions

 

 

 We combined this lesson with our next because of limited supplies for our next lesson.  During the first day half of the class did this lesson, and half did the next.  We then switched the next day.

Our job today was to take what we know about gears and apply it to a few gear combinations.  We did this be answering some questions about 3 different gear systems.

Worksheet               Answers

 

Lesson 16

 Building with  Gears

 

 

 We combined this lesson with our previous because of limited supplies for this lesson.  During the first day half of the class did this lesson, and half did the previous.  We then switched the next day.

Today we were given a box of K'Nex toys and a set of instructions to build an functional device that uses gears.  The device we built was an eggbeater, which incorporated a pair of bevel gears.

 

Lesson 17

Gears in Action

 

 

 

 

 

 For today's period we wanted to look at real gear systems being used in the world around us.  To do this we used the computers to view a variety of gear systems.  As we looked at each system we answered a series of questions.  Included with the webpage we used was a video to help reinforce some of the information we have learned about gears. 

Webpage               Worksheet               Answers

Also today we were informed that we will be writing a quiz in a week.  The review was handed out and discussed in class today.

Review

 

Lesson 18

Bicycles

 

 

Today we had the opportunity to experiment on a bicycle.  We learned that a bicycle uses sprocket and chain gears to transfer the force of the rider to the back wheel.  We turned the bike upside down and took a good look at the gears.  We then tested different gear ratios to see how many times the back wheel would rotate.

Worksheet               Answers

 

Lesson 19

Bicycles Questions

 

Most of our period last class was taken up by our experimenting, so today we too the time to answer our questions about bikes.  These were the questions that were on the back of our worksheet from last class.

 

Lesson 20

Gears Quiz

 

Today was used to write our gears quiz.

 

 

Lesson 21

Impact on Life

 

 

 

For today's lesson we looked at escalators and elevators.  These are two devices that use both pulleys and gears.  Our work involved looking at both the positive and negative aspects of having escalators and elevators.  We organized our thoughts into a "T" chart.  When done we looked at the information to decide which side was more convincing.  When we had decided, we were then to write a paragraph explaining why we should either keep using or get rid of these devices.

Worksheet

 

Lesson 22

Unit Summary

 

 

This is our last lesson for this unit, however we are not doing an end of unit test.  Today we were given a sheet with 7 questions on it.  Those seven questions are taken directly from the science curriculum.  We used a few periods to look back through our whole unit and answer the questions to show our understanding of pulleys and gears.

Worksheet               Answers

 
   
This concludes our unit on Rocks and Minerals.  Our next unit is Light and Sound.