EQUATIONS OF SCIENCE
Lesson 5

  

PHYSICAL SCIENCES –  EQUATIONS OF SCIENCE

LESSON 5.  Hooke’s Law

 

Objective:  Students investigate Hooke’s Law by collecting and analyzing data.

 

Materials:
           spring scale (newtons)

ruler

varies weights

            graph paper (optional)

 

Teacher Notes:
 

This exercise allows students to collect data and then graph the data on a Cartesian Coordinate System, so they can see if they can interpret the meaning of the graph. 

Robert Hooke, the discoverer of Hooke’s Law should be emphasized so students see that all scientists are always searching and using math tools to figure out problems.  The spring problem probably came from Hooke trying to make a better timing mechanism for watches.  The greater implications of his discovery would come centuries later.  

 

ANSWER:

 

MASS

SPRING

NEWTONS

0

22 mm

0

50

27 mm (-22 =5)

.5

100

32 mm

1.0

150

37 mm

1.5

200

42 mm

2.0

The following is an example of the type of data the students should get.  It will depend on the mass and the spring balances that you use.

 

 

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