Week 2: Ramps and Steepness

The class makes predictions about how far an object will roll or slide each time a ramp gets a little bit steeper or a little less steep.

Children discuss experiences with playground slides, then learn the fingerplay “The Slide.” They discuss how the force of gravity makes things move down the slide.

Children send objects down a ramp and sort the objects into two sets: things that slide and things that roll. They discover that objects with a flat side often slide, and objects with a round shape often roll.

Children build ramps and then send small toys or objects down the ramps.

Children try to make a coconut land on a star while exploring how the amount of force, the steepness of a ramp, and the surface texture of the pathway affect how far a coconut will roll.

Children go outside looking for ramps in their environment. Then they describe how the ramp makes a task easier for someone.

Children roll paint-covered marbles in a paper-lined box lid or tray.

Outdoors, children send objects down a slide and sort the objects into sets: things that roll, things that slide, and things that stay put. They compare the results with earlier predictions.

Children close their eyes and imagine they are sliding down a long slide, first gentle and slow, then steep and fast!

Children discuss their sorting of sliding and rolling objects from two earlier activities. They make and test predictions about how new objects will move down a ramp.