Graphical Analysis of Uniform Motion

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Subject: Physics

Semester: 1

Period: 2

Week: 9

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School Name:

Teacher’s Name:

Subject: Physics

Grade Level: Grade 10

Week & Period: Week 9, Period II

Date:

Sub-topic: Graphical Analysis of Uniform Motion

Learning Objectives:
By the end of this lesson, learners should be able to:

1. Interpret position-time, displacement-time, and velocity-time graphs.
2. Plot motion graphs using experimental data.
3. Analyze slope and area under graphs to extract motion quantities.
4. Use graphs to explain acceleration and uniform motion.

Instructional Materials:

• Graph sheets
• Rulers, pencils, erasers
• Stopwatch, toy car, inclined plane
• Pre-drawn motion graphs
• Data tables from Week 8 activities

Anticipation (Warm-Up):
Ask learners:

• “How can we represent motion on a graph?”
• “What would a graph of a car moving at constant speed look like?”

Building Knowledge:

1. Position-Time Graphs:
   • Slope = speed
   • Straight line = uniform speed
   • Curve = acceleration
2. Displacement-Time Graphs:
   • Similar to position-time, but displacement can be negative
   • Horizontal line = object at rest
3. Velocity-Time Graphs:
   • Slope = acceleration
   • Area under graph = displacement
   • Positive slope = increasing velocity
   • Negative slope = deceleration
   • Horizontal line = constant velocity

Examples:

1. Plot a position-time graph for a car moving 5 m every second for 5 seconds.
   • Slope = 5 m/s
   • Straight line through origin
2. Velocity-Time Graph example:
   A car accelerates from 0 to 20 m/s in 4 seconds.
   • Slope = (20 - 0) / 4 = 5 m/s²
   • Area under triangle = ½ × 4 × 20 = 40 m

Activities:

• Plot graphs using data from Week 8 ramp experiment
• Identify types of motion from graph shapes
• Match equations to their corresponding graphs

Assessment:
Oral:

1. What does the slope of a velocity-time graph represent?
2. How can you find distance from a velocity-time graph?

Written:

1. A body moves with constant velocity. Sketch the position-time and velocity-time graphs.
2. A vehicle decelerates from 30 m/s to 0 in 6 seconds. Sketch and interpret its velocity-time graph.

Homework:

1. Plot a displacement-time graph for a car moving 3 m/s for 6 seconds.
2. From a given velocity-time graph, calculate the distance covered in 5 seconds.
3. Explain why the area under a velocity-time graph represents displacement.

Expanded Notes:

• Graphs are visual tools for analyzing motion
• Slope = rate of change (speed or acceleration)
• Area under v–t graph gives displacement, useful when motion is non-uniform
• Shapes of graphs communicate motion type (rest, acceleration, constant speed)

Differentiation:

• Allow use of colored pencils to distinguish axes and data lines
• Provide graph templates with axis scales pre-drawn
• Step-by-step plotting guidance for students needing support

Teacher’s Reflection:

• Were learners confident in interpreting graphs?
• Did they connect graph shapes with motion types?
• Who needs reinforcement in reading or plotting graphs?