: He Poi Piupiu — Swinging Marbles
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Approach:  Station  
Focus: Motion 
Resources: Swinging ball set
632Kb
Questions/instructions:

Tirohia mënä he örite tö taputapu poi piupiu ki te mea i roto i te pikitia.
Äta kumea te poi i tëtahi o ngä pito, ka tuku ai.

Check that your marble set looks like the picture. Gently pull back one of the end marbles and let it go.

% responses
1. Ka ahatia ngä poi i ngä pito e rua?

What happened to the marbles at the ends?
marbles at ends swing out alternately

25
they go backwards and forwards

57
2. Whakamäramatia he aha i pënä ai ngä poi i ngä pito e rua?

Try to explain why that happened.
clear explanation

29
vague idea

55
Explanation: When one end ball hits, it transfers its energy to the next ball, which passes it on to the next ball, etc. The ball at the other end has none to pass it on to, so it swings out (until all the energy has been converted to potential energy). When it swings back in, the flow goes the other way through the balls.

3. I ahatia ngä poi i waenganui?

What happened to the marbles in the middle?
stayed the same – didn’t move (passed energy on)

76

 
Total score:



5

8
4

21
3

44
2

15
0–1

12
Commentary:
A majority of students correctly identified what happened but only 30 percent could explain it well.
 
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