Questions / instructions:
Place materials on the table. Read through the First Activity card with the team, then get them to work through each question. Do the same with the Second Activity card after the first has been completed.

In this activity you will be working as a team. You will be finding out about how things fall through the air.

First Activity (presented orally, and on a card) In this activity you are to try to find out whether the size of a parachute makes a difference to how fast it falls through the air.

1. Make up a group plan for testing the 3 parachutes.

Evidence of good planning to:

achieve consistent release
measure descent time
replicate trials
achieve participation

Overall planning rating

excellent or very good
good
fair or poor

2. Try out your plan.
    Make sure everyone is helping.

Evidence of good experimentation

consistent release
accurate timing of descent
replication of trials
recording results

Overall experimentation rating

excellent or very good
good
fair or poor

3. Now tell each other what you found out about how fast the 3 parachutes fell through the air?
    Try to explain why this happened.

Reporting to teacher

very good
moderate
poor

Second Activity (presented orally, and on a card)

1. Think about what would happen if a parachute was wrapped around a person as they fell from a high place. This is different from falling with an open parachute. Discuss in your group what would happen, and why.

2. Make up a group plan for testing what would happen, using the things on the table.
    Agree on how you will test them.

3. Try out your plan.
    Make sure everyone is involved.

4. Now tell each other what you found out from your test. Try to explain why this happened.

Discussion of 2nd activity

very good
moderate
poor