Page 135 - Big Ideas Year 10 sciPAD 2025

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SCIPAD - BIG IDEAS - BOOK 2
FORCES AND MOTION
Speeding Past School?
The Principal is worried about the speed of cars travelling past the school. From the Principal’s
office it appears that the cars are travelling too fast. Scientific evidence is required before the
Police get involved. Your task is to calculate the average speed of the vehicles passing the front
of your school.
You will be provided with a stopwatch and a 50 m tape.
Instructions:
As a group decide how you are going to carry out this investigation. Then present your idea to
your teacher. Once your teacher has approved your method, carry out your investigation. You will
need to write up your report so it is able to be presented to the Principal.
To convert speed measured in m s-1 to km hr-1 multiply by 3.6
Report to the Principal
Aim: 

Method: 







Results:
Speed Car 1 Car 2 Car 3 Car 4 Car 5 Car 6 Car 7 Car 8 Car 9 Car 10 Average
Time (s)
m s-1
km hr-1
Conclusion (describe the results and state if they match the Principal’s hypothesis?)




1. What was the average speed of the cars you measured? 
2. Should the Principal be worried about speeding on this road? 
3. Outline how you could improve this investigation and make it more accurate.




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