FREE FALL

JEZREEL B. PUNTO
Teacher III
Division of San Pablo City
PRIMING
• Try to catch the bill.
PRIMING
• In a setup a ball and a sheet of
paper will be dropped at 10 m
high. Which of the two objects
will first reach the ground?
OBJECTIVES
• The learners demonstrate an understanding of free
falling bodies.
• Use the fact that the magnitude of acceleration due to
gravity on Earth’s surface is nearly constant and
approximately 9.8 m/s 2 in free-fall problems.
• The learners are able to solve, using experimental and
theoretical approaches, multiconcept, rich-context
problems involving measurement, vectors, motions.
ACTIVITY
Materials
• Two balls of the same size, but different mass. For
example, you could use a metal and a rubber ball or
a wooden and a plastic ball, as long as the two balls
are about the same size. If two spherical balls like
this are unavailable, you could try something like an
apple and a similar-size round rock.
• A video camera and a helper (optional)
ACTIVITY
Preparation
• You will be dropping the two balls from the same height,
at the same time. You set up the ladder or step stool
where you will do your test. If you are using a heavy ball,
be sure to find a testing area where the ball will not hurt
the floor or ground when it lands.
• If you are using a video camera to record the
experiment, set up the camera now and have your
helper get ready to record.
ACTIVITY
Distance Did the balls hit the Acceleration
Setup Time (s)
(m) ground at the same (m/s 2 )

Ball 1
A
Ball 2

Ball 1
B
Ball 2

Object 1
C
Object 2
ACTIVITY
Procedure
• Carefully climb the ladder or step stool with the two balls.
• Drop both balls at the same time, from the same height. Use
a stop watch to measure the time. If you are using a video
camera, be sure to have your helper record the balls falling
and hitting the ground.
• Repeat the experiment at least two more times.
• If you videotaped your experiments, you can watch the
recordings to verify your results.
ACTIVITY
•
Procedure
• Compute for the acceleration of the falling object. Use the
formula which makes use of the distance, initial velocity, time
and distance. As the given.
• 
• Extra: Try this experiment again but this time use balls that have
the same mass but are different sizes.
• Extra: Try testing two objects that have the same mass, but are
different shapes. For example, you could try a large feather and
a very small ball.
ANALYSIS
1. For every setup, did one ball hit the ground before the other or did
both balls hit the ground at the same time?
2. Are your results consistent? Did one ball consistently hit the
ground before the other or did both balls always hit the ground at
the same time?
3. Is there a difference in the computed acceleration on each set-up?
What can you inferred in the following computed acceleration?
4. Will the acceleration change if your drop the ball 1m higher than
the setup in the experiment? Explain your answer?
5. In the third set up, did the two objects reach the ground at the same time?
Why or why not?
RUBRIC
ABSTRACTION
• Galileo
• Galileo showed in 1589 from his Tower of Pisa
experiment that objects should fall roughly on the ground
at the same time but, again, it's debated whether this
actually happened. If you neglect air resistance, objects
falling near Earth’s surface fall with the same
approximate acceleration 9.8 meters per second squared
(9.8m/s2 or g) due to Earth's gravity.
ABSTRACTION
• So the acceleration is the same for the objects, and
consequently their velocity is also increasing at a
constant rate. Because the downward force on an object
is equal to its mass multiplied by g, heavier objects have
a greater downward force. Heavier objects, however,
also have more inertia, which means they resist moving
more than lighter objects do, and so heaver objects need
more force to get them going at the same rate.
• Free fall experiment
ABSTRACTION
• Although we speak of falling objects, objects in upward
motion experience the same free fall acceleration. The
velocity decreases as the object rises until its velocity
momentarily becomes zero as it reaches the maximum height
and then falls back toward the earth with increasing velocity.
• The up and down travel of an object is symmetrical in space
and time around the maximum height reached. This means if
air resistance is neglected, the object will move with the
same speed at the same height, whether it is on its way up or
down.
ABSTRACTION
•
• From the definition of acceleration, now define gas,

• Three important equation that will help you solve

problems on motion
•
•
Solve the following problems
1. A ball is dropped from the window of a three-story
apartment. How far has it fallen after one second? What is
the ball’s velocity after one second of fall?
2. A juggler tosses three balls alternately vertically upward.
Each ball has an initial velocity of 5m/s. How high does
each ball rise? How long does each ball remain in the air?
3. What is the velocity after 2s of a skydiver who is freely
falling?
•
Sample Problem:
A ball is dropped from the window of a three-story
apartment. How far has it fallen after one second? What is
the ball’s velocity after one second of fall?
A. Height after 1s:
Given: t = 1s vo = 0 g = 9.8 m/s 2
Required: h = ?
Equation:
•
Solution:

Answer: down
•
B. Velocity of the ball after 1s:
Given: t = 1s vo = 0 g = 9.8 m/s 2
Required: vf = ?
Equation:
•
Solution:

Answer: downward
•
Sample Problem:
A juggler tosses three balls alternately vertically upward.
Each ball has an initial velocity of 5m/s. How high does
each ball rise? How long does each ball remain in the air?
A. Height:
Given: v o = 5m/s g = -9.8 m/s 2 (upward) v f = 0
Required: h = ?
Equation:
•
Solution:

Answer:
•
B. Time in the air:
Given: vf = 0 vo = 5 m/s g = -9.8 m/s2 (up)
Required: t = ?
Equation:
)
•
Solution:
)
)

Answer:
•
Sample Problem:
What is the velocity after 2s of a skydiver who is freely
falling?
A. Height:
Given: t = 2s vo = 0 g = 9.8 m/s 2
Required: vf = ?
Equation:
•
Solution:

Answer: downward
PRACTICAL APPLICATION
• What is the basic application of free fall?
• Ex. Skydiving, them must be aware of it to prepare to
what position they should have to decelerates and the
when is the time to open the parachute.
GENERALIZATION
• Is acceleration of free falling bodies the same?
• What is the acceleration to gravity?
• What are the important equation that will help to solve
problems on motion?
QUIZ
• The time a male bungee jumper is freely falling is 1.5s.
What is the velocity of the jumper at the end of 1.5s?
How far does he fall?
• Carlo threw a ball upward with an initial velocity of 2000
cm/s and was able to catch before it reached the ground
on its return. What was the displacement in the first
second? How far was the maximum height from the
starting point?
CLOSURE

“In life, the higher you lift

yourself, the greater fall
you may get.”
Thank you!

THE END