- Make the world a better place through real, fun, and free physics education.
My most recent video:
Teaching Projectile Motion With a Car, a Ball, and a Bucket
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Mr. P shares a classroom activity idea for physics teachers: drop a ball out of a moving car at a constant speed so it lands in a bucket, a hands-on way to introduce and then demonstrate projectile motion. He walks through the materials needed (a car that can hold a constant speed, orange cones, a bucket, a ball, and a meterstick), the height and distance measurements required before solving the problem, and two ways to make sure students understand the solution first, working through it together in class or flipping the video and having students solve it on the board, before heading outside to film the demonstration. He also shares practical tips from running the demo himself: even a small change in the car's speed shifts the landing spot by several centimeters, cruise control helps hold a truly constant speed, and timing the ball's release over the last cone is trickier than it looks. He closes with a safety note (the teacher should drive, a student should drop the ball) and a Part 2 extension challenge: finding the ball's velocity, not just its speed, right before it lands.
Chapters: 0:00 The Idea: A Projectile Motion Car-and-Bucket Demonstration 0:41 Materials and Measurements Needed 1:19 Working Through the Problem With Students 1:54 Filming the Demonstration 2:48 Tips, Safety, and a Part 2 Challenge Thank you to Gerardo Garcia and the rest of my wonderful Patreon supporters. Please consider supporting me monthly! 
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My Most Recent Short:
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