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M a s s , W e i g h t , G r a v i t y, a n d O t h e r To p i c s 44
The Swinging
Pendulum
Gusti made a pendulum by tying a string to a small
bob. He pulled the bob back and counted the num-
ber of swings the pendulum made in 30 seconds. He
wondered what he could do to increase the number of
swings made by the pendulum. If Gusti can change
only one thing to make the pendulum swing more
times in 30 seconds, what should he do? Circle what
you think will make the pendulum swing more times.
A Lengthen the string.
B Shorten the string.
C Change to a heavier bob.
D Change to a lighter bob.
E Pull the bob back farther.
F Don’t pull the bob back as far.
G None of the above. All pendulums swing the same number of times.
Explain your thinking. What rule or reasoning did you use to select your answer?
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Uncovering Student Ideas in Physical Science 201
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44 M a s s , W e i g h t , G r a v i t y, a n d O t h e r To p i c s
The Swinging Pendulum
Teacher Notes
Purpose a difference for angles that are relatively small
The purpose of this assessment probe is to elicit (less than about 40 degrees). This is because
students’ ideas about pendulums. The probe the higher the swing the more distance the bob
is specifically designed to find out what vari- has to travel, but the bob is also moving faster.
ables students think affect the time it takes a If the bob is released from a small angle, then
pendulum to swing back and forth. In addi- it will move slower, but does not have to travel
tion, if students have an opportunity to test as far. (Note: In the study of motion of pendu-
the predictions they make for this probe, the lums, it is assumed, even with older students,
probe can also be used to determine whether that the angle of release is never above about 40
students recognize the need to control all but degrees. Larger-angle pendulums will behave
one variable. differently because the period of motion is no
longer a constant.)
Related Concepts Students who are learning about pendu-
pendulum, periodic motion, variables lums for the first time will discover through
experiment that the period of a pendulum (the
Explanation time it takes for a bob to swing back to its point
The best answer is B: Shorten the string. Adding of release) depends only on the length—that is,
more weight (or mass) does not make a differ- the distance from the point of support to the
ence for the same reason that two objects that center of mass (also called center of gravity) of
weigh differently will fall with the same accel- the bob. If students think about air resistance
eration. (See the Teacher Notes for probe #36, acting on the bob, then they may also select C
“Free-Falling Objects,” on pp. 168–170). The (change to a heavier bob). However, in most
initial height of the swing also does not make cases, students who select C are not think-
202 N a t i o n a l S c i e n c e Te a c h e r s A s s o c i a t i o n
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M a s s , W e i g h t , G r a v i t y, a n d O t h e r To p i c s 44
ing about air resistance when they choose this • Some students cannot distinguish the
option (you will need to check their reason- effects of gravity, air resistance, and fric-
ing). (Note: The dependence of the period on tion from factors that affect the period of a
the length of the string (or wire) is true only pendulum (Stepans 2008).
(a) for small angles, i.e., less than about 40 • In a study by Carey et al. (1989) upper ele-
degrees, and (b) if the mass of the bob is much mentary and middle school students had
greater than the mass of the wire.) difficulty understanding experimentation
as a method of testing ideas. They tended
Administering the Probe to view experimentation as a method of
This probe can be used with upper elementary trying things out or producing a desired
and middle school students. Show students outcome (AAAS 1993).
a pendulum, point out what the bob is, and • Students of all ages may overlook the
demonstrate its swinging motion. With older need to hold all but one variable constant
students, consider referring to the mass of (AAAS 1993).
the pendulum bob instead of using the words • Although young children have a sense of
heavier and lighter that now appear in the what it means to run a fair test, they fre-
probe’s distracters. quently cannot identify all of the impor-
tant variables, and they are more likely to
Related Ideas in National control those variables that they believe
Science Education Standards will affect the result. The more familiar stu-
(NRC 1996) and dents are with the topic of a given experi-
Benchmarks for Science ment the more likely they are to identify
Literacy (AAAS 1993, 2009) and control variables (AAAS 1993).
This probe and the other probes in this sec-
tion (probes #39–#45) do not explicitly target Suggestions for Instruction and
key ideas in the national standards documents. Assessment
Both the National Science Education Standards • This probe can be used to launch into an
and Benchmarks for Science Literacy deliber- experiment where students need to iden-
ately did not include periodic motion as an tify and control different variables in order
important idea for science literacy. However, to determine which factor affects the time
because simple pendulums are frequently used it takes for a pendulum to swing.
with elementary and middle school students to • With younger children, stress the need to
build on the notion of a “fair test” by introduc- conduct a “fair test.” Ask students what
ing and practicing the skill of identifying and needs to be kept the same in order to make
controlling variables, we decided it was impor- the testing of their different ideas “fair.”
tant to include this “Other Topics” probe. The notion of a fair test with younger chil-
dren is a precursor to developing an under-
Related Research standing of variables and controls in later,
• Students often think mass or weight is the more sophisticated experiments.
primary factor affecting the period of a • This probe can be combined with “Grand-
pendulum. Some think a pendulum with a father’s Clock,” an everyday science mystery
lighter bob moves faster while others think story (Konicek-Moran 2008) that helps stu-
that a pendulum with a heavier bob moves dents discover how lengthening or shorten-
faster (Stepans 2008). ing a pendulum helps a clock keep time.
Uncovering Student Ideas in Physical Science 203
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44 M a s s , W e i g h t , G r a v i t y, a n d O t h e r To p i c s
• It is not just the length of string that always in a given time interval (e.g., 30 seconds or
determines the period (the time it takes to one minute).
complete one back and forth swing). Help
students be aware that it is possible to have References
the same string length and the same bob or American Association for the Advancement of Sci-
different bobs with the same mass, yet have ence (AAAS). 1993. Benchmarks for science lit-
different periods. The period depends on the eracy. New York: Oxford University Press.
shape and orientation of the bob attached to American Association for the Advancement of Sci-
the string. For example, a block shaped like ence (AAAS). 2009. Benchmarks for science lit-
could have a string tied around its cen- eracy online. www.project2061.org/publications/
bsl/online
ter (hung horizontally) or suspended from
Carey, S., R. Evans, M. Honda, E. Jay, and C.
its top (hung vertically). When hung verti-
Unger. 1989. An experiment is when you try it
cally, its center of mass (or center of gravity)
and see if it works: A study of grade 7 students’
is lower and the string length would have
understanding of the construction of scientific
to be adjusted to account for that. If the knowledge. International Journal of Science
string lengths were kept the same, the bob Education 11: 514–529.
in the horizontal orientation would swing Konicek-Moran, R. 2008. Everyday science myster-
faster than the bob in the vertical orienta- ies: Stories for inquiry-based teaching. Arlington,
tion because their centers of mass are dif- VA: NSTA Press.
ferent. The length of a pendulum is always National Research Council (NRC). 1996. National
measured from the end of the string to the science education standards. Washington, DC:
center of mass of the bob. National Academies Press.
• With young children, avoid the use of Stepans, J. 2008. Targeting students’ physical science
terms like period and frequency. Instead ask misconceptions using the conceptual change model.
them which pendulum swings more times Saint Cloud, MN: Saiwood Publications.
204 N a t i o n a l S c i e n c e Te a c h e r s A s s o c i a t i o n
