Hugo Zaldivar

Name: ______________________________________ 10/6/21

Date: ________________________

Student Exploration: Distance-Time Graphs

Vocabulary: speed, y-intercept

Prior Knowledge Questions (Do these BEFORE using the Gizmo .)

Max ran 50 meters in 10 seconds. Molly ran 30 meters in 5 seconds.

Max
1. Who ran farther, Max or Molly? ________________

Molly Using the formula for speed. Max ran

2. Who ran faster? ________________ Explain: ____________________________________
5m/s and Molly ran 6m/s
_________________________________________________________________________

Gizmo Warm-up
The Distance-Time Graphs Gizmo shows a graph and a
runner on a track. You can control the motion of the runner
by manipulating the graph (drag the red dots).

Check that Number of points is 2, and that under Runner

1 both Show graph and Show animation are turned on.

The graph should look like the one shown to the right –
one point at (0, 0) and the other point at (4, 40).

1. Click the green Start button on the stopwatch.

The runners starts at 0m and ran
What happens? _______________________________

to 40m at 4s
____________________________________________

2. Click the red Reset button on the stopwatch. The vertical green probe on the graph allows
you to see a snapshot of the runner at any point in time. Drag it back and forth. As you do,
watch the runner and the stopwatch.

10m
A. What was the position of the runner at 1 second? ____________________________
(1,10)
B. What are the coordinates of the point on the graph that tells you this? ____________

3s
C. When was the runner on the 30-meter line? ________________________________

(3,30)
D. What are the coordinates of the point on the graph that tells you this? ____________

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 Get the Gizmo ready:
Activity A:
 Click the red Reset button on the stopwatch.
Runner position
 Be sure the Number of points is 2.

In the Gizmo, run the “race” many times with a variety of different graphs. (The red points on the
graph can be dragged vertically.) Pay attention to what the graph tells you about the runner.

1. If a distance-time graph contains the point (4, 15), what does that tell you about the runner?
It tells me that the runner ran 15m
(Be specific, and answer in a complete sentence.) _________________________________

in 4s
_________________________________________________________________________

2. Look at the graph to the right. Notice where the green probe
is. If you could see the runner and the stopwatch at this
moment, what would you see?

The runner would be at 20m and the stopwatch at 1.5s

________________________________________________

________________________________________________

________________________________________________

3. Look at the image below, from the Gizmo. What must be true about this runner’s graph?

After 22m he’s at 3.25s

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

4. The point on the graph that lies on the y-axis (vertical axis) is called the y-intercept. What
does the y-intercept tell you about the runner?

It tells you where the runner started.

_________________________________________________________________________

5. In the Gizmo, set the Number of points to 3. Then create a

graph of a runner who starts at the 20-meter line, runs to the
40-meter line, and finishes at the 30-meter line.

A. Sketch your graph to the right.

20
B. What is the y-intercept of your graph? ____________

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 Activity B:
Get the Gizmo ready:
Runner direction
 Click the red Reset button on the stopwatch.
and speed

Run the Gizmo several times with different types of graphs. (Remember, the red points on the
graph can be dragged vertically.) Pay attention to the speed and direction of the runner.

1. Create a graph of a runner that is running forward (from left to

right) in the Gizmo. Sketch your graph to the right.

If the runner is moving from left to right in the Gizmo, how

does the graph always look?

The runner moves faster after 2 seconds.

__________________________________________________

__________________________________________________

2. Click the red Reset button. Create a graph of a runner that is

running from right to left. Sketch it to the right.

How does the graph always look if the runner is moving from
right to left in the Gizmo?

After 2 seconds he is moving faster.

__________________________________________________

__________________________________________________

3. Change the Number of points to 5. Create a graph of a

runner that runs left-to-right for one second, rests for two
seconds, and then continues running in the same direction.
Sketch the graph to the right.
By creating
How does a graph show a runner at rest? ________________

a horizontal line.
__________________________________________________

4. In general, how does a distance-time graph show you which direction the runner is moving?

It shows you at what point on the race is the runner and at what time.
_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

(Activity B continued on next page)

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Activity B (continued from previous page)

5. With Number of points set to 3, create the graph shown at

right. Your graph should include (0, 0), (2, 10), and (4, 40).
(0,0)
A. Where does the runner start? ____________________

(2,10)
B. Where will he be after 2 seconds? ________________

(4,40)
C. Where will he be after 4 seconds? ________________

D. In which time interval do you think the runner will be

moving most quickly? (Circle your answer below.)

0 to 2 seconds 2 to 4 seconds

6. Click the Start button and watch the animation. What about the runner changed after 2

He ran faster to the nish line.

seconds of running? ________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

7. Speed is a measure of how fast something is moving. To calculate speed, divide the
distance by the time. In the Gizmo, the units of speed are meters per second (m/s).

10m
A. In the first 2 seconds, how far did the runner go? ____________________________
5m
B. In this time interval, how far did the runner go each second? ___________________

5m/s
C. In this time interval, what was the runner’s speed? ___________________________

8. Now look at the last two seconds represented on the graph.

30m
A. In the last 2 seconds, how far did the runner go? ____________________________

15m
B. In this time interval, how far did the runner go each second? ___________________

15m/s
C. In this time interval, what was the runner’s speed? ___________________________

9. Click the Reset button. Experiment with a variety of graphs, focusing on the speed of the
runner. In general, how can you estimate the speed of the runner by looking at a graph?

By dividing the distance he ran by the time it took him.

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

2019
 Get the Gizmo ready:
Activity C:
 Click Reset.
Two runners, two
 Under Runner 2, turn on Show graph and Show
graphs
animation.

1. Experiment with the Gizmo to create each of the following results. (You can use any number
of points in your graphs.) Each time you find a solution, click the camera ( ) next to the
graph. Right click the image, and click Copy Image. Then paste the image into a blank
document. Label all five images.
 Runner 1 wins the race.
 Runner 2 wins the race.
 Runner 2 catches up to and passes runner 1.
 Runner 2 is going in the opposite direction as runner 1.
 Each runner goes at a different speed, but both reach the finish line together.

2. Based on your experiments, answer the following questions.

Their distance from the start
A. How does the graph show if a runner gets a head start? ______________________

is greater than runner 1 at 0s.

___________________________________________________________________
Who reaches the farther distance in the
B. How does the graph show which runner is faster? ___________________________

least amount of seconds.

___________________________________________________________________

Who reaches the end in less time.

C. How does the graph show which runner wins the race? _______________________

___________________________________________________________________
They start far from the start
D. How does the graph show a runner going back and forth? _____________________
and nish close to it.
___________________________________________________________________

E. What does it mean when the two runners’ graphs cross? _____________________
That they are in the same spot.

___________________________________________________________________

3. Challenge: For Runner 2, turn off Show graph. Click New to generate a new random graph
that you can’t see for Runner 2. Click Start, and watch her run. Then try to adjust the graph
for Runner 1 so that his movements match the movements of Runner 2.

Turn on Show graph to check each answer. (For a greater challenge, increase the Number
of points before selecting New.)

(Activity C continued on next page)

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Activity C (continued from previous page)

4. Challenge: Use the Gizmo to model and solve the following word problems. Write the
solutions in the spaces below. Sketch the graph you made to solve the question in the
space to the right of each question.

A. A dog is chasing a cat towards a tree. The cat has a 10-

meter lead and runs at a speed of 6 meters per second.
The dog runs at a speed of 8 meters per second. The
tree is 30 meters away from the dog’s starting position.
Which animal will reach the tree first?

The cat will reach it rst.

_____________________________________________

B. A police officer is chasing a purse-snatcher down a

street. The thief starts 9 meters ahead of the officer and
can run 20 meters in 4 seconds (5 m/s). The police
officer can run 32 meters in 4 seconds (8 m/s). How long
will it take the officer to catch the thief?
It’ll take the of cer 4 seconds.
_____________________________________________

C. In a football game, one team kicks off to the other. At the

moment the receiver catches the ball, he is 40 meters
from the nearest tackler. The receiver runs left to right at
a speed of 10 meters per second (10 m/s). The tackler
runs right to left at a speed of 6 meters per second.

1.4s
How long does it take before they collide? ___________

14m
How far does the receiver go? _____________________

D. A tortoise challenges a hare to a four-hour race. The

hare is so confident of winning that he allows the tortoise
to start with a 10-km lead. The hare runs at a speed of
14 km per hour, but stops for a two-hour nap in the
middle of the race. The tortoise plods along at 4 km per
hour the whole race. Who gets farther in four hours?
They travel the same distance in 4h.
_____________________________________________

5. How are distance-time graphs useful? Explain, and if possible discuss your answer with your
teacher and classmates.
Distance graphs are useful because they can give you a different perspective
_________________________________________________________________________

on problems.
_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

2019