Activity Overview
In this activity, students will explore the rebound heights of a ball and develop a sequence that will predict the rebound height of subsequent bounces. They will also find the total distance that the ball travels.
Before the Activity
Connect the calculator to the CBR 2™
Install the TI Connect™ software to analyze data on the computer
See the attached PDF file for detailed instructions for this activity
Print pages 61 - 66 from the attached PDF file for your class
During the Activity
Distribute the pages to your class.
Follow the Activity procedures:
Run the Ranger program on the calculator
Release the ball beneath the CBR and sketch a plot of the Distance versus Time data
Record the height for 5 bounces and use lists to create a scatter plot
Model the heights of each bounce in terms of a geometric sequence, and graph the resulting equation
Write an exponential function that fits the given data, and graph it
Calculate the sum of the total distance traveled by the ball for the first five bounces
After the Activity
Students will complete the Data sheet and answer questions listed in it.
Review student results:
As a class, discuss questions that appeared to be more challenging
Re-teach concepts as necessary