Lesson 3 Grades 3–5

Find the pattern: launch angles

Timeabout 45 minutes
WorksheetE3 Launch angles

On this page

Standards
I can…
Words to know
Materials
Steps
Check for understanding
Teacher notes

Standards

Code	In plain words
3-PS2-2	Measure how something moves, find a pattern, and use it to predict what happens next.
4.MD.C.6 (math)	Measure angles with a protractor.
3.MD.B.3 (math)	Show results on a bar graph.

Practice: planning and carrying out investigations. Crosscutting concept: patterns.

I can…

I can set a launch angle with a protractor.
I can measure how far my rocket goes and record it.
I can find a pattern in my results and use it to predict a new angle.

Words to know

Angle how much something is tilted. We measure it in degrees (°).
Pattern something that happens the same way again and again.
Predict say what you think will happen, using what you already know.

Materials

For each group:

Straw rockets from Lesson 2 (or new ones)
A squeeze launcher: an empty plastic bottle with a straw pushed through a hole in the cap, sealed with modeling clay
A protractor taped to the edge of a box or a book
A tape measure, sticky notes to mark landing spots
Safety glasses
Worksheet E3

45 minutes · learn plan hands-on wrap up

1Hook5 min

Ask: If you want to throw a ball as far as you can, do you throw it flat, straight up, or in between? Let students show with their arm.

2Learn5 min

Read aloud
Scientists look for patterns. If something happens the same way each time, we can predict what will happen next. Today we'll test which tilt, or angle, sends a rocket farthest, and look for the pattern.

3Do: the angle test25 min

The angle test: the same squeeze at 30°, 45° and 60°. Which lands farthest?

The angle test. A squeeze bottle with a straw sealed into the cap · B protractor on a box · C straw rocket.

Put the rocket on the bottle's straw. Hold the straw along the protractor at 30°.
Squeeze the bottle hard, the same way each time. Mark where the rocket lands. Measure the distance.
Do 2 tries at 30°, then 2 at 45°, then 2 at 60°.
Colour a bar for the farthest try at each angle on E3.
Predict: look at your bars. Will 75° go farther or shorter than 60°? Write your guess, then test it.

Fair test: the same rocket, the same launcher, the same squeeze. Only the angle changes.

4Wrap up10 min

What to expect: the paths at each angle.

What pattern did you see? (Going from 30° up to about 45°, the rocket went farther; steeper than that, it went shorter.)
Was your 75° prediction right? How did the pattern help you guess?

Check for understanding

What one thing did we change in our test?
Which angle went farthest for most groups?
Finish the sentence: "If I launch at 80°, I predict it will go ______, because ______."

Answer key

The launch angle.
Usually around 45° (often a bit less, about 40°).
Shorter, because past about 45° the rockets went shorter each time we tilted up more (it goes high but not far).

Teacher notes

Make the squeeze launcher before class. A 500 ml bottle and clay to seal the straw works well. For an even push, drop a heavy book on the bottle from the same height each time, or have the same student squeeze every time.
Real rockets fly almost straight up, not at 45°, so they land close by, inside the field, away from people. Point this out so no one thinks 45° is how real rockets launch.
Grade 3: use only 30°, 45° and 60°, and compare by marking the landing spots with sticky notes (no measuring). Grade 5: do 3 tries and find the average.
Protractor help: many students read the wrong scale. Show them which zero to start from.
Safety: glasses on. Launch in one direction only, with nobody downrange. Students fetch rockets only when you say "clear".
Rocket Builder link: the launch simulator has a launch-angle setting (0–30°). Show 0° and 30° on the projector: real rockets launch close to straight up so they land near the pad.