How does an airboat move when there isn't a motor in the water? The simulation teaches the forces related to the thrust and drag on an airboat. Scholars vary the boat mass and thrust force in order to view graphs of the changing force and velocity.

Concepts

newton's second law of motion, acceleration, newton's first law of motion, thrust, drag

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Additional Tags

science

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Instructional Ideas

• Make a balloon straw rocket to demonstrate the same force with air instead of water

Classroom Considerations

• Requires a free CK-12 account to access the interactive
• Assumes prior knowledge of velocity

Pros

• Includes a tutorial for how to use the simulation
• Works well in a traditional or flipped classroom

Cons

• None

Common Core

RST.6-8.4 RST.9-10.4 RST.11-12.4