For this project, we made a video explaining the physics behind a sport action. For our sports action, we chose throwing the quaffle during muggle quidditch. We had to write a script, make a storyboard, and then film and edit the video. This was a new experience for all of us because no one in our group had done any editing before. It was hard but fun to figure out what we needed to do to make our video what we wanted it to be. We had about a few weeks to finish, while still learning about other physics concepts. The first couple of days we spent creating the script and storyboard. When we were done we filmed some different quidditch plays and took some data. We had four different trials in which Connor attempted to throw the quaffle through a goal about ______m away. We recorded the time the ball touched Connor's hand and distance the ball traveled. We used this to find the horizontal, vertical, and total velocity and the force of the ball. We used the rest of our time editing, recording voice overs, and uploading the video to Youtube. Then we had a film festival to present all of our class's videos.
Here is our completed video:
Concepts
Force - the push or pull on an object. Force is found using the equation F=ma. We found the force of the quaffle being thrown. Horizontal Velocity - the rate of covered distance in a horizontal direction. Horizontal velocity is found using the equation v=d/t with the distance being how far the ball was thrown (in relation to our project). Vertical Velocity - the rate of covered distance in a vertical direction. Vertical velocity is found once again by using the equation v=d/t but this time with the distance being how far upward the ball is thrown. Total Velocity - the rate of covered distance in both a horizontal a vertical direction. The total velocity is found by making a vector diagram with the horizontal and vertical velocity and using the Pythagorean theorem. Mass - the amount of matter. We found the mass of the quaffle. Vector - arrows with length and direction. We used vectors to find the total velocity.
Reflection
Although this project took less time and was simpler, we still had many setbacks. One of our major problems was that no one in our group had ever edited anything before. This ended up okay because it is actually quite easy and fun to edit videos. That is a great skill I learned from this project. We also had a few problems with our sport because quidditch is a very unusual sport. It took us awhile to get the supplies we needed, which led to a late start on our project. We put in some extra time and were finished by the deadline. At times I did get quite frustrated at the computer because something wasn't working, but I learned to adapt and figure out a way to make it work. This project ended out well in the end and despite the video only being on one computer, we still managed to all contribute to the video. During the making of this video, I did some things well and learned some things that I need to work on. One of the things I did well was working on our project. Most of the time, I was focused and contributing to the group. Some of the things I need to work on are not telling people what to do and considering other people's ideas. I am kind of controlling and want the project to be exactly how I want it to be. I need to think about my group's ideas and remember that they could actually be better than mine. This project was really fun because filming a movie is a great bonding experience, even if it is considered work. I really like my group members and we all had a great time making our video.