Unit 05 · Energy & Its Forms
Energy is what makes things happen, and it never simply vanishes — it changes form. This unit covers the energy of motion (kinetic) and the stored energy of position (potential), how one turns into the other as a pendulum swings or a cart rolls down a track, and the big rule underneath it all: energy is conserved. Mastery means you can follow energy as it moves and transforms through a setup without ever losing count of it.
| Criterion | Not yet | Approaching | Mastered |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kinetic vs. potential energy | Cannot tell energy of motion from stored energy. | Defines each but cannot spot them in a real setup. | Identifies kinetic and potential energy in a moving system and says where each one is greatest. |
| Energy transformations | Thinks energy is used up and gone for good. | Names a transformation but skips the steps between. | Traces energy as it changes form through a pendulum swing or a roller-coaster drop. |
| Conservation of energy | Believes energy disappears at the bottom of a hill. | States that energy is conserved but cannot account for it. | Shows that total energy stays the same, accounting for the bit carried off as heat by friction. |
| Reading an energy setup | Cannot say where energy is stored or moving. | Reads one point but not the whole path. | Reads a pendulum or track at any point and describes how the energy is split there. |
| Lab technique (energy transfer) | Releases the pendulum carelessly or takes no measurement. | Measures height or motion, but not both. | Measures height and motion in an energy-transfer setup and links the two through conservation. |
| Integration (cross-domain) | Treats the science as isolated facts; makes no cross-domain connection. | Names a link to history, reading, or writing but cannot defend why it matters. | Connects the unit to its anchor across History · Reading · Writing (plus chosen electives) and defends why the connection matters. |
“At the top of its swing the pendulum is still, so all its energy is stored — potential. At the bottom it’s moving fastest, so that energy has become kinetic. It doesn’t climb quite as high each time, because a little energy leaves as heat from the air and the string.”
“The pendulum has energy at the top and speed at the bottom. It slows down because the energy just runs out, I think.”
You demonstrate this unit through hands-on energy setups — a pendulum, a cart on a track — measuring height and motion and explaining the energy story aloud, not a multiple-choice test. A criterion counts as mastered only when you can both take the measurement and trace the energy without losing count of it. Mastery is demonstrated, not awarded.
A 5-page clipboard packet — unit overview, key terms, the mastery rubric, anchor examples, and a score sheet you can print and grade against.