Distance Time Graph Lesson

Graphing Motion.

• The motion of an object is described with respect to some other object

• The motion of an object is described by its position, direction

of motion and speed.
– Position: on top of, next to, over, under
– Direction: up/down, left/right, north/south
– Speed: miles per hour (mph), meters per second (m/s)

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1

Forces & Motion

REVIEW

GRAPHING MOTION

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2

Forces & Motion

• Motion often described as

a change in position over an
interval of time

• We will be using a line

graph to describe different
patterns or types of motion

Distance (meters)

Time (Seconds)

GRAPHING MOTION

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3

Forces & Motion

• Time always goes on the

horizontal axis (X-Axis)
– Why? Time is the

independent variable!

•

the direction time flows
– The further to the right

the point is along the
axis, the longer the time
is from start

3

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3

GRAPHING MOTION

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4

Forces & Motion

• Distance goes along the

vertical axis (Y-Axis)
– Why? Distance is the

dependent variable!

• The arrow along the Y-Axis

shows the distance to the
start point
– The further up along the

Y-Axis a point is, the
further the point is from
the start

© Stephanie Elkowitz

4

Standard 7.P.1.3

•Illustrate the motion of an object using a graph to show a change in position
over a period of time.

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5

Forces & Motion

INTERPRETING GRAPHS

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6

Forces & Motion

• Constant or Steady Motion

– The distance

INCREASES the SAME
amount over time

• As time increases to the

right, distance also
increases or moves up

• Slope of line (Rise/Run) is

positive

6

Multiple Choice

The object in this graph is

• Returning to start

• Moving at a constant speed

• Accelerating

• At rest

INTERPRETING GRAPHS

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7

Forces & Motion

• Stationary or NO Motion

– The distance NEVER

changes

• As time increases to the

right, distance stays the
same

• Slope of line (Rise/Run) is

zero

7

Distance (meters)

Time (Seconds)

Multiple Choice

The object in the graph above is

• Moving at a constant speed

• Accelerating

• At rest

• Returning to start

INTERPRETING GRAPHS

© Stephanie Elkowitz

8

Forces & Motion

• What is the relationship

between the movement of the GREEN object and the YELLOW object?
– Both objects traveled

EQUAL distance, but
the green object
moved FASTER

– Green line has STEEPER

slope

• Steeper Slope = Faster

Speed

8

Distance (meters)

Time (Seconds)

Multiple Choice

Which object is moving at the fastest speed?

• B

• A

• C

INTERPRETING GRAPHS

© Stephanie Elkowitz

9

Forces & Motion

• What is the relationship

between the movement of
the YELLOW object and the
RED object?
– Objects travelled

DIFFERENT distances
AND DIFFERENT speeds

• What is Speed?

9

Distance (meters)

Time (Seconds)

SPEED

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10

Forces & Motion

• Speed = the Distance an

object moves over a specific
amount of Time

• Equation for Speed:

– Distance/Time = Speed

• Example Units:

– Miles per Hour (Mph,

M/H)

– Meters per Second (mps,

m/s)

– Kilometers per Hour

(Km/Hour, kmph, kph)

10

SPEED

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11

Forces & Motion

• Speed Examples:

– If a car travels 50 miles in

2 hours, then the cars
speed would be
50 miles = 25 mph
2 hours

– If a sprinter runs 40

meters in 5 seconds,
then the sprinter’s speed
would equal
40 meters = 5 m/s
5 seconds

11

SPEED vs ACCELERATION

Forces & Motion

Multiple Choice

The object in the line graph above is

• at rest

• moving at a constant speed

• Accelerating

• returning to start