Lesson 3: Speed, Distance & Time Calculations (v = d / t)
Exploring forces, net force calculations, motion graphs, energy, and real-world NZ physics applications.
🎯 Ngā Whāinga Akoranga | Learning Intentions
The formula v = d / t, units of speed (m/s, km/h), distance (m, km), time (s, h), unit conversions (÷ 3.6 between km/h and m/s), and average vs instantaneous speed.
Perform speed, distance, and time calculations using v = d / t formula triangles, convert between km/h and m/s, and solve motion word problems.
🎥 Media Anchor & Pedagogical Scaffold
Calculating Speed, Distance & Time in Physics
Video Clip: Speed, distance, and time — the formula triangle and worked calculations (Runtime: 3m 12s).
🧠 1. Before Viewing (Activate & Predict)
If a sprinter runs 100 metres in 10 seconds, what is their average speed in metres per second and kilometres per hour?
👁️ 2. During Viewing (Watch With a Job)
- Write the formula: state the relationship between speed, distance, and time (use the formula triangle from the video).
- Solve: a car travels 120 km in 2 hours. Calculate its average speed in km/h and convert to m/s.
- Apply: a sprinter runs 100 m in 9.8 s. What is their average speed? Show your working in full.
🗣️ 3. After Viewing & Kaiako Move (Process & Apply)
Kaiako Move: Set up a 20m hallway timing trap using stopwatches to calculate student walking, jogging, and sprinting speeds.
Immediate Task: Complete Worksheet 3: Speed, Distance & Time Calculation Practice Set.
⚡ Whakaoho | Do Now: How Fast Do You Actually Walk?
Estimate your walking speed in metres per second. Write the number down.
Now check it: you know roughly how long the corridor is and you can count seconds. Most estimates are out by a factor of two — and the real lesson is that a number you cannot check is not a measurement.
📖 Activity 1: Calculate It, Then Convert It
Work the set (13 min). Find v, then rearrange for d, then for t. Use the formula triangle if it helps, but write the formula out in full at least once per question — markers give credit for the formula line even when the arithmetic slips.
Convert and sanity-check (12 min). Convert five speeds between km/h and m/s (divide by 3.6 one way, multiply the other). Then check yourself against something you know: 100 km/h is a bit under 28 m/s. If your answer came out at 360, you multiplied where you should have divided.
📝 Activity 2: Year 10 Physics Worksheet & Explanation Scaffolding (20 mins)
Logbook Section 3. Record: (1) your measured walking speed with the distance, the time and the working; (2) the full problem set with formula, substitution and units on every line; (3) one problem you got wrong first time, with the mistake named rather than rubbed out.
🏫 Kaiako Planning & Pedagogy Notes
Year 10 Curriculum Alignment: NZ Curriculum Phase 4 Science — Physical World strand. Builds foundational physics problem-solving skills for NCEA Level 1 Mechanics and Level 2 Physics.