Mississippi Science PHS.5.5
The Standard
- PHS.5
- Students will analyze the scientific principles of motion, force, and work.
Design and construct an investigation using probe systems and/or online simulations to observe relationships between force, mass, and acceleration (F=ma).
2026 Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science · Newton’s Laws of Motion
Teacher's field guide
What This Standard Means
What Students Need to Do
- Students plan a cart test using sensors or a simulation. They change the push or the cart’s mass, but not both at once. They record how quickly the cart speeds up in each trial.
What Mastery Looks Like
- Students choose what to change and what to hold fixed. Their results show that doubling force doubles acceleration at the same mass. They also show that doubling mass halves acceleration at the same force.
Common Misconceptions
- Some students confuse speed with acceleration. Others expect a heavier cart to speed up faster under the same push. Some change force and mass together, then cannot tell which change affected the result.
How to Assess It
- Exit ticket: A 3 kg cart accelerates at 2 m/s² under a 6 N push. Plan one trial that tests the effect of doubling its mass, name what stays fixed, and predict the new acceleration.
Lesson moves
Ways to Teach It
Pull a cart with a force probe while a motion sensor records acceleration; repeat with three measured forces and the same cart mass.
Show two simulation trials with equal force and different masses; ask, “Why does the heavier cart accelerate less?”
Play data detective: give teams trials of 2 kg at 4 N and 1 kg at 4 N, then check predictions in a simulation.
Calculate acceleration for an empty 10 kg grocery cart and a loaded 20 kg cart, each pushed with 20 N.
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Printable PHS.5.5 Worksheet
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Related Standards
- PHS.5.2
Design and conduct an investigation to study the motion of an object using properties such as displacement, time of motion, velocity, and acceleration.
- PHY.5.5
Design and conduct an investigation of magnetic poles, magnetic flux and magnetic field using online simulations, probe systems, and/or laboratory experiences.
- PHY.1.6
Design and mathematically/graphically analyze quantitative data to explore displacement, velocity, and acceleration of various objects. Use probe systems, video...
- PHS.5.4
Use mathematical and computational analyses to show the relationships among force, mass, and acceleration (i.e., Newton’s second law).
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