Assured Performance Based Assessment

Algebra I
Toy Car Ramp Contest

Toy Car Ramp Contest

You can win the opportunity to
design your own racecar. All
you need to do is design the
best ramp. If you can
determine the height of the
ramp necessary to make a car
go exactly 2 meters, you are a
winner.

Task: Determine the height in centimeters of a ramp required to make a toy car
travel exactly 2 meters.
Role:

Car ramp designer

Audience: The design department at the toy car company.

Purpose: Conduct an experiment involving determining the distance that a toy car
can travel as a function of the ramps height. Collect data and produce a line of best
fit. From the line of best fit, derive the equation of the line and use the equation to
make predictions.

Materials:

One Match Box car per group

Algebra I texts each text is 3.5 cm high.
Ramp
Meter Stick
Graph Paper

Procedure:
1. Start with one book, set the ramp so that one end of the edge of the book and
the other is on the floor. Place the car at the top of the ramp and allow the
car to roll by itself down the ramp onto the floor.
2. Measure the distance the car rolled from the end of the ramp to the nearest
0.5 cm.
3. Repeat for three trials and calculate the average.
4. Record the data in the table provided. Note that there is a column for the
number of books used and the height of the ramp.
5. Repeat the experiment, adding textbooks, until all rows of the data table are
used.
Assessment:
1. A submission to the design department. Your contest submission can be in
the form of a letter, poster, video, power point presentation, etc The
submission should include the response to the task, a description of the
ramp, a prediction equation in slope-intercept form, a list the possible causes
of error, and what your team did to compensate for them.
2. The completed data table.
3. Answers to the Experiment Questions. Answers must be typed on a
separate page.

4. A graph of the prediction equation. The graph can be hand drawn or

electronic.

Toy Car Ramps Data Table

Number
of Books

Height (in
centimeters)

Distance Car Travels (in centimeters)

Trial 1
Trial 2
Trial 3
Average

Ordered Pair

Experiment Questions: Answer in complete sentences on a separate piece of

paper.
1. Identify the independent and dependent variables. Explain your choices.
2. Identify two points on your line of best fit. Using these points, find the
slope (m) of the line.
3. Identify the y-intercept (b) of the line. What does the y-intercept mean in
terms of the experiment? Does your y-intercept seem reasonable? Explain.
4. Using the slope and y-intercept, write the equation of the line in slope
intercept form.
5. Using your equation, how far would the car travel for a ramp height of 16.5
cm?
6. Using your equation, how high does the ramp need to be for the car to travel
exactly 75 cm?

7.

Describe the ways that each member contributed to the group while working
on this activity?