Parents Guide for Unit 14
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The weblecture sends the student to several websites. Encourage them to start reading these early, because web readings take longer to get load and read than text. The first site discusses Archimedes' inventions, in particular, the screw pump which is still used today to drain fields throughout the Mediterranean area. The second site contains a work by the Greek inventor Hero of Alexandria; students do not read the whole thing but only need to look at the introduction to his life and one of the descriptions of his steam engine, although they should also look at the list of the inventions to get a feel for the other things that he created.
The science weblecture covers the basic types of machines and the modern definition of force. Students should be able to identify which simple machine is represented by different household tools.
After some identification questions linking the Greek inventors with their inventions, the homework concentrates on identification of the basic types of forces and machines and their uses. Students can be as creative as they like in their invention of a simple can-crusher, but they should be able to explain what simple machines are included and how they work together to perform the "business" of crushing cans.
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