K12 Reader
Galileo and His Telescope
Learn about Galileo Galilei's contribution to modern science with a reading passage that focuses on reading comprehension. After kids read several paragraphs about his life, they answer five questions about the information they have just...
Curated OER
Swing in Time
Learners examine the motion of pendulums and come to understand that the longer the string of the pendulum, the fewer the number of swings in a given time interval. They see that changing the weight on the pendulum does not have an...
Curated OER
Simple Harmonic Motion with Dr. DAQ
Students study the work and accomplishment of Galileo. In this physics lesson, students calculate the period of a pendulum's using a mathematical equation. They explain the different factors affecting its period.
Curated OER
Swinging on a String
Students explore how pendulums work and why they are useful in everyday applications. In a hands-on activity, they experiment with string length, pendulum weight and angle of release.
Story Behind the Science
Story Behind the Science: Pendulum Motion [Pdf]
The history of the pendulum and its importance both in timekeeping, and in how timekeeping was used to solve other problems, such as determining longitude on a map.
Rice University
Galileo Project: Galileo Timeline
This site from The Galileo Project of Rice University contains a detailed description of Galileo's life and work on a timeline. Links are provided throughout for additional information on related subjects.
TeachEngineering
Teach Engineering: Swing in Time
Students examine the motion of pendulums and come to understand that the longer the string of the pendulum, the fewer the number of swings in a given time interval. They see that changing the weight on the pendulum does not have an...
PBS
Pbs Learning Media: Galileo: His Experiments
This interactive activity from the NOVA Web site samples Galileo's experiments with falling objects, projectiles, inclined planes, and pendulums.
Story Behind the Science
Story Behind the Science: Pendulum Motion, Time, and Shape of Earth [Pdf]
Article outlining the scientific history behind the evolution of theories about measuring time based on the movement of a pendulum, and about how gravity would impact a pendulum's movement depending on one's proximity to the Earth's...
Science Education Resource Center at Carleton College
Serc: Hanging Out With Galileo
Young scholars isolate the factors that determine the period of a pendulum, and then test their hypotheses to determine if their experimental results come close to the mathematical results.