Distance vs. Displacement

Overview

Link to Experience: https://play.phenomena.app/player/MKGPaeotg3NB17thu9SZ

Topics: physics, math, distance, displacement, magnitude

Grades: 8-10

Standards:

Duration to complete: 5-10 minutes

Learning outcome: Students will understand what distance and displacement are, and the difference between them.

In the Classroom

Pre-Experience (Things to Look Out For):

• What is distance? What units do we usually use to measure it?

• What are some real-world situations in which we measure the distance something travels?

• Have you ever heard of displacement? What do you think it means?

• Try to predict — what do you think the difference is between distance and displacement?

Post-Experience (Things to Think About):

• How would you summarize the difference between distance and displacement?

• Can the magnitude of displacement ever be greater than the distance? Why or why not?

• When does an object have a displacement of zero?

• When does an object have a distance of zero?

• What are some real-world situations in which it is important to distinguish between these two measurements?