What does the gradient of a velocity–time graph represent?

The acceleration of the object.

What does a horizontal line on a velocity–time graph (above zero) show?

Constant velocity, so the acceleration is zero.

What does a straight line sloping down on a velocity–time graph show?

Constant deceleration (slowing down at a steady rate).

How do you calculate a gradient?

Change in the vertical axis value ÷ change in the horizontal axis value.

What are the axes of a distance–time graph?

Time on the horizontal axis and distance on the vertical axis.

Motion graphsIB MYP Sciences: Flashcards

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What does the gradient of a distance–time graph represent?

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What does the gradient of a distance–time graph represent?: The speed of the object.
What does a horizontal line on a distance–time graph show?: The object is stationary.
What does a straight sloping line on a distance–time graph show?: Constant speed.
What does the gradient of a velocity–time graph represent?: The acceleration of the object.
What does the area under a velocity–time graph represent?: The distance travelled.
What does a horizontal line on a velocity–time graph (above zero) show?: Constant velocity, so the acceleration is zero.
What does a straight line sloping down on a velocity–time graph show?: Constant deceleration (slowing down at a steady rate).
How do you find the area of a triangle under a graph?: ½ × base × height.
A distance–time line curves getting steeper. What is the object doing?: Speeding up.
How do you calculate a gradient?: Change in the vertical axis value ÷ change in the horizontal axis value.
What are the axes of a distance–time graph?: Time on the horizontal axis and distance on the vertical axis.
Which graph has gradient = speed?: The distance–time graph.

Exam questions on Motion graphs

A student plots a distance–time graph for a toy robot moving along a straight corridor. The line rises in a straight slope from 0 m at 0 s to 12 m at 8 s, stays horizontal until 14 s, and then rises in a straight slope to 24 m at 20 s.
Calculate the robot's speed between 14 s and 20 s.2 marks
A tram in Istanbul leaves a stop. Its velocity–time graph is a straight line rising from 0 m/s at 0 s to 12 m/s at 6 s, then a horizontal line until 16 s, then a straight line falling to 0 m/s at 20 s.
Describe, with a calculation, the motion of the tram between 16 s and 20 s.2 marks
Priya, a student in Cape Town, investigates how the angle of a runway affects the acceleration of a trolley released from rest. A data logger plots a velocity–time graph for each run. She uses the same trolley and the same runway each time. Every graph is a straight line starting at the origin. The velocity after 1.0 s is 1.6 m/s for a runway angle of 10°, 3.2 m/s for 20° and 4.7 m/s for 30°.
Identify the independent variable, the dependent variable and one variable that Priya must control.3 marks

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Written by the Exaim team, led by Shaun Daswani (Head of Upper Secondary, Improve ME Institute; MSc Financial Mathematics, Imperial College London; BSc, UCL) and Jason Daswani (operational lead, Improve ME Institute; LSE).