Acceleration Word Problem

#1 Scenario With Citations

Find the accelerations of Bob and John on the two Slip n’ slides:
Bob and John were racing on two different slip n’ slides during a summer pool party. The slip in
slides are 10 feet apart from each other . Near the slides, there is 1 gallon of hand soap, and 2
5

gallons of dish soap . Bob dares John to dump a gallon of hand soap on to one slide, making
5

one more slippery than the other. Bob and John each stand at the starting line 10 meters away
3

from the slide, and John runs to his slide in 9 seconds , while it takes Bob 10 seconds . John
4 4

slides at a speed of 5 m/s on the slide for 4 seconds , and slows down to a speed of 3 m/s for 3
2 1

seconds until he comes to a stop on the grass. Bob’s slide takes him at a speed of 4m/s for 6
3

seconds and then slows down near the end to 2.5 m/s for 4 seconds until he comes to a stop
2 1 3

in the grass next to John.

#2 Scenario Without Citations

Bob and John were racing on two different slip n’ slides during a summer pool party. The slip in
slides are 10 feet apart from each other. Near the slides, there is 1 gallon of hand soap, and 2
gallons of dish soap. Bob dares John to dump a gallon of hand soap on to one slide, making
one more slippery than the other. Bob and John each stand at the starting line 10 meters away
from the slide, and John runs to his slide in 9 seconds, while it takes Bob 10 seconds. John
slides at a speed of 5 m/s on the slide for 4 seconds, and slows down to a speed of 3 m/s for 3
seconds until he comes to a stop on the grass. Bob’s slide takes him at a speed of 4m/s for 6
seconds and then slows down near the end to 2.5 m/s for 4 seconds until he comes to a stop in
the grass next to John.

#3 Questions for Readers

1. What is another term for negative acceleration and provide an example of it in the article
provided?
2. Which person in the article provided has a greater rate of acceleration as compared to
the other person? Provide evidence to support your answer.
3. What term and/or phrase did the writer use in the article to imply that a person is at rest,
as in it’s not moving?
4. What two (or more) pieces of information did the writer include in the article that are
irrelevant and/or misleading to the reader, as in they are not useful in calculating either
speed or acceleration?

#4 Image to Accompany Text in Newspaper Article

#5 ScreenShot of the Newspaper Article
#6 Answer Key for the Questions for the Readers
1. What is another term for negative acceleration and provide an example of it in the article
provided?
Another term for negative acceleration is deceleration. An example of deceleration in the
article is when John slows down on the slip n’ slide from going 5m/s to 3m/s.
2. Which person in the article provided has a greater rate of acceleration as compared to the
other person? Provide evidence to support your answer.
John had a greater rate of acceleration compared to Bob while on the slip n’ slide. This is
because John has an acceleration of 0.97m/s , while Bob has an acceleration of 0.5m/s ,
2 2

and 0.97 is greater than 0.5.

Bob’s IS=10/10=1 m/s
Bob’s acceleration=4m/s-1 m/s=3m/s/6s=0.5m/s 2
John’s IS=10/9=1.11m/s
John’s acceleration=5m/s-1.11m/s=3.89m/s/4s=0.97m/s 2

3. What term and/or phrase did the writer use in the article to imply that a person is at rest, as in
it’s not moving?
The writer describes Bob and John standing at the starting line and then when they
come to a stop at the end of the slide.
4. What two (or more) pieces of information did the writer include in the article that are irrelevant
and/or misleading to the reader, as in they are not useful in calculating either speed or
acceleration?
The relevant pieces of information are A, the slip n’ slides are 10 feet apart from each
other, and B, that there is one gallon of hand soap and two gallons of dish soap.