• Roll of paper, approx. 1 metre x 1-2 metre(s)
• Ball, tennis or similar
• Masking tape
• Tape measure or metre stick
• Marker
  

1. Using a tape measure or metre stick, mark along the length of the paper at 10 cm intervals.  Label the marks from 10 cm up to 2 metres (or 200 cm).

2. Attach the paper to the wall, with one short side at floor level.

3. Hold the ball at 50 cm (or 0.5 m).  If you drop the ball from this height, how high do you think it will bounce?

4. Drop the ball and check to see how high it bounced.  

5. Design a chart to record the drop heights and bounce heights of 50 cm, 100 cm, 150 cm, and 200 cm. 

6. Drop the ball from the various heights and record your results.

Try using different types of balls to see what happens to your results.

• When does the ball have potential energy?  Kinetic energy?
• How does the ball gain energy?
• Compare the bounce height and the drop height - are they the same?
• How many forms of energy did you notice during this experiment?
• Which type of ball that you tested bounced the highest?  Can you explain this?
  

The ball has potential energy (stored energy) when it is being held, ready to drop.  Once the ball is let go, it has kinetic energy (energy as a result of motion).  

Some energy is transferred from you to the ball when you raise it up before it is dropped.  The potential energy becomes kinetic energy once the ball is let go.  The high the ball, the greater the potential energy, and therefore, the more kinetic energy the ball has.

Other forms of energy in this experiment include:

• Sound energy can be heard as the ball hits the floor
• Heat energy is due to friction of air molecules against the ball as it falls
• Energy is used to return the ball to its original shape after the drop