Distance/position – time graph displays the motion of an object over time.
Distance is the dependent variable & goes on the vertical axis.
Time is the independent variable so it is placed on the horizontal axis.
I
Based on the graph,
Between what times is there no motion?
What is the speed in part A?
Look at all the different slopes on the graph. What does the slope tell you?
4. Distance vs. Time Graphs to remember (special cases)
  
No speed = stopped Constant speed away from Constant speed back toward starting point starting point
 
Speeding up Slowing down
 
distance/time graph of a car’s trip
A. What was the car doing between 1 and 1.5 hours?
B. What was the car’s speed between 0 and 1 hours?
C. What was the car’s speed between 1 and 1.5 hours?
D. What was the car’s speed between 1.5 and 2 hours?
E. How long (in hours) was the total trip?
F. How many miles did the car travel?
G. Draw a line on the graph to indicate the car’s average speed. Calculate the car’s average speed.
Velocity - Speed with Direction
You may hear a meteorologist on the news telling you that a storm is moving West at 5 kilometers per hour. Velocity is speed in a given direction. The direction can be a compass direction or any other descriptive phrase, such as down, toward the wall, etc. Velocity can be fast or slow just like speed only a direction is added. So what happens if the storm changes direction and starts to move to the south? No, the direction has changed, therefore the velocity has changed. Ex. We know the earth’s crust moves, it’s just so slow we don’t notice.
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