PreScreener: Orbital Motion
(Downloadable - Copy and Paste)
Task Title: The Rhythm of the Spheres
Grade: High School (9-12)
Date: 2026-04-18
SEP: Using Mathematical and Computational Thinking
DCI: ESS1.B: Earth and the Solar System
CCC: Scale, Proportion, and Quantity
Task Purpose: To assess students’ ability to use mathematical representations (Kepler’s Laws) and computational models (the simulation) to predict the motion of orbiting objects in the solar system.
Instructions
- Before you begin: Complete the task as a student would. Then, consider any support materials provided to teachers or students, such as contextual information about the task and answer keys/rubrics.
- Prescreen: Answer the following high-level questions to identify any major red flags (🚩) in your task. If you find one or more red flags, consider the purpose of the task and the evidence gathered to determine whether the task warrants a deeper dive.
Prescreen Questionnaire
| Question | Yes | No |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Is there a phenomenon or problem driving the task? | [x] | [ ] 🚩 |
| 2. Can the majority of the task be answered without using information provided by the task scenario? | [ ] 🚩 | [x] |
| 3. Can significant portions of the task be answered successfully by using rote knowledge (e.g., definitions, prescriptive or memorized procedure)? | [ ] 🚩 | [x] |
| 4. Does the majority of the task require students to use reasoning to successfully complete the task? | [x] | [ ] 🚩 |
| 5. Does the task require students to use some understanding of disciplinary core ideas to successfully complete the task? | [x] | [ ] 🚩 |
| 6. Do students have to use at least one science and engineering practice to successfully complete the task? | [x] | [ ] 🚩 |
| 7. Are the dimensions assessed separately in the majority of the task? | [ ] 🚩 | [x] |
| 8. Is the task coherent and comprehensible from the student perspective? | [x] | [ ] 🚩 |
Recommendation
Based on your assessment needs and the task purpose recorded above, make a recommendation about this task moving forward (choose one):
- Warrants further review.
- Should not be used.
Summary
Summarize your evidence and reasoning:
The task leverages the simulation’s ability to visualize eccentricity and velocity vectors, which are central to HS-ESS1-4. Students must interact with the model to observe relationships that are not immediately obvious from static text (SEP). The phenomenon of planetary stability is used effectively to drive “need to know” questions. All quality gates are passed.