A STEM Module for Bioengineering Topics Muscle and Movement: Part I - Kicking a Soccer Ball

STEM Module: Physiology, Physics and Sports
By Ayden Lee, Matthew Murphy, Chi-Yu Sun, and Catherine Wilcox

STEM MODULE: PHYSIOLOGY,
PHYSICS, and SPORTS

STEM MODULE: PHYSIOLOGY, PHYSICS, and SPORTS

Biomechanics
By Ayden Lee, Matthew Murphy, Chi-Yu Sun, and Catherine Wilcox

Introduction:
These lessons are designed to introduce elementary and middle school students to the Musculoskeletal
system of the human body and its dynamic nature. These modules will examine everything from the
anatomy of the body, the mechanics and dynamics involved in motion and the force magnitudes necessary
to participate in sports and related outdoor activities. The goal is to engage students in STEM principles
by creating an environment where they can learn and apply these topics to their lives outside of school.

Part 1: Soccer Kick
INTRODUCTION:

In this segment, the basic principles in kicking a soccer ball will be determined. Students will be able to
identify the basic structures and functions of joints that are controlled by bone and muscle in the human
body. Complete basic calculations necessary to determine kinematics involved in kicking a soccer ball, and
determine the motions and forces involved in this action that they can apply to their individual lives. This
module can be interactive using soccer balls to collect and examine data or modified to remain inside the
classroom.

OBJECTIVES:

By the completion of the activity students should have an understanding of:

- Muscles, joints, and bones involved in kicking
- How the above components interact to perform the action of kicking.
- How to determine the magnitude of forces generated by the system in order to complete this
motion
- The basic physics/kinematics equations that can be used to determine how far the ball will go
based on velocity
- Evaluate effectiveness of Module to allow for adjustments on behalf of the teacher*
- (Estimated Time for module ≈ 60 min + 10 min for evaluation)
*See evaluation portion of Module before beginning lesson

MATERIALS:
- Internet access (all materials will be available via .pdf and .ppt on http://www.slideshare.net/,
http://teachers.egfi-k12.org)
- Complete lesson plan
- Student worksheets
- Video/Powerpoint capabilities
- Soccerball (Optional)
- Scale (Optional)
- Stopwatch (Optional)
- tape Measure (Optional)

1


PROCEDURE

1. Introduction of anatomy required for a soccer kick
the human body contains more than 650 individual muscles which are attached to the skeleton,
which provides the pulling power for us to move around. When kicking a soccer ball most of these
muscles work together to allow the body to work together to create motion necessary. The major
muscle groups are seen in the lower body. In the chart seen below the major muscle joints are
identified as well as which muscles are working to support that group.

Table 1: Muscular action during approach and kick (right-footed kick)
Body
Action Muscles
part
Abdominals, psoas major, erector spinae and spinal postural
Trunk Stabilisation
muscles
Internal rotation/hip Tensor fascia lata, rectus femoris, psoas, iliacus, sartorius and
Right hip
Flexion adductor group
Left hip Extension Gluteus maximus, hamstring group and adductor magnus
Right knee Extension Quadricep group
Left knee Extension Quadricep group
Right ankle Plantarflexion Plantarflexors
Left
Horizontal adduction Anterior deltoid, biceps brachii, pectoralis major
shoulder

2. Explanation of muscle flexion/extension

2


A joint is successful in motion because there are two group of muscles acting on the joint at a
single time, pushing or pulling the joint to create movement. As the angle between the joint gets
smaller that is known as flexion conversely if the joint in creating a larger angle that has been
termed extension. The in each joint there are a group of muscles acting on the joint to flex one
group of muscles is acting to push the joint while a complement muscle group is working to pull
the joint in. In this way the it requires the whole body working together to perform even a basic
action such as kicking.

3. Explanation of the 6 basic steps in kicking a soccer ball.
a. Review the following steps and then play the video link shown below and have the
students identify each portion of the process.
1. The Approach
- Approach the ball at a 45 degree angle
2. Plant Foot
- This step determines the direction the ball will travel while in flight,
there is a direct relationship between the flight path and the position of
the plant foot.
3. Swing Limb Loading
-In this step the body is preparing the bring the leg down toward the ball.
At this stage the eyes should be focused on the ball and arm opposite the
plant foot should be raised to provide stabilization.
-The plant leg is providing the lower body stabilization as the opposite leg
is extending up and knee is flexing. This flexion stores elastic energy that
can later be transferred to the ball.
-Leg slows as it reaches the peak of extension because of the interaction
with the hip flexors and knee extensors which stop the movement of the
leg at the peak position.
4. Hip Flexion and Knee Extension
-Hip Flexors begin the motion of the thigh which will in turn begin the
rotation of the lower leg and foot. The acceleration of the lower part of
the leg comes from the release of the elastic energy that was stored by the
knee extensors.
-The knee continues extension as the opposite plant foot begins to flex
toward the ball.
- Directly before contact the hamstrings activate to slow the leg in
preparation for ball contact.
-NOTE: “Soccer Paradox” knee flexors are activated fully during
extension and the knee extensors are activated fully during flexion.
5. Foot Contact
- Foot remains in contact with the ball for an average of .006-.016
seconds
- Only about 15% of the kinetic energy of the leg is actually transferred to
the ball.
6. Follow-Through
- Keeps the foot in contact with the ball for as long as possible which will
maximize the momentum and increase the speed of the ball.

3


- This prevents injury because the muscles in the legs are able to gradually
relieve their kinetic and elastic forces.

b. VIDEO: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lBMA2wWuqh8

4. Data Collection (Optional)
a. Divide Students in teams of three.
b. Provide each team with a data collection sheet, soccer ball, stopwatch and tape measure
c. Each student will have a role in the data collection, after each trial students should rotate jobs
so they can all complete the activity with their personal data.
i. Student A -kicker
ii. Student B - time keeper/ recorder
iii. Student C -will measure the kick
d. As student A kicks the ball as far as he/she can while student B uses the stopwatch to record the
amount of time the ball is in the air and student C measures (in cm) the distance the ball travels
with the use of a tape measure.
e. Students will then rotate roles so everyone can perform each task

5. Explanation of forces and physics relationships
Forces required for movement must still follow Newton‟s laws of motion. The first law of motion
says that for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. This is the explanation that
helps explain the need for complement muscle groups that were described before. However, in
order to analyze the forces involved in the kick it is critical to look at Newton‟s 2nd Law of motion
that states, the acceleration of a rotating body is directly proportional to the force causing it in
the same direction of the force and is inversely proportional to the moment of inertia/ mass of the
body. To go through the procedure some key descriptions must be analyzed.
i. Work=Force x Distance: the magnitude of force applied by the kicker against the
ball and the distance the ball moves in direction of the force of the kick
ii. Acceleration of the Ball = Force Contact/ Mass of Ball
iii. Relative Forces acting on the soccer ball
1. Force from the ground
2. Force from the leg swing- this is going to have a horizontal and vertical
component. To determine distance it is only necessary to look at the
horizontal component.
iv. As the foot kicks the ball (contact force) and ball exerts reactive force back which
gives rise to the acceleration of the ball.
v. The overall magnitude of the force is determined by the velocity at impact this
velocity comes from the relative mass of the leg as well as the magnitude of the
muscle contractions through the swing.

6. Application of collected data to above relationships
- Use the data collected earlier or have students generate data by analysis of a video of a soccer
kick. If using the video follow the same procedure as seen in part 4 except have the students use
the stop watch to time the ball in the air and estimate the length of the kick using the knowledge
that a soccer field is 100 yard s in length and the distance between the penalty boxes and the end
lines are 18 yards*. To convert yards to meters: 1 yd = 0.9144 m**

4


*(Use the following diagram for reference.)
**(Give Students the numbers in meters – see chart below for approximated given values based on average human weight
and the video)

Physical Body Mass Distance Time Velocity
(sec) (m/s)
Avg. Person 176lb =80 kg - - -
Leg (of Avg Person) 8.0 kg - 0.2 1.05
Ball 64yds = 58.52m 3.0 19.5
(values based on video) 0.43 kg Final distance = 74.98m
Initial distance= 16.46m
Instantaneous Acceleration of Ball = 5.24 m/s2
Final Force of Foot on Ball = 2.253 N

Note: The earth‟s gravity exerts about 1N of force on a 1kg apple
So….Comparing the force (acting per unit of mass) of the earth on an apple to a foot on a
ball (2N on a 0.5kg mass) gives an increase by a factor of 4x‟s

http://www.sportsknowhow.com/pops/soccer-field.html

VIDEO: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NpkO8zPtMVU&feature=related

7. Conclusions
- Complete the student worksheet
-Complete and return the attached evaluations.

5


Evaluations
Instructions:

For teacher:

Both evaluation form and learning module will be provided to the instructor prior to the lecture in
addition to any worksheet that will be used during the lecture. Having the evaluation questions in mind,
after the lecture is done, the instructor is asked to fill out the form while comparing the actual lecture with
the learning module.

For students:

At the beginning of the lecture, announce that there will be an evaluation at the end of lecture. At
the end of lecture, evaluation form will be given to the students to fill out and ensure students that the
evaluation will be done anonymously. Once all evaluations are filled out, all will be collected and gathered
in an envelope which will be sealed. Evaluation should not take more than 10 minutes to complete.
________________________________________________________________________

The result of evaluations will be available in form of „column charts‟ in respect to each question for the
multiple choices questions and „bulleted list‟ for adequate answers to short answer questions for future
reference. By comparing and contrasting the responses provided by the evaluations from both the
students and the teachers, the lecture can be improved to suit the need for the students and teachers in
future

Evaluation for teachers:

Multiple Choices:

1. How effective were the materials and/or activities? : 1 (ineffective) – 5(very effective)
1 2 3 4 5
2. Established rules and procedures which govern student movement in the classroom during
different types of instructional activities. : 1 (poor) – 5 (excellent)
1 2 3 4 5
3. Materials used during class were organized and available for future. : 1 (poor) – 5 (excellent)
1 2 3 4 5
4. Maintained students‟ interest and attention throughout the lecture. : 1 (poor) – 5 (excellent)
1 2 3 4 5
5. Lecture corresponds with the learning module. : 1 (poor) – 5 (excellent)
1 2 3 4 5

6


Short Answers:

1. Was the materials and/or activities provided with the program adequate and relevant to the learning
module (objective)?

2. What do you think should be added to the program?

3. What do you think should be removed from the program?

7


STUDENT WORKSHEET
Name:______________________________________ Date:___________ #:__________

[Biomechanics of Kicking]
Part 1: Basic Joint Anatomy

1) Label the following joints on the skeleton below: Hip, Knee, Ankle, Toe, Shoulder, Elbow, and Wrist

http://blog.lib.umn.edu/trite001/studyinghumananatomyandphysiology/skeleton.gif

8


2) Define: flex and extend in terms of joints.
__________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________

3) Using stick figures, like the one seen below draw a step by step picture of kicking a soccer ball. (hint:
use the joints that you labeled above in your picture)

4) Use arrows to label the joints which are flexing or extending during each step of the kick.

9


Part 2: Forces
1) Define force:

2) Using the equation given for momentum given below you will determine the velocity of your leg
while kicking a soccer ball.
a. Determine the approximate mass of your leg. (M L)

��
My Weight: lbs x (��.�� ) = kg

Weight of Leg = .10 x my weight
= .10 x kg = kg

b. Determine the mass of a soccer ball. Using the scale and soccer ball provided record the result
below.

Mass of Soccer Ball: MB = kg

c. Velocity of Soccer Ball. To find the velocity of the soccer ball it is important to find the
distance the ball travels during the kick and the amount of time the ball is in the air. Using
teams of three, person A is the kicker, person B records the distance, and person C records the
time the ball is in the air using a stop watch.
i. Person A: kick
ii. Person B: Distance Traveled using a tape measure, determine the distance the
ball travels while in the air. (record)

∆�� = Final Distance – Starting Distance
∆�� = m- m
= m

iii. Person C: timer (record)
Time the ball is in the air: seconds

∆��
iv. Velocity: VB =
��

VB = = m/s

10 


d. Momentum: VBMB = VLML, we are interested in the velocity of the leg (V L) so we need to
rearrange the equation and put in the values we calculated in parts i. – iv.

VL = VBMB / ML
= m/s x kg / kg
= m/s

3) Using the values calculated for momentum it is possible to determine the force acting on the soccer
ball by your leg. To find the force we need to determine the acceleration of the soccer ball.
Acceleration is change in velocity over the time it takes to kick the soccer ball. For this activity we are
going to assume that it takes .2seconds to make contact with the soccer ball.
∆��
i. a= ��
= (final velocity – velocity of the ball at rest) / time
=( m/s - m/s) / .2 seconds
= m/s2
ii. F = MBa
= kg x m/s2
= N

Data Collection:

Weight/Mass Initial Distance Final Distance Time in air/contact
(lbs/kg) (meters) (meters) (seconds)
Person - - 0.2
Ball 0.43 kg 0

11 


Evaluation for Students:
1. Age:
2. Grade:
3. Gender:

Multiple Choices:

1. To what extend has your understanding of the subject of ‘muscle and movement’ in terms of kicking a
soccer ball improved or increased as a result of the program? : 1 (none) – 5 (A lot)
1 2 3 4 5
2. Were the activities and/or materials used in the program effective (clear, easy to follow, informative,
etc.)? Please list any suggestions you might have for ways to make the program more effective. : 1 (not
effective) – 5 (very effective)
1 2 3 4 5
3. Was the time given to complete the activities and/or materials adequate? : 1 (strongly disagree) – 5
(strongly agree)
1 2 3 4 5
4. The instructor demonstrated knowledge of the subject. : 1 (strongly disagree) – 5 (strongly agree)
1 2 3 4 5
5. What is your overall rating of this program? : 1 (poor) – 5 (excellent)
1 2 3 4 5
6. Questions were encouraged and proper comments and answers were given. : 1 (strongly disagree) – 5
(strongly agree)
1 2 3 4 5
7. Instructor demonstrated organized and logical communication skills. : 1 (strongly disagree) – 5 (strongly
agree)
1 2 3 4 5

Short Answers:

1. What did you like best about the program?

2. What did you like least about the program?

12 


Resources used:

http://www.questionpro.com/akira/showSurveyLibrary.do?surveyID=88&mode=1

http://www.med.uvm.edu/pediatrics/downloads/Student_Evaluation-sample.pdf

http://www.irim.ttu.edu/FacultyEvalGuide/StudentEvaluation.html

*Note that the information/evaluation was altered to suit the objective.

13 

A STEM Module for Bioengineering Topics Muscle and Movement: Part I - Kicking a Soccer Ball

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