Projectile motion worksheet for Algebra 2
In Algebra 2 projectile problems use h(t) = -16t² + v₀t + h₀ and test several quadratic skills at once: the vertex for the top, the quadratic formula for landing, and solving h(t) equal to a given height, which often has two answers. Some go further with launch angles and parametric equations.
Also taught in Precalculus and Algebra 1, each at its own level and with its own examples.
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Sigma Prep · sigmaprep.io/worksheets Name Projectile Motion Date Period Answer each question. Round to the nearest tenth.
Free math worksheets at sigmaprep.io/worksheets© 2026 Sigma Prep |
Sigma Prep · sigmaprep.io/worksheets Name Projectile MotionAnswer keyVersion 2 Date Period Answer each question. Round to the nearest tenth.
Free math worksheets at sigmaprep.io/worksheets© 2026 Sigma Prep |
How to do these
. When is the object 58 ft high?
- Set h(t) = 58 and move 58 over: -16t² + 64t - 48 = 0.
- Divide by -16: t² - 4t + 3 = 0, so (t - 1)(t - 3) = 0.
- Once on the way up, once on the way down.
The answer is s and s.
Where students go wrong
Keeping the negative root when finding when it lands. The quadratic formula usually gives one negative time, and the object was not in the air before it was launched, so only the positive answer counts.
Also called height of a projectile, maximum height, quadratic word problems or falling objects.
What you can put on this worksheet
- The greatest height
- A flare is fired upward at 48 ft/s from a platform 24 ft up. gives the height in feet seconds after launch. Find the greatest height. → ft
- When it is highest
- A flare is fired upward at 48 ft/s from a platform 24 ft up. gives the height in feet seconds after launch. When does it reach its greatest height? → s
- When it lands
- A flare is fired upward at 48 ft/s from a platform 24 ft up. gives the height in feet seconds after launch. When does it hit the ground? → s
- Launched at an angle
- A ball is hit at 84 ft/s at from ground level. Write parametric equations and find how far it travels horizontally, to the nearest tenth. → ,
;
about 220.5 ft - When it is at a given height
- . When is the object 182 ft high? → s and s
- In meters
- A ball is kicked at 12 m/s at from 1 m above the ground. Write parametric equations and find how far it travels, to the nearest tenth of a meter. → ,
;
about 15.6 m - Time, distance, highest point
- A ball is hit at 88 ft/s at from 6 ft above the ground . To the nearest tenth, find the time in the air, the horizontal distance, the time of the greatest height, and the greatest height. →
- Sketch the path
- A ball is launched from the ground at 64 ft/s at . Sketch its path and give the horizontal distance and the greatest height, to the nearest tenth. → Distance ; greatest height