Teach Engineering
Physics Tug of War
Slide books with a little assistance from Newton. Using books, groups create a demonstration of Newton's Second Law of motion. Pupils compare the distance traveled by one and two books when they apply a force to them.
Curated OER
Unit V: Worksheet 2 - Constant Force
Physics learners studying force and acceleration practice solving eight problems with this assignment. They calculate acceleration and deceleration, net force, and distances required for stopping a moving object. Kinematics equations and...
Curated OER
Rules of Force and Motion
Students view a video and complete experiments with force and motion. In this force and motion activity, students examine small pieces and how they affect the motion of a toy car. Students also experiment with sand paper, bubble wrap...
Curated OER
Deep Impact Comet Encounter
Physics apprentices analyze the impact of NASA's Impactor as it collided with the comet Tempel 1 in July of 2005. They calculate the mass and speed of the comet, along with the distance it might drift off of its orbit over time. This...
Texas State Energy Conservation Office
Investigation: Acceleration
Take a look at acceleration within the context of automotive technology. They vary the mass on a toy car and run it down a ramp, exploring Newton's second law of motion. Though this is a classic lab activity, you will appreciate the...
Curated OER
Acceleration, Drag, Gravity, Motion, Forces, and Friction
Eighth graders build and run mousetrap cars in order to measure distance, time, and mass for their cars. They use these measurements to calculate average speed and kinetic energy, then create a slide show to visually explain how the car...
NASA
Newton Car
If a car gets heavier, it goes farther? By running an activity several times, teams experience Newton's Second Law of Motion. The teams vary the amount of weight they catapult off a wooden block car and record the distance the car...
LABScI
Kinematics: The Gravity Lab
Falling objects can be brutal if you don't protect your noodle! Scholars explore the motion of falling objects through measuring short intervals to determine if the distance traveled varies with time. Building off of this, scholars...
Curated OER
Hovercraft
Students assess human impact on water quality. They determine how the force of friction retards motion. Pupils describe and measure quantities that characterize moving objects and their interactions within a system: Time, Distance,...
Curated OER
Force and Motion
Each of the slides here gives a definition, equation, or calculation example for a component of force and motion. This large collection covers topics from momentum and Newton's laws to centripetal forces and simple machines. Animations...
Curated OER
Newton Gets Me Moving
Students discuss Newton's laws of motion. The conduct motion experiments by building "Newton Rocket Cars" from assorted materials. They propel the cars with rubber bands and wooden blocks and record the distance traveled on data sheets.
Curated OER
Mass/Acceleration
Sixth graders examine the relationship between mass and acceleration of an object. In this mass instructional activity students work in groups and complete a lab.Â
Curated OER
The Solar System and the Forces Behind It
Sixth graders discover why planets stay in orbit. In groups, they use everyday materials to examine the effect of gravity of objects and calculate how mass changes based on gravitational pull. To end the instructional activity, they...
Magic of Physics
Planetary Rescue Squad
Ready, aim ... learn! Increase scholars' understanding of force, mass, distance, and angle using an engaging interactive. Pupils participate in a series of rescue missions where they launch supplies at a target with an adjustable cannon....
Curated OER
Speedy Trials
Fifth graders investigate how forces affect the motion of an object. In this physics lesson plan, 5th graders calculate an object's speed using a mathematical formula. They discuss how force and mass affects the speed.
Curated OER
Forces and Acceleration
Students discover the relationship between force and acceleration in a skateboard experiment. In small groups, they attach a spring balance to a skateboard and pull a group member across the floor using a constant amount of force. They...
Curated OER
Walking on Water
Students use this problem to help them to relate to force vectors: Suspend a meterstick horizontally between two tables. Place a 1kg mass in the middle of the meterstick. Notice the bend of the meterstick. Explain why the meterstick...
Curated OER
Worksheet 22
In this math worksheet, students apply the following: In physics, the equation W=Fd gives the amount W of energy expended in moving a distance d by applying a constant force F.
Curated OER
Newton's Laws with Kick Balls
Eighth graders participate in different activities that reinforce Newton's Laws. Activity begins with question/answer session about Newton's first and second laws. Students then try to bounce kick ball off of a wall to get it to given...
Curated OER
Geometry: Practical Applications of the Distance Formula
Students, working independently and in groups, apply the distance formula to practical situations. After solving various problems, students in pairs design coordinate planes from the school blue print to measure the distance from the...
Curated OER
Newton's Challenge
In this Newton's challenge worksheet, students demonstrate their understanding of Newton's laws by performing several mini labs. Students answer questions that ask to describe the movement of each demonstration using Newton's laws.
Urbana School District
Physics Intro, Kinematics, Graphing
Some consider physics the branch of science concerned with using long and complicated formulas to describe how a ball rolls. This presentation, while long, is not complicated, yet it covers rolling, falling, and more. It compares vectors...
Curated OER
Velocity and Acceleration
Compliment your physics lesson with this PowerPoint which demonstrates many important points regarding acceleration and velocity. A starter experiment activity to stimulate student thinking is given, and may prove very interesting to a...
Curated OER
Newton's 2nd Law
Fourth graders discuss Newton's Second Law of Motion, and the acceleration of fast and slow moving objects. They experiment with items with different masses to determine the effect mass has on acceleration using a toy car. They complete...