Science and Mathematics Initiative for Learning Enhancement (SMILE)
Smile: Simple Machines (Grades 1 To12)
In this lesson plan students start by trying to open a paint can with their bare hands. Eventually, they will use a lever to open it. Various activities are used to enforce different simple machines.
Science Education Resource Center at Carleton College
Serc: Mn Step: Six Simple Machines: How They Combine to Form Complex Machines
For this activity, students predict which simple machines might be inside a small household appliance. They then take it apart to investigate, and record what they discover. In the process, they learn how simple machines are combined to...
abcteach
Abcteach: Science: Simple Machines
[Free Registration/Login Required] A collection of ready-to-go worksheets and diagrams of simple machines.
PBS
Pbs Teachers: Cantilever Model
Learn about cantilevers by building one with straws and masking tape.
PBS
Pbs Teachers: Secrets of Lost Empires Ii: Lever an Obelisk
Utilize an understanding of how a lever works to lift an obelisk, using as few of the weights and support stones as possible in this online interactive activity.
PBS
Pbs Teachers: Secrets of Lost Empires I Colosseum
Discover how to use pulleys to change the direction of force, compare different pulley designs and discuss the advantages and disadvantages of a pulley.
PBS
Pbs Teachers: Secrets of Lost Empires Ii: Lever Lift
Examine the classes of levers and discover how levers work by raising a brick with shish kebab skewers.
PBS
Pbs Teachers: Secrets of Lost Empires I Obelisk
Investigate how levers can be used to lift objects and discover how the position of the fulcrum affects the force and the distance of the load lifted.
NASA
Nasa: The Screw
In this lesson plan students learn how to make a screw and compare how many turns it takes for different screws to embed into a piece of wood.
NASA
Nasa: Simple Machines
A lesson plan site that contains activities designed to give grades 3 and 4 experiences in using simple machines.
The Franklin Institute
Franklin Institute Online: The Pulley
This site provides an easy to understand experiment that will demonstrate the pulley to students in grades K-3. It requires only everyday materials. The students are encouraged to discover some of these concepts for themselves and apply...
Sophia Learning
Sophia: Practice W/ Levers
This lesson provides the learner with examples on determining the work done to or by a lever.
Sophia Learning
Sophia: Simple Machines: Lesson 2
This lesson will introduce the six types of simple machines and show how machines can increase efficiency by reducing work input needed. It is 2 of 2 in the series titled "Simple Machines."
Sophia Learning
Sophia: Simple Machines: Lesson 1
This lesson will introduce the six types of simple machines and show how machines can increase efficiency by reducing work input needed. It is 1 of 2 in the series titled "Simple Machines."
Ducksters
Ducksters: Physics for Kids: Simple Machines
Kids learn about the science behind simple machines such as levers, wheels, pulleys, inclined planes, and screws. How they work together to make complex machinery.
ClassFlow
Class Flow: Simple Machines
[Free Registration/Login Required] Simple machines are all around and make many of the jobs we do easier. Investigate the six simple machines and how they help you work. Discover how they reduce the amount of force we use or can change...
ClassFlow
Class Flow: Simple Machines Intro
[Free Registration/Login Required] This flipchart defines and illustrates common simple machines. Students are able to demonstrate understanding by answering questions regarding the properties of the various simple machines.
ClassFlow
Class Flow: Simple Machines Quiz
[Free Registration/Login Required] This flipchart consists of a humorous quiz on identifying simple machines and forces of motion such as gravity and inertia.
Other
D&t Online: Gears
This site illustrates how gears work and how they are used in simple machines.
CK-12 Foundation
Ck 12: Plix: Simple Machines: Lever
[Free Registration/Login Required] Drag the labels to identify the different parts of the wheelbarrow as parts in a lever.
CK-12 Foundation
Ck 12: Plix: Simple Machines: Lever
[Free Registration/Login Required] Drag the labeled triangles to indicate where the fulcrum of this third-class lever is as well as the input and output forces.
Other
60 Second Science: Rolling Down Ramps Experiment
Explore the characteristics of inclined planes while observing how drops of colored water flow down a ramp and on different surfaces.