Curated OER
Forces Acting on a Spring
Teaching elastic forces in your physics class is a snap with this resource! Scholars compare the stretch of rubber bands with differing width, then measure the stretch of a spring and calculate force. In a whole-class experiment, wire is...
Curated OER
Elastic Forces
Third graders predict and experiment to discover the amount of force exerted by a stretched elastic band. They construct a spreadsheet and make a bar graph showing the results of their experiment.
Curated OER
Freestanding Structures: A Tech Museum Floor Activity
Students attempt to design the tallest structure that they can with the given materials which are wooden dowels and rubber bands. They discuss the physics of their structure and how they would improve it the next time they built a...
Teach Engineering
Mechanics of Elastic Solids
Make the connection between Hooke's law and elasticity with an activity that introduces the class to the behavior of elastic materials. The resource defines stress and strain to calculate the modules of elasticity of materials and also...
Curated OER
Crash! Bang!
Students study the physical force of linear momentum by investigating collisions. They analyze the difference between elastic and inelastic collisions. They calculate linear momentum.
Curated OER
Elasticity and Collapse
Young scholars discuss the oil crisis and a future world without oil. In this oil lesson, students watch videos online based on the reduced oil supply. They discuss how their regional community depends on oil and what would happen if the...
Curated OER
Hooke's Law, Vibrations, Mechanical Waves, and Sound
Dangle a spring to experiment with vibration and discover if period is dependent on amplitude. Strum a guitar and adjust the strings to compare displacement and sound. Use a Slinky® and guitar strings on a ring stand to uncover the...
Cornell University
Mechanical Properties of Gummy Worms
Learners won't have to squirm when asked the facts after completing an intriguing lab investigation! Hook young scholars on science by challenging them to verify Hooke's Law using a gummy worm. Measuring the length of the worm as they...
Curated OER
Silly Semi-Solids
Students create a polymer out of glue, water, and borax. They discuss the resulting substance and perform several experiments with it.
Curated OER
Lesson 5: Boyle's Law
Young scholars participate in a lab to verify Boyle's Law using applied force (weight) to do work on a closed isolated system of air. "Elasticity of Gases Apparatus, BASIX" from Sargent-Welch is the syringe apparatus used to measure...
LABScI
Projectiles: Target Practice
Angry Birds prepared them, but now pupils must prove their skills with projectiles! Scholars test different variables to determine which ones impact the distance the projectile flies. The experiment provides connections to kinetic and...
Curated OER
Energy At Play
If you can find Tinker Toys™, then this may be a fun assignment for your physical science class. Using the construction set and a few other toys, they examine the forces involved when it they are being played with. For each, they...
Curated OER
TE Activity: Testing Fundamental Loads
Students experiment with the five fundamental load types that can act on structures. They use foam insulation blocks to which they apply the forces and draw the fracture patterns. They determine the telltale marks of failure that is...
Curated OER
Rover Landing Design Challenge
Students examine the concepts of forces and motion. They work together to design protective devices for their egg rovers as they are dropped from a specific height. They record their observations and discuss.
Space Awareness
Model of a Black Hole
Even light cannot leave the force of a black hole! Learners use a model to explore the gravitational force of a black hole. An elastic bandage and heavy ball serve to create the hole, while marbles become the victims of its strong force.
Curated OER
Profess the Compress
Students determine the ground clearance of CEENBoTs by adding weights. In this physics lesson, students explore the compression and extension of different springs. They cite real world applications of Hooke's Law.
Curated OER
MASS
Students distinguish between weight and mass. They examine how in oscillations of a mass against an elastic spring--in the absence of gravity, or in horizontal motion--the length of the oscillation period is proportional to the square...
Curated OER
The Elastic Racquet
Students use this introductory lab using a tennis racquet, however it is very difficult to study because of the strings and the racquet stretch so little and so quickly during a match that students were unable to make simple...
Curated OER
Forces on the Human Molecule
Students conduct several simple lab activities to explore the five fundamental load types that can act on structures: tension, compression, shear, bending, and torsion. In this activity, students play the role of molecules in a beam...
Curated OER
Impulse/Momentum Lab
Learners investigate the relationship between force and momentum using motion detectors and sensors. In this physics lesson, students graph experimental results. They calculate impulse using the area under the graph.
Curated OER
Utah's Regional Competitiveness for Non-resident Higher Education Students
Students study how government decisions need to account for competitive forces. They examine Utah's higher education system as an example. They describe how Utah compares to other western states in attracting out-of-state students. They...
Curated OER
Superball Physics
Eighth graders bounce superballs and measure to see if they can hit the same spot over and over. In this superball lesson plan, 8th graders calculate the weight of the ball with the force of the throw to try and hit the same spot with...
Illustrative Mathematics
Bank Shot
Young geometers become pool sharks in this analysis of the angles and lengths of a trick shot. By using angles of incidence and reflection to develop similar triangles, learners plan the exact placement of balls to make the shot....
Curated OER
Avalanche!
Students explain that when forces on an object are balanced, the motion of object does not change. They describe how an object changes its motion when forces on it are unbalanced. They plan and conduct a scientific investigation to test...