Alabama Learning Exchange
Investigating Friction
Young learners explore friction. They view a video or DVD (bibliography provided) and define terms related to friction, and work in groups to experiment with the effects of friction on speed and motion using ramps and toy cars.
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Friction in Our Lives
Students explore force and friction. In this force and friction lesson, students discover everyday examples of how friction helps and hinders things we do. Students create a ramp to test the speed of their car. Students use...
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Scooter Ships
Students explore simple physics concepts such as push/pull, friction, and speed. In this physics/physical education lesson, students work in co-operative groups to "build" a spaceship out of scooters and folded mats. Teams experiment...
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Fantastic Friction!!!
Students work in small groups to list at least 10 items that have movement or motion choosing one item from the list to use as a topic for the following questions: How does this item move? How can we slow down the movement? How can we...
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Friction of a Block Weight
Fifth graders hypothesize and design an experiment to study the relationship between a block weight and the number of washers it takes to pull a block across various surfaces. Students graph results and apply their findings to a...
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Friction
Fourth graders investigate friction as a force that is present around us. They observe as a ball is rolled on different surfaces and stopped before discussing what happens. Using different surfaces, they make predictions as to what type...
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Surface Friction and Wear Characteristics of Common Materials
High schoolers identify the factors affecting friction. In this physics lesson, students construct their own rocket car and race them. They graph the average speeds and discuss how lubricants affect friction between rubbing surfaces.
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What's the Rub? It's All About Friction!
Students determine the coefficient of friction for different surfaces. In this physics lesson plan, students identify the factors that affect friction. They collect data and write a formal lab report.
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Rocket Science 101
Students explore the aspects of Newton's First and Third Laws of Motion as they conduct controlled rocketry experiments and analyze the Mars Mission in terms of the principles of rocketry.
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Force and Motion
Students experiment with force and motion. For this force and motion lesson, students test gravity using a variety of objects. Students rotate through a series of stations which use force, motion, friction, and inclines. Students predict...
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Force
Fifth graders move a variety of objects in different ways to observe the different forces. In this physics lesson, 5th graders observe pushing, pulling, gravity, and friction. The hands-on component, and teamwork involved, should make...
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Science in Focus: Force and Motion
Students explore force and motion through a series of experiments. In this physics instructional activity, students create and interpret speed graphs. They build an electromagnet and explain the factors affecting its strength.
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Ignoring Friction - Not This Time!
Students discover the factors affect friction. Students, working in lab pairs, complete various experiments in order to discover what factors effect the amount of frictional force a block has as it is pulled across different surfaces.
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Friction and Machines
Fifth graders experimentally determine the relationship of friction to the functioning of machines. They demonstrate that rollers can decrease frictional force and increase speed and research to discover other ways that friction can be...
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Science: Avalanche!
Eighth graders examine avalanches after reading excerpts from John Muir's book, "The Yosemite." In small groups, they conduct experiments with flour, sugar, and potato flakes representing different snow consistencies. Then, 8th graders...
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Energy/Light/Heat/Sound
Fourth graders study the properties of heat in this series of lessons. They discuss sources of heat and experiment to determine its properties. They identify insulators and conductors by measuring temperatures, and graphing their data....
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Physics on the Playground
Young scholars investigate friction on a playground slide. In this force and energy lesson, students will predict, plan, and implement a scientific investigation to the problem; What materials will allow me to slide the fastest down a...
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Force and Motion - Part 2
Students test different objects such as dominoes, marshmallows, slides, and more to test their force, motion, gravity, friction, and the concept of matter. For this force and motion lesson plan, students understand that the force an...
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Science: Building an Electric Motor
Learners build their own electric motors and use them to conduct experiments. Following a step-by-step procedure, they make wire coils by wrapping wire around disc magnets and complete the process with clay, paper clips, alligator clips,...
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Investigating Motion
Learners explore types of motion. In this motion experiment, students observe how objects move. Learners work in small groups to discover the laws of motion.
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Junkyard Wars: Wind Machines
Students explain how wind direction affects sail angle. In this physics lesson, students measure the speed of the yacht while varying different factors. They summarize and share their finding to class.
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Experiments in Nanotechnology: Ferrofluids
Students explore the world of nanotechnology by synthesizing ferrofluids in a series of chemical reactions. In small groups, they follow the procedure to create the ferrofluids using precise measuring techniques. They test the resulting...
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Crash Test Dummies
Fifth graders are introduced to Newton's First Law of Motion. In groups, they describe the differences between balanced and unbalanced forces. They participate in experiments that demonstrate how equal and opposite forces act upon...
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Rules of Force and Motion
Students view a video and complete experiments with force and motion. In this force and motion lesson, students examine small pieces and how they affect the motion of a toy car. Students also experiment with sand paper,...