Curated OER
Engineering Lessons Adapted for Special Education
Modifying engineering lessons from NASA makes them accessible to a wider variety of learners.
Curated OER
The Basics: Physical Science
Learners view a video on friction and examine how friction and gravity affect some sports. In this investigative instructional activity students write a paragraph and draw a picture that illustrates how friction and gravity affect...
Curated OER
Motion, Force, and Gravity
Learners write a research paper about human space travel. In this space travel lesson, students watch a video and research issues related to space travel. They use their research to write a paper about whether human space travel should...
Curated OER
Which Falls Faster?
Second graders study force and what it does. In this motion lesson students complete a demonstration on force and gravity and share their ideas.
Curated OER
Gravity: It's GREEEAAATTT!
Students calculate effects of gravitational force on planets, discuss the effects of weightlessness on the human body and describe and demonstrate how objects in a state of free fall are accelerated by gravity at an equal rate.
Curated OER
Forces and Motion
Young scholars build parachutes for chicken eggs. In this physics lesson, students describe the forces acting on a falling object. They predict which of the three parachute models they made has the best chance of keeping the egg intact...
Curated OER
Race the Track! The Time Challenge (lesson 2)
Learners design a track that keeps a ball in motion for 5 seconds or longer. For this designing lesson plan, students explore force, gravity, and cause and effect when it comes to science and building before building their own track.
Curated OER
Forces
For this forces worksheet, students read about force and acceleration. They complete a Venn Diagram to compare and contrast balanced and unbalanced forces, they answer questions about a diagram of a tug-a-war and the forces acting on...
Curated OER
Forces
In this forces worksheet, students read about what affects the force on an object. Students identify push forces and pull forces in 5 diagrams. They answer 13 questions about the forces in two diagrams and they draw vector diagrams to...
Edmond Public Schools
8th Grade Science Resource Book: Unit 2 - Physics
Get things moving with this extensive collection of physical science resources. Covering the fundamentals of measurement, graphing, lab safety, and experimental design as well as the specific scientific concepts...
PBS
Invisible Force
Investigate invisible forces. Young engineers design a setup that changes the direction of a steel ball using a magnetic force. The purpose of the setup is to model the gravitational pull of spacecraft by planetary bodies.
CK-12 Foundation
Model Rocket
Acceleration, velocity, mass, and gravity all play a role in the motion of a rocket. Young scientists explore the connection among these components using an interactive tutorial. They adjust the mass and thrust force to experiment with...
CK-12 Foundation
Cliff Diver
Cliff diving is more than an adrenaline rush ... it's a lesson in physics! Scholars adjust the height of a cliff and plot the resulting velocity and position over time on graphs. They also can incorporate air resistance to monitor the...
Curated OER
Forces and Motion-The Downhill Racer
Students calculate a toy car's velocity and acceleration. For this force and motion lesson, students build ramps and attach a dropper to a toy car, which is released down the ramp. Students calculate and graph velocity and acceleration...
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...
Florida International University
Simulating Microgravity with Buoyancy
How do astronauts know how to live and work in a weightless environment? It doesn't come naturally! Junior physicists conduct experiments to examine the link between buoyancy and microgravity. Each activity illustrates a different aspect...
Bowels Physics
Newton's First Law
Force acts on objects in mysterious ways ... until now! A comprehensive presentation explains the balance of forces acting on objects. Learners draw free body diagrams to show these invisible forces and make force calculations.
Curated OER
Crash Course in Flight
High school physicists demonstrate Bernoulli's Principle by blowing on different items and finding that they do not move in the expected direction! They apply Bernoulli's equation to the flight of an airplane. This well-organized lesson...
Curated OER
Mass vs. Weight
Why do you weigh more in space? Each individual in your class explores this question and others as they determine the mass and weight of different objects using two types of scales. They perform conversions and discuss their...
Curated OER
F = ma, Inertia, and Action-Reaction
Fourth graders apply concepts of Newton's Laws in scientific inquiries. Use this activity to have your charges test and identify the characteristics of objects that make them easier or harder to push. After a teacher-led demonstration,...
Purdue University
Exploring Whirligigs
What's that silly thing spinning in the wind? It's a whirligig! Explore wonderful windy whirligigs with a STEM-based unit that teaches the science and concepts behind these gigs. Scholars discover how gravity and air resistance...
Southwest Educational Development Laboratory
Simple Machines
Simple doesn't mean useless. Individuals learn how simple machines benefit the user by changing the amount of effort. A seven-lesson unit begins with an overview of simple machines and then incorporates activities that allow the user to...
Curated OER
Forces of Nature: The Challenges of River Travel
Learners examine how river travel affected the Lewis and Clark expedition. They define gravity, slope, and velocity, conduct a river formations experiment, complete an activity sheet, and watch a video about Lewis and Clark.
Curated OER
The Lost Newton's Laws Lesson
Students explore momentum. In this physics lesson, students perform an experiment in which two balls are released on slanted boards while students observe which ball will go the farthest and the fastest. Students define and explain...