Curated OER
Newton's Three Laws of Motion Lesson Plan
Students explore Newton's three laws of motion using a variety of activities. In this physics lesson, students calculate the average speed of a vehicle they constructed using distance and time information. They identify and draw the...
Curated OER
Circular Motion
Students investigate circular motion in two different activities. In the first, students observe the path of a rolling marble on a paper plate. In the second, students play a game of catch using a tennis ball inside a plastic bag. ...
Curated OER
Forces and Acceleration Unit
Students investigate that an unbalanced force, acting on an object, changes it speed or path of motion or both, and know that if the force always acts toward the same center as the object moves, the objects path may curve into an orbit...
Curated OER
Skateboards, Rocket Balloons and Newton's Laws of Motion
Students investigate forces. In this laws of motion lesson, students visit the Glasgow Science Center or Techniquest to participate in activities related to the Newton's law of motion.
Curated OER
Newton's 2nd Law of Motion
Students investigate how mass affects the speed of an object. In this physics instructional activity, students record data on the data table and graph results. They analyze findings and formulate a conclusion.
Curated OER
Simple Harmonic Motion
Learners explore the theory of simple harmonic motion (SHM) by performing hands-on, practical application experiments. In this harmonic motion lesson plan, students use strings of various lengths and bobs of different weights to create a...
Curated OER
Newton's Third Law of Motion
Students move through five stations demonstrating Newton's Third Law of Motion. In this Newtonian physics lesson, students watch as the instructor uses a firecracker to demonstrate action and reaction. The students travel to five...
Curated OER
Investigating Motion
Students explore types of motion. In this motion experiment, students observe how objects move. Students work in small groups to discover the laws of motion.
Curated OER
Rocket Activity
Students explore Newton's Second Law of Motion. In this rocket activity lesson, students experiment with Newton's Second Law of Motion as they use a slingshot device to force a car to move.
Curated OER
Propellers, Forces and Energy
Young scholars construct a model airplane, measure distance, and calculate velocity. In this creative lesson students work in groups to build a model and use it to calculate distances and velocity.
Curated OER
Building and Launching Rocket Kits
Students, in groups, build and decorate rocket kits and then launch them.
Curated OER
Newton's Laws and Rocketball
Young scholars investigate Newton's Three Laws. In this Newton's Law instructional activity, students write the laws in their own words. Young scholars then do an experiment with a ping pong ball. Students drop the ball from a set...
Curated OER
Temperature Changes Everything
Middle school chemists visit interactive websites in order to discover what happens to molecular motion when heat is added to matter. They conduct an experiment that demonstrates the expansion of matter with the addition of heat. A lab...
Curated OER
Science in baseball
Sixth graders examine how science is used in everyday activities, such as baseball.
Curated OER
Don't Slip!
Students measure, record, and graph the force of moving a block of wood along sand paper. In this friction lesson plan, students read a spring scale, collect data, construct a graph, and propose a model to explain how fiction works.
Curated OER
The Legendary Raptors
How are raptors and airplanes alike? Combine science and language arts in this fun and interactive project. Young scientists research the animal in order to design their own aircraft, and compete in a contest for farthest, fastest, and...
Curated OER
Qualitative Aspects of Rotational Dynamics
Explanations for six different physics lab activities and five suggested assessments are contained in this resource by the National Science Teachers Association. Any combination can be used to open learners' eyes to rotational motion....
It's About Time
Defy Gravity
Test the limits of gravity while encouraging full class participation with this thrilling lesson. Pupils investigate the meaning of work and how it is equivalent to energy. They explore the joule and apply it as a unit of work. They...
PHET
Mapping the Field of Multiple Dipole Magnets
So you built a magnetometer, now what? High school scientists use their magnetometer made in a previous lesson to map the union of magnetic fields of dipole magnets. They experiment with different alignments and draw conclusions about...
K20 LEARN
Ace in the Hole
How does inertia affect an object's trajectory? After watching a video on safety belt use, pupils discuss the notions of inertia. Using their knowledge, individuals try to drop a ball on a target while running, and classmates observe the...
American Chemical Society
Does Temperature Affect Dissolving?
When making sweet tea, why do people dissolve the sugar in hot tea instead of cold tea? The class discusses the previous lab and builds upon it. Working in groups, they design an experiment to determine how temperature affects the...
University of Colorado
Great Red Spot Pinwheel
The great red spot on Jupiter is 12,400 miles long and 7,500 miles wide. In this sixth part of a 22-part series, individuals model the rotation of the Great Red Spot on Jupiter. To round out the activity, they discuss their findings as a...
Curated OER
The Physics of Sports: An 8th Grade Physical Science Project
Explore the relationship between sports and physics in a cross-curricular lesson. Middle and high schoolers prepare a multimedia presentation based on a chosen sport. They answer five physics vocabulary questions about how the laws of...
University of Colorado
Terra Bagga
Earth's magnetic poles switch positions about every 200,000—300,000 years. In the activity, groups create a planet with a magnetic field. Once made, they use a magnetometer to determine the orientation of the planet's magnetic field....