High schoolers use the equation to calculate the vertical distance an object fall during 1 second in 1/10 second increments. (The acceleration due to gravity on the Earth=a= 9.8 m/s2) Using a graphing calculator, students plot the path...

Students explore the physical properties of water.  In this water instructional activity, students observe, measure, and describe water as it changes state. There are 2 extensions for this instructional activity that one can access...

Learners use the reaction time to figure out problems. They use the following example to get them started with reaction time: the edge of a ruler is placed near a person's thumb and index finger and, without warning, the ruler is...

Students compare and contrast the terms "weight" and "mass". In this physics lesson plan, students observe an experiment in which objects are placed on a balance scale and weighed under different circumstances. Partners drop items and...

High schoolers calculate acceleration due to gravity with the measurements of the period of a pendulum or measurements of the time for an object to fall from different heights. They observe and measure the effect of air resistance on the...

Students measure acceleration using a Picket Fence and a Photogate. In this physics lesson, students drop an object and measure the acceleration of the object free falling. They log their data using the TI.  

Students explain how moon phases occur. They explain three ways that the night sky has been used through history. Students locate some of the constellations in the night sky. They discuss stories and myths surrounding stars.

Fourth graders investigate Newton's Second and Third Laws of Motion. They determine what makes objects harder or easier to push. While investigating they determine how applying force in order balance out gravity allows things to stay...

In this paper helicopter worksheet, students design and experiment making a paper helicopter to explore how some things fall and how varying the size of the rotor blades affect the way a helicopter spins.

It is always a rush to drop objects from great heights, and with this physics experiment, class members will not be disappointed! They drop a single coffee filter from a balcony or table top, record the time it takes to reach the ground,...

In this gravity worksheet, students define terms such as free fall, terminal velocity, and inertia. Then students compare the different types of forces that act upon objects. This worksheet has 9 short answer and 4 fill in the blank...

Eighth graders experiment with Newton's Laws by comparing the falling of different objects with different masses. Students work in teams and rotate through four different stations recording their hypotheses and observations as they go.

Learners predict the behavior of coffee in a cup while it is dropped during a demonstration. They relate their observations to the weightless conditions that astronauts experience in space and discuss the concept of free-fall.

Students will work in small groups, observing an ice cube and recording a description, the feel of the ice, and how it looks when put in another container. Students observe changes in the ice over 15 minute intervals, then freeze the...

Students analyze the motion of an object as it moves through a complex path that includes rolling, falling, and bouncing. They answer questions related to what forces are acting at any given time.

Students discuss how all objects fall at the same rate and vertical motion is independent of the horizontal motion. Students apply this information to center of mass activities before solving equations.

Young scholars investigate gravity.  For this weightless lesson students complete a lab activity about how a free fall might effect how one perceives gravity.

Middle schoolers explore the concept that free-fall eliminates the local effects of gravity. They discuss what an Earth-orbiting spacecraft experience is like as well as the terminology of weightlessness. Their lab experiment commences.

Students work together to discover the concepts of stability and equilibrium. They examine how equilibrium is related to an item's center of mass. They create their own action scene in a literacy activity.

Students relate the concept of gravity to math. In this algebra instructional activity, students define scientific terminology relative to gravity, weight and centripetal force. They measure the different dimensions of a cylinder as...

Students explore naturally magnetic elements. In this magnets lesson, students examine the periodic table of elements. Students discover the parts of an atom and determine which three elements are magnetic.

Students explore rotating frames of reference, focusing on the weightless environment in space and the Coriolis force.

Gravity does more than keep our feet on the ground — it holds a satellite in orbit, too. Help learners understand the effects of gravity on an orbiting object through a simulation activity. Individuals adjust a launch speed and watch as...

In this distance worksheet, students determine the distance between two objects, find the average velocity of an object, and define instantaneous velocity. This two-page worksheet contains six two-step problems.