Learners create a car using physics. In this forces and motion lesson, students create a car and test which changes in design change the performance of the car. Learners complete a graphic organizer with the different changes...

Fourth graders examine the principles and uses of inclined planes, screws, and wedges while they determine examples of simple machines that are use in everyday life. They separate different kinds of fruit into pieces to determine the...

Students explore how friction change motion and why friction is important. Students set up an incline plane. They slide wooden blocks down the incline plane and measure the distance from the end of the track that the block moved....

Fifth graders investigate incline planes and wedges. They identify a variety of incline planes and wedges that are found all around them. Students record their findings using a worksheet.

Fifth graders discuss prior knowledge of slope and force. They relate steepness of slope to the force needed to get an object up the slope. Students read from their text the information about inclined planes. They answer the questions...

Young Einsteins experiment with the acceleration of Hot Wheels™ toy cars down inclined planes at various angles. This classic physics lab activity is thoroughly explained in both a teacher’s guide and a student lab sheet. Science...

Don't let the term, "slotted wood board" detract you from the value of this experiment. Class members tie a string to a cart and, with even horizontal force, drag it up an inclined plane. The objective is to compare the work done with...

Students write the slope of a linear equation. In this algebra lesson, students follow a robot along a coordinate plane and create an equation to represent the ramp created. They identify the points the ramp passes through.

Learners examine what lies within the Earth. They research and create scale models illustrating the layers of the Earth and write skits advocating a travel plan to send a probe into the Earth's mantle.

Third graders invent gadgets using simple machine principles. Once they have assembled graphic organizers containing information about their invention, they draw diagrams and explain how their gadget works. Lastly, 3rd graders write...

Students determine the distance of a sphere rolling down an incline.  In this physics lesson students participate in a lab that demonstrates how inclined planes make work easier. 

Students use problem-solving skills and creativity to build a roller ball race track with adjustable ramp levels and changeable friction surfaces. They hypothesize how fast or slow balls will roll down ramps, varying the shape and size...

Here is an inventive plan that should get your young scientists excited! In it, groups of pupils test out the work done by six different simple machines. The machines are: the wedge, the lever, the inclined plane, the pulley, the screw,...

You may find this presentation helpful in setting up the classic experiment where potato wedges are used for observing the effects of osmosis. You can view the experimental setup in the text and a lab sheet in the pictures, but you will...

Kickball is a classic recess game that everybody should play at least once. Included here is a wonderful set of instructions that describe how you can modify the game to make it accessible to children with low or no visual ability....

Legos in science class? Watch your pupils fall in love with this activity. After learning to measure potential and kinetic energy, young scientists create their own ramps using Lego Mindstorm sensors and software.

Here's the perfect lesson for those who think the world needs faster pumps. Building on the previous activity, scholars work to make the pumps function faster in transferring water between containers. They try adding an additional solar...

Full speed ahead! Young learners conduct an activity using toy cars and ramps. They collect data on mass, speed, and time to investigate Newton's second law of motion. Ideally, they'll come up with the equation F = ma.

Students create a pyramid design based on the 6 simple machines that they are introduced to. In this simple machines lesson plan, students are introduced to the wedge, wheel and axle, inclined plane, screw, and pulley.

Young scholars investigate simple machines. In this simple machines lesson, students explore how tools increase productivity and make life easier. Young scholars experiment with simple tools and discover the parts of each tool.

Learners examine motion of a sphere on an inclined plane.  In this inclined plane lesson plan students complete an activity to discover basic relationships.

Student design and build Lego vehicles that drag given amount of weight up an incline. They show how this demonstrates Egyptian methods of pyramid construction.

Young scholars plan, build, and test a ramp that allows objects to roll far.

Students learn the fundamentals and daily applications of simple machines.