Middle schoolers engage in a instructional activity that is concerned with the concept of a simple machine and uses the law of motion to justify why they operate. Students explore the laws by constructing some simple machines to...

After reading about marine engineers and naval architects, it's all hands on deck to design and test a speed boat. This lesson is designed for the Next Generation Science Standards in engineering and can be a centerpiece for a STEM...

Students examine the formal definition of Newton's 3rd law: "forces always originate in pairs, equal in magnitude and opposite in direction." --The informal, qualitative version: "Each action has an equal and opposite reaction."

Viewers learn to recognize direct and inverse relationships in the world of physics with a presentation that reveals how to recognize a direct versus an inverse relationship from a formula or graph. After showing basic examples, the...

Be impulsive with your high school physics class. Emerging physicists review the slide presentation and learn about impulse, momentum, collisions, and how each variable may be affected. They complete practice problems and conclude with a...

Here's a resource ideal for independent learners who need extra reinforcement or would like to work ahead. These textbook chapters and practice problems cover many basic physics concepts, starting with potential and kinetic energy and...

Hop aboard the train of thought. A remote learning resource has learners consider thought experiments to consider scientific theories. It provides two examples, one on orbiting bodies and the other on the speed of light, for them to work...

Learners build a model rocket. In this model rocket lesson, students explore a rocket launch cycle. Learners investigate the laws of physics for each part of the launch. Students build model rockets and launch at school.

Students, operating under simulated budget constraints, build pop-rockets and launch them. Working in pairs, they complete budget worksheets and use their "Blast Off Bucks" to pay for the construction. They then redesign their rockets...

What is the steepness of a hill before a unicyclist slides down it rather than pedaling down it? The simulation graphs the wheel speed versus the unicycle speed as the rider goes down a hill. Scholars control the mass of the rider,...

Let physical science stars experience Newton's first law of motion by blowing marshmallows out of cardboard tubes! Using different lengths of tubing, they find that more force is needed to overcome increasing friction, and they have a...

Students describe the law of conservation of energy. They identify the conversion between potential and kinetic energy. They investigate and describe the application of Newton's Laws of Motion.

In a nose-cone to nose-cone competition, which rocket will prevail? Teams form rocket companies to design and build a rocket while competing against other teams in an economic challenge. The team that comes up with the best benefit/cost...

Scholars examine the application of torque in relation to motion by viewing a comprehensive presentation that explains the basic concepts related to torque and rotational motion. The lesson ends with examples showing how to calculate...

Design protection from high-speed particles. The STEM lesson plan highlights why astronauts need protection from space debris. Pupils use the design process to design, build, and test a spacesuit that will protect a balloon from a...

Focus on the conservation of energy, specifically looking at gravitational potential energy and kinetic energy, with a lecture that involves having friends throw light objects at each other to determine which has more kinetic energy and...

How can you launch an object that isn't propelled by air? The resource provides directions to build a launcher to launch rockets made of two-liter bottles. The launcher, built mainly from materials found at the local hardware...

Students examine the concept of frames of reference in physics: that two frames of reference, each moving with respect to the other with a constant velocity v, observe the same accelerations and therefore Newton's laws are the same in both.

Students calculate distance, velocity, acceleration and time on their fantasy trip to the black hold. They apply Newton's Laws of Motion and calculate circular motion. They discuss any questions that may arise.

Students design and build their own car. For this physics lesson, students collect data to determine the speed of the car. They plot the data on the graph analyze the relationship between variables.

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,...

How can people control a hot air balloon? The simple simulation allows scholars to adjust the payload mass, burner, and vent position on a hot air balloon and observe the changes in velocity and altitude over time. Challenge questions...

How does an airboat move when there isn't a motor in the water? The simulation teaches the forces related to the thrust and drag on an airboat. Scholars vary the boat mass and thrust force in order to view graphs of the changing force...

Fifth graders study the concept of momentum and its application by Newton in his studies. They view a demonstration and complete an experiment with toy cars on a racetrack that shows them the properties of momentum and how velocity and...