Understanding Force as a Push or Pull

Learning Outcomes:

• Identify forces as pushes or pulls.
• Describe and demonstrate the forces of push and pull.

Activities:

• Picture Analysis: Show pictures of children on swings and discuss the forces of push and pull involved. Questions to prompt discussion:
  • What is being pushed?
  • What is being pulled?
• Video Activity: Watch a video on forces and answer questions about creating motion differences between push and pull and examples.
• Hands-On Experiment: Push and Pull Investigation:
  • Materials: Toy cars, books, ropes, different objects.
  • Procedure:
    • Divide students into small groups and provide each group with a set of objects.
    • Ask each group to perform the following actions and observe:
      • Push the toy car and observe its motion.
      • Pull the toy car using a rope and observe its motion.
      • Push a book across the table and note the distance it moves.
      • Pull a book using a string and note the distance it moves.
    • Record observations and discuss the differences in motion when pushing vs. pulling.

Assessment: Formative assessment with questions on feeling a push or pull while sitting in a chair.

Inclusive Assessment Strategy: Worksheet on Push and Pull: Students complete the worksheet by identifying whether actions are push or pull.

Resources:

Defining Terms

Learning Outcomes:

• Define terms: pull, push, force, speed, velocity, frictional force, mass, balanced force, unbalanced force, gravity, force, magnetic force.

Activities:

• Jeopardy Game: Use a Jeopardy-style game to define terms. Include definitions and scenarios related to each term.
• Hands-On Experiment: Term Definition Activity:
  • Materials: Various objects (magnets, friction blocks, weights).
  • Procedure:
    • Provide students with objects representing each term (e.g., a magnet for magnetic force, a block for friction).
    • Have students match the objects to the correct terms and explain their reasoning.
    • Conduct mini-experiments to demonstrate each term in action, such as showing friction by rubbing two surfaces together or showing magnetic force with a magnet and metal objects.

Assessment: Evaluate student responses during the game to ensure understanding of key terms.

Inclusive Assessment Strategy: Jeopardy Game: Create a grid with points ranging from 100 to 400 with definitions and scenarios under each grid. Students answer questions to gain points.

Resources:

Practicing Terminology with Scenarios

Learning Outcomes:

• Identify forces as pushes or pulls.
• Identify and demonstrate examples of push and pulls.

Activities:

• Scenario-Based Worksheet: Complete worksheets identifying forces in various scenarios. Examples: turning up phone volume (push), taking a book (pull).
• Hands-On Experiment: Scenario Demonstrations:
  • Materials: Everyday objects (phones, books, doors).
  • Procedure:
    • Provide students with objects and have them physically demonstrate the push or pull force.
    • For example, students can push open a door and describe the force applied or pull a book from a shelf.
    • Discuss each scenario and the type of force involved.

Assessment: Review completed worksheets to assess understanding.

Inclusive Assessment Strategy: Worksheet on Forces and Motion: Students read each scenario and draw a line to match.

Resources:

Balanced and Unbalanced Forces

Learning Outcomes:

• Give examples of balanced and unbalanced forces.
• Describe effects of balanced and unbalanced forces on everyday objects.
• Compare balanced and unbalanced forces using a Venn Diagram.

Activities:

• Block Activity: Use block shapes to demonstrate balanced and unbalanced forces. Discuss observations from placing blocks on a semicircle.
• Tug of War: Engage in a tug of war game to illustrate balanced and unbalanced forces.
• Hands-On Experiment: Force Balance Experiment:
  • Materials: Blocks, scales, rulers.
  • Procedure:
    • Provide students with blocks and a balance scale.
    • Ask students to balance different weights on either side of the scale and observe the conditions for balance and imbalance.
    • Have students record their observations and discuss why certain weights cause imbalance.

Assessment: Observations from activities and Venn Diagram comparison.

Inclusive Assessment Strategy: Worksheet on Balanced and Unbalanced Forces: Students complete worksheets identifying balanced and unbalanced forces in different scenarios.

Resources:

Investigating Forces and Motion

Learning Outcomes:

• Demonstrate ways unbalanced forces cause change in motion (start movement, increase speed, reduce speed, change direction).
• Conduct an investigation on different forces (magnetism, static electricity, muscular force, gravitational force) changing speed and direction of moving objects.

Activities:

• Pair Activities with Ball: Show ways to start, change direction, speed up, and stop a ball.
• Investigation with Various Objects: Use different objects to demonstrate force effects.

Hands-On Experiment: Ball Motion Experiment

• Materials: Balls, textured surfaces (sandpaper, carpet, tile).
• Procedure:
  1. Provide students with balls and different textured surfaces.
  2. Have students roll the ball on each surface and measure the distance traveled.
  3. Ask students to record their observations and compare the effects of different surfaces on the ball's motion.

Assessment: Complete a table documenting changes in motion during activities.

Inclusive Assessment Strategy: Worksheet on Forces and Motion. Students conduct investigations and record their observations.

Resources:

Exploring Magnetic Forces

Learning Outcomes:

• Conduct an investigation on different forces (magnetism, static electricity, muscular force, gravitational force) changing speed and direction of moving objects.
• Identify forces used to create movement or change in given situations.

Activities:

• Magnet Scavenger Hunt: Find items attracted to magnets around the school and test various metals with magnets to identify magnetic and non-magnetic materials.
• Magnetic Field Observation: Use magnets and iron filings to observe magnetic fields.

Hands-On Experiment: Magnetic Slime Experiment

• Materials: Glue, iron filings, liquid starch, magnets.
• Procedure:
  1. Mix glue, iron filings, and liquid starch to create magnetic slime.
  2. Provide students with magnets to test the slime's magnetic properties.
  3. Ask students to observe and record how the slime reacts to the magnets.

Assessment: Discuss findings from scavenger hunt and magnetic field observations.

Inclusive Assessment Strategy: Worksheet on Magnetism. Students complete worksheets on magnetic properties.

Resources:

Understanding Frictional Forces

Learning Outcomes:

• Describe effects of balanced and unbalanced forces on everyday objects.
• Identify forces used to create movement or change in given situations.

Activities:

• Chair Pulling Activity: Compare pulling a chair across different surfaces (tiles vs. carpet) and measure and record time taken on each surface.
• Friction Worksheet: Complete a worksheet on surfaces that increase or reduce friction.

Hands-On Experiment: Friction Surface Experiment

• Materials: Chairs, different textured surfaces (tiles, carpet, wood), timers.
• Procedure:
  1. Have students pull a chair across different surfaces and time how long it takes.
  2. Measure the distance covered and compare the times.
  3. Ask students to record their observations and discuss the effects of friction on different surfaces.

Assessment: Analyze results from chair pulling activity and worksheet answers.

Inclusive Assessment Strategy: Worksheet on Friction. Students complete worksheets identifying the effects of friction on various surfaces and objects.

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