Forces and Motion

What is Forces and Motion? Here’s a quick overview. Don’t worry, we’ll go over it piece by piece. and-motion.htm

Sir Isaac Newton Sir Isaac Newton was a scientist in England in the 1600 and 1700s. He is known for discovering gravity. In addition, he is famous for his Three Laws of Motion which explain how and why things move.

Inertia When a ball is at rest, it will stay at rest unless that is changed by an outside force. When a ball is in motion (moving) it will stay in motion unless there is a change from an outside force. This is called interia.

Force In order to make something go or stop, a force has to act on it. A force is any push or pull on an object.

Motion When force is applied to an object it moves. That movement is called motion. Motion is essential to understanding the physical world. Since everything is moving, all motion is dependent upon one’s frame of reference. All motion is governed by the same basic rules

Friction If you kick a ball will it just keep going and going? Nope, unless you’re in outer space it slows down and eventually stops. One type of force that makes things slow down and stop is called friction. Think about kicking a ball on a smooth surface vs. a rough surface. The ball on the smooth surface will roll farther because the rough surface will slow the ball down.

Friction Try this game. Follow directions, change the surface (from vinyl, to wood, to ice and carpet) to see how the amount of friction changes. When you’re done, take the quiz.

First Law of Motion The first Law of Motion has to do with inertia, force, and motion. motion/inertia.htm After you watch the video, take the quiz and review your answers!

Vocabulary Inertia - The tendency of an object to resist change to its state of motion Forces - Any push or pull on an object Motion - The action of moving or being moved Friction - A force that can make a moving object slow down or stop

Mass, Weight, and Gravity You already know about mass, weight, and gravity. Let’s review so we can see how those things relate to forces and motion. Gravity is dependant on mass and distance. Distance is how far away something is.

unbalanced forces, balanced forces Balance forces are two forces acting in opposite directions on an object, and equal in size. Anytime there is a balanced force on an object, the object stays still or continues moving continues to move at the same speed and in the same direction.

unbalanced forces, balanced forces If those forces become unbalanced, that would cause the object to move… creating motion!

Gravity and Inertia Gravity and Inertia has a special relationship. Similar to how friction can affect objects in motion, gravity can also affect things in motion. Here’s how motion/fgravity-and-inertia.htm After you watch the video, take the quiz and review your answers!

Gravity Activities Build a Solar System - Here’s a game about balancing gravity and inertia to create a balanced solar system. Build a Roller Coaster - Here’s an activity where you have to balance the force of gravity with inertia to create a fun and safe roller coaster. Perfect Balance - Practice balancing forces… so the blocks don’t topple over!

Vocabulary Mass - The amount of matter in an object Weight - The amount of mass in relation to the pull of gravity (heaviness) Gravity - The force that pulls an object toward the center of the Earth or toward another object Distance - an amount of space between two things or people

Speed + Direction Speed is how fast or slow something is moving. Direction is a course along which someone or something moves.

Velocity Velocity is how fast or slow something is going (speed) in a specific direction.

Acceleration When something slows down, speeds up, or changes direction, that is a change in its acceleration. Velocity is the speed of something in a given direction. Acceleration is a change in velocity.

Second Law of Motion Newton’s Second Law of motion has to do with Acceleration. If something has more mass, it will take more force to move it. Less force is needed to move something with less mass. motion/acceleration.htm

Momentum Momentum is how much force something has when it is moving. This is figured out by calculating how much mass and object has and its velocity. An object with a lot mass and a lot of velocity will have more momentum than an object with little mass and less velocity. Momentum Game - Try this activity where you’ll experiment with adding mass, adjusting a ramp (to increase acceleration,) or add a parachute (deceleration)

Vocabulary Speed - how fast or slow something is moving Direction - a course along which someone or something moves Velocity - Speed in a given direction Acceleration - a change in velocity Momentum - the force something has when it is moving, determined by mass and velocity

Third Law of Motion Action and Reaction and-reaction.htm After you watch the video, take the quiz and review your answers!

Axis An axis is a real or imaginary line on which something rotates, or a straight line around which things are evenly arranged. An example of axis is an imaginary line running through the earth on which the earth rotates. An example of axis is the line running through the body from head to feet determining left and right sides

Position Position is a place where someone or something is located or has been put. When something is in motion, it’s position changes.

potential energy, kinetic energy Remember this?

Kinetic and Potential Energy There are two categories of energy, potential energy and kinetic energy. Kinetic energyKinetic energy is energy that is being used. It is energy that something has because it is in motion. Potential energyPotential energy is energy that something has stored, ready to be released. It can be because of relative position, stress within itself, an electrical charge, to name a few possible factors. Some examples of kinetic and potential energy are...

Kinetic and Potentail Energy Here’s how it can work. Kinetic Energy - marble bottle Potential Energy - rubber band bottle Some fun videos... BIG Rubber Band BottleBIG Rubber Band Bottle Catchy Song Roller CoastersCatchy SongRoller Coasters

Forces and Motion Review BrainPOP Newton’s Laws of Motion Bill Nye Forces and Motion

Forces and Motion Activities Simple Machines - now that you’ve learned all about forces and motion, here’s a challenge where you’ll have to figure out solutions using force, friction, etc. Soap Box Racer. You’ll need to think about things like speed, velocity, and acceleration to build and race a car.

Vocabulary Axis - a real or imaginary line on which something rotates, or a straight line around which things are evenly arranged Position - a place where someone or something is located or has been put Kinetic energy - energy that is being used. It is energy that something has because it is in motion. Potential energy - energy that something has stored, ready to be released

Project Bobby the balloon wants to enter this year’s Soap Box Derby. In order to enter, he needs a new extreme gravity racer. His new racer needs to be sturdy enough to carry him through the race safely. He wants to gain enough momentum for him to zip through the course, but not so much that he will crash at the end (possibly getting hurt.) Your challenge is use your knowledge of forces and motion and the supplies provided, to build a car for Bobby that he can race in, but still be safe. You’ll need to think about things like mass, gravity, velocity, acceleration, momentum, friction, and more! Extreme Gravity Racing (A Modern Soap Box Car Derby)

Gravity Racing Guy Martin clip 1 Guy Martin Clip 2 Article

Project The materials available are: 1 styrofoam cupconstruction paper 4 small plastic cups1 40 oz cup of weight (rocks) 2 wooden dowels straws tape You can work in groups of 2 or 3. You have two days to plan (draw and label diagrams in your journal,) build, decorate, and then it’s race time!