Forces are pushes and pulls that cause movement. Every object needs a force to make it move! Elementary students explore both contact and non-contact forces as science learners. Science Academy is a series that uses a narrative to teach readers about forces that cause movement, how friction affects movement, and how people depend on a type of energy called electricity. Readers will be engaged in reading about how the students at Science Academy solve problems using forces.
The Science Academy Teacher’s Guide includes inquiry-based lessons that encourage students to engage with the science concepts of forces, friction, and electricity. Students will explore how pushes and pulls cause movement and identify these forces around them. They will investigate how friction affects the way an object moves by making predictions, observing experiments, and recording results. They will integrate arts concepts to create their own stories that tell about the importance of electricity in their daily lives, and consider how electricity should be used safely and in the right amount. Students will work independently and with their peers to show their knowledge.
The lessons in this guide are tailored for grade 3, with an interest level of grades 2 to 4. They can be taught as stand-alone lessons, or sequentially as part of a mini-unit. Reproducible worksheets and assessment tools accompany each lesson. The titles in Science Academy are:
Made possible with the support of the Ontario Media Development Corporation.
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PACING CHART AND VOCABULARY ACCOMMODATION STRATEGIES
Lesson Plan Title Pacing Vocabulary
What Makes It Move? 1 class period* forcegravitymovementpullpull
Investigating Forces 2 to 3 class periods balancedforcemagnetmotionpullpushunbalanced
Exploring Movement 2 class periods (back-to-back) air resistanceconclusionforcefrictionmeasuremotionobservepredictpullpushrecordresistancesurface
Electricity Around Us 3 class periods charactercomic stripelectricityenergynon-renewablepanelrenewablesafetyspeech bubblesources
* 1 class period = 40 to 60 minutes
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ACCOMMODATION STRATEGIES
Accommodations provide equal access to learning and equal opportunity to demonstrate what is learned. Accommodations allow a student access to the subject or course without any changes to the knowledge and skills the student is expected to demonstrate.
Educators are encouraged to adapt the instructional approach, activities, and assessments included in this guide to best meet the diverse interests, needs, and abilities of their students. Possible accommodations may include:
Instructional Strategies
• Break tasks into parts with accompanying time lines
• Provide extra time for processing of oral information.
• Pair oral instructions with visual ones (writing or symbols)
• Pre-teach new vocabulary and regularly review previously taught vocabulary
• Provided model of completed work
• Frequently check with the student to get him/her started
• Provide oral and visual instructions and examples
• Provide a checklist of tasks for the student
Environmental Strategies
• Proximity to teacher
• Strategic seating
• Flexible or mixed-ability grouping
• Provide an alternative setting for learning that is free from visual and auditory distractions.
Assessment Strategies
• Build in extra time to allow student to process questions asked and answers given
• Provide written instructions and rubrics for assignments
• Offer a choice of assessment activities so that the student can choose one suited to their strengths
• Space out or extend assignments to prevent student feeling overwhelmed
• Reduce the number of tasks used to assess skill or concept
• Allow students to use assistive devices or technology
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LESSON 1 What Makes It Move?
Objectives
Next Generation Science Standards K-PS2-1
Ontario Science and Technology Standards Grade 3: Forces Causing Movement 3.1, 3.2, 3.5
• Big Push and Perfect Pull (Science Academy)
• White board or chalkboard and markers or chalk
• Chart paper and markers for anchor chart
• Small, durable object such as a pencil or ball
• Movement cards
• Gravity picture
• Push or Pull Chart
• Forces Cause Movement Exit Card
Curriculum Correlations
Materials
Students will be able to:
• Understand that a force is a push or pull that makes an object move.
• Identify pushes and pulls around them.
• Classify motion as a push or pull.
• Understand that gravity is a force that pulls objects toward the ground.
Setting the Stage
Pique students’ interest by showing them a small, familiar, and durable object such as a pencil or ball. Place the object on a desk or table at the front of the room. Ask students whether this object moves. Allow students to share different responses. Then ask students:
• What could make this object move?
Discuss ideas, then invite one or more student volunteers to come to the front of the class to make the object move. Options will likely include pushing, tossing, and dropping the object.
Tell students that even though the object has moved in different ways, the same thing has caused movement each time: a force!
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Assessment
Take anecdotal notes as students participate in the lesson. Collect the Forces Cause Movement Exit Cards and assess for completion and understanding. Address any areas of need before the next lesson.
Read Big Push aloud to students. Then ask students:
• What could make this object move?
Together, review page 10 of Big Push. Then, on an anchor chart, write the definition for a force.
• A force is a push or pull that creates movement.
Next, have students Think-Pair-Share to brainstorm some different kinds of pushes and pulls. They can flip back through Big Push and also look at the pictures in Perfect Pull for ideas. Write or draw different examples of pushes and pulls on the anchor chart.
Explain to students that now, it is their job to work together to identify pushes and pulls. Pair students and hand each pair a Push or Pull Chart and the page of movement cards. Each pair also needs scissors and glue. Have the students cut out each movement card and glue it onto the chart in the correct column. Encourage pairs to arrange the movement cards first before gluing.
4 Have students make a prediction about what might happen when an object is pushed or pulled. Conduct an experiment to see if their predictions were correct. Discuss what students learned from the experiment.
Take up the Push or Pull Charts together. The teacher may choose to create the chart on the whiteboard or blackboard, then hold up each card and have students direct which card should be taped where.
Discuss with students why each force is either a push or a pull. Consider whether any movement cards could go in both columns. On their own charts, have students circle movement cards that they would move to the other column after discussing as a class.
Finally, show students one more example of a movement: the gravity picture. Explain that a force is causing this man to fall toward the ground. It is the same force that causes us to move back to the ground when we jump, or that causes a basketball to fall back to the ground after it bounces.
Ask students where the picture would go on the Push or Pull Chart. Is gravity a push or a pull? Help students understand that gravity is a force that pulls objects toward the ground. It would go on the pull side of the chart. Add the definition of gravity to the anchor chart.
• Gravity is a force that pulls objects toward the ground.
Hand each student a Forces Cause Movement Exit Card. Give them time to complete the card before leaving.
Some forces make objects move without touching them! What is the force that pulls objects toward the ground? ____________________________________________________________________________
What happens when you hold a magnet close to a paper clip? Is this an example of a force? Why or why not? ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________
Draw a picture that shows how a force moves an object.
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LESSON 2 Investigating Forces
Objectives
Next Generation Science Standards 3-PS2-1
Ontario Science and Technology Standards Grade 3: Forces Causing Movement 3.3, 3.4
• Perfect Pull (Science Academy)
• Chart paper and markers
• Object for sample experiment, such as a ball or a small box
• Experiment Planning Sheet
• Balanced and Unbalanced Forces Experiment Sheet
• Balanced and Unbalanced Forces Experiment Checklist
Curriculum Correlations
Materials
Students will be able to:
• Understand the difference between balanced and unbalanced forces.
• Design and reflect on an experiment that shows how balanced and unbalanced forces affect an object.
Read Perfect Pull aloud to students. Or, have students participate in a choral reading activity. The title introduces students to forces that cause movement and the concept of balanced and unbalanced forces.
When you are finished reading, ask students:• How did Katie win the tug-of-war event?
Have students share their ideas. Lead them to understand that Katie’s pulling force was stronger than Emily’s pulling force. The two forces were unbalanced.
Ask students to think about what might have happened if Katie and Emily’s forces were balanced. Help them understand that if the forces were balanced, neither of the girls would move across the line. The event would end in a tie!
Together with students, create an anchor chart or add to the anchor chart from the previous lesson. On the chart, draw a picture and add a caption that shows and explains balanced forces and unbalanced forces. Can invite students to help create the pictures. Captions could read:• When opposite forces affecting an object are balanced, it does not move.• When opposite forces affecting an object are unbalanced, the stronger force
causes it to move.
Setting the Stage
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Place an object such as a ball or a small box on a desk at the front of the classroom. Tell students that you are going to apply opposite balanced forces to the object. Ask students what they think might happen to the object, and allow them to share their responses.
With your hands, push on either side of the object with equal force. (Or, ask a student volunteer to help demonstrate and apply the equal force on one side.) Have students describe what happened to the object.
Next, repeat the process with unbalanced forces. Ask students what they think might happen to the object. Then, apply a stronger force to one side of the object. Have students describe what happened to the object.
Tell students that you have just conducted a short experiment that shows how balanced and unbalanced forces affect an object’s movement. Now, it is their turn!
Place students in pairs or groups of four, depending on time available. Each pair or group will plan and demonstrate an experiment that shows the effects of balanced or unbalanced forces on an object of their choice. If students are working in a group, all four members should be involved in the experiment—two can demonstrate balanced forces, and two can demonstrate unbalanced.
Hand each pair or group an Experiment Planning Sheet. You may choose to first fill out one together based on the experiment done in class, to show students what is expected of them.
As students are planning their experiments, visit each pair or group to guide them along. Tell students that they must show you their planning sheet before the end of the lesson.
Have students gather or bring the object from home before the next period. Then, invite each pair or group to demonstrate their experiment for the class.
4 Have students create a story centered on balanced and unbalanced forces, similar to the one in Perfect Pull.
4 Encourage students to identify different ways balanced and unbalanced forces are at work in their daily lives. Why are balanced forces important, and what are some examples?
4 Replicate the activity with contact and non-contact forces. Have students show the difference between a contact and a non-contact force on an object. They should conduct an experiment that makes this difference clear.
Hand each student the Balanced and Unbalanced Forces Experiment Sheet. Students will reflect on their experiment and show their knowledge about balanced and unbalanced forces.
After students are finished their sheets, discuss as a class whether their experiments went as they expected. Did anything surprise them? What surprised them or was interesting about another group’s experiment?
Activity Extensions
Wrap-Up
Assessment
Assess the experiments, the Experiment Planning Sheet, and the Balanced and Unbalanced Forces Experiment Sheet using the Balanced and Unbalanced Forces Experiment Checklist.
Experiment Planning SheetCreate an experiment that shows how balanced forces and unbalanced forces change an object’s movement. What object will you cause to move? ______________________________________________________ What forces will you apply to the object? Circle one, then explain.
Push Pull
We will push/pull the object with ________________________________________________________
Ontario Science and Technology Standards Grade 2: Movement 3.1, 3.2 Grade 3: Forces Causing Movement 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 3.5
• Stop that Racecar!(Science Academy)
• Investigating Movement Experiment Sheet
• Movement All Around Exit Card
• Materials for four experiment stations:
4 Station one: stopwatch, cardboard box with heavy books inside, carpet, smooth floor
4 Station two: measuring tape, three different wheeled toys that are similar in size but different in shape, fan (option)
4 Station three: three ramps made from cardboard or wood, three toy cars or marbles, hand towel, aluminum foil, sandpaper, measuring tape
4 Station four: stopwatch, three pieces of paper made into different shapes: one flat piece, one loosely crumpled piece, one paper airplane
Curriculum Correlations
Materials
Students will be able to:
• Understand and predict how forces cause movement, and how movement is affected by friction.
• Use the scientific process to make predictions and observations about the movement of various objects.
• Explain how forces and friction are at work in their daily lives.
Draw two pictures or show photos of the following to the class: a cardboard box, and a racecar. Ask students:
• If I were to push both objects with an equal force, which object would move farther?
Have students share their answers. Ask them to give reasons for their answers.
Next, read Stop that Racecar! aloud to students. Or, have students participate in a choral reading activity. The title introduces students to forces that cause movement and how friction changes movement.
Show students the picture of the cardboard box on page 7. Explain that this is the “racecar” the Science Academy students started with. Ask students,
• What happened when the Science Academy students tried to push Bud-E in the box? Why is the box a bad choice for a racecar?
• How did the Science Academy students change the cardboard box to make it a better racecar for Bud-E’s race?
After each question, give students time to talk with an elbow partner and share ideas. If time allows, invite students to draw a picture of what the racecar from the story looked like in the end.
Finally, ask students to describe how the new racecar in the story would have moved. Ask them to use descriptive words for the car’s movement.
Setting the Stage
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Assessment
Take anecdotal notes as students participate in the experiments. Collect the Investigating Movement Experiment Sheets and Movement All Around Exit Card. Assess for completion and understanding. Address any areas of need before the next lesson.
Prior to the lesson, set up four experiment stations around the classroom. Stations are as follows:
Station 1: A Push Across the Floor• Place a few heavy books inside a cardboard box. Put the cardboard
box on the smooth floor. • Then, push the cardboard box the length of a yardstick or meter
stick. Have a student start and stop a stopwatch to measure the number of seconds it took to push the box.
• Next, put the cardboard box on a carpeted floor. Using the same amount of pushing force, push the cardboard box the same distance. Measure the number of seconds this took.
Station 2: Which Rolls Farthest?• Gather three wheeled toys of similar weights and sizes, but varying
shapes. Suggestion: train car, robot, racecar. Set them up in an open area at a starting line.
• One by one, push the toys with equal force. Or, use a fan to push each toy.
• Use a measuring tape to measure the distance each toy traveled.
Station 3: Down the Ramp• Build three equally sized ramps from cardboard or wood. Cover each
ramp with a different material: a hand towel, aluminum foil, and sandpaper.
• One-by-one, send a toy car down each ramp. Use a measuring tape to measure the distance each car traveled from the bottom of the ramp.
Station 4: Air Slows It Down• Gather three pieces of paper. Leave one flat, loosely crumple
another, and shape the last into an airplane.• One by one, drop each piece of paper from the same height—drop
from as high as safely possible. Have a student start a stopwatch when the paper leaves your hand and stop the stopwatch when it hits the floor. Measure how long each piece of paper took to reach the ground.
Prior to beginning experiments, hand each student an Investigating Movement Experiment Sheet. At each station, students will need to fill in the respective section of the experiment sheet. They will need to make a prediction about what will happen during each experiment, record the results and make observations, and draw a conclusion about each experiment.
At the first station, fill in the first section of the experiment sheet together. This will model what students will need to do at each remaining station. Give students time at each station to fill in their sheets and provide assistance if needed. Direct them back to the example if needed.
Invite student volunteers to participate in conducting each experiment (i.e. starting and stopping stopwatches, measuring distances, pushing cars down ramps).
4 Revisit each experiment and have students suggest ways to modify or add to the experiment to create different outcomes. Make predictions about the object’s new movements and explain why the predictions make sense given the original experiment.
4 Have students create an experiment that shows the effect of friction on an object’s movement.
4 Have students problem solve to stop a moving object. They must use friction and explain how friction will cause the object to stop.
Have students meet in small groups and, together, review the predictions and conclusions they made on their Investigating Movement Experiment Sheets. Discuss what students found surprising or interesting about the experiments. Did any students have different predictions or conclusions from their peers?
Give each student a Movement All Around Exit Card. Students will show what they learned about forces and friction by identifying pushes, pulls, and friction in their daily lives and making predictions about how an object will move.
National Core Arts Standards Anchor Standards 1, 2, 3
Ontario Visual Arts Standards Grade 3: Visual Art D1.2, D1.3
• Electric Emergency (Science Academy)
• Chart paper and markers
• Comic Strip Example
• “A Day Without Electricity” Comic Strip Template
• Comic Strip Rubric
• Electricity Exit Card
Curriculum Correlations
Materials
Students will be able to:
• Understand the importance of electricity in their daily lives and the need for safety and conservation when using electricity.
• Create a short comic strip that tells about a day without electricity.
Setting the Stage
Begin the lesson by asking students to look around the classroom. Ask them to identify objects that use electricity or places where electricity is used. Invite students to come to the whiteboard or chalkboard and write down ideas. Duplicates are okay.
Look at the board. Hopefully, it is filled with many ideas. If not, invite students to add more ideas after talking about some examples together.
Help students understand that electricity is all around us! It is a type of energy—the power to do work. Electricity is the energy that makes lights brighten the room, fans blow air, furnaces warm a building, microwaves heat food, and computers find information.
Next, read Electric Emergency aloud to students. Or, have students participate in a choral reading activity. The title introduces students to how people use electricity, where it comes from, and why safety when using electricity is important.
After reading, give each student an Electricity Exit Card. Finish off the first period by having students use what they learned from Electric Emergency to complete the exit card. Collect the exit cards and address any misunderstandings.
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Assessment
Assess the Electricity Exit Cards for understanding and completion. Use the Comic Strip Rubric to assess the “A Day Without Electricity” Comic Strips.
Remind students of the story in Electric Emergency. As a class, talk about what happened when there was a power outage at Science Academy. How did the power outage affect the students? Review the book for answers (students could not use their 3-D printer, students had to eat a cold lunch, the bell did not ring, the lights and computers shut off).
Next, ask students to think about what might happen if they had to spend a day without electricity! Let them brainstorm some challenges they think they might face. They can talk with an elbow partner and share ideas as a class.
Tell students that it is their turn to tell a story about a day without electricity. To tell their story, they will create comic strips!
Show students the Comic Strip Example. Either project a large version or hand each student an example. Together, read the comic. Talk about how the words and pictures work together to tell the story. How do we know how the character is feeling? How do the pictures show us a beginning, middle, and end?
Together, create a chart that identifies the parts of a comic strip and the expectations for their own comic strips. Students must include all of these parts in their comic strip.
• At least six panels with illustrations inside
• At least one character
• At least two speech bubbles
• A beginning, middle, and end
When students understand how to create their own comic strips, give them the “A Day Without Electricity” Comic Strip Templates.
Have students create a rough draft first, using pencil. They should show you their rough draft before completing a finished version. Provide feedback on the rough draft. You might also choose to allow students to swap comic strips with a peer for feedback.
Give students a period to complete their finished comic strips with a new template.
4 Create comic strips that tell a story about conserving electricity use or using electricity safely.
4 Create an electricity conservation plan for the classroom or at home.
Display the “A Day Without Electricity” Comic Strips around the classroom. Conduct a gallery walk in which students can view their peers’ comic strips. Talk about what students found interesting about the comic strips and what they learned about our dependence on electricity.
Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Level 4Student included one or none of the minimum required comic strip features: six panels, one character, two speech bubbles
Student included some of the minimum required comic strip features: six panels, one character, two speech bubbles
Student included all of the minimum required comic strip features: six panels, one character, two speech bubbles
Student included more than the minimum required comic strip features: six panels, one character, two speech bubbles
Comic strip story does not have a beginning, middle, and end
Comic strip story has a slightly unclear beginning, middle, and end
Comic strip story has a beginning, middle, and end
Comic strip story has a clear and creative beginning, middle, and end
Comic strip art uses limited or no elements of design and composition (color, lines, contrast) to convey story and character’s feelings
Comic strip art uses some elements of design and composition (color, lines, contrast) to convey story and character’s feelings with some clarity
Comic strip art uses elements of design and composition (color, lines, contrast) to convey story and character’s feelings
Comic strip art uses thoughtful and unique elements of design and composition (color, lines, contrast) to skilfully convey story and character’s feelings
Through limited examples, comic strip shows limited overall understanding of how electricity is used in daily life
Through some variety of examples, comic strip shows some overall understanding of how electricity is used in daily life
Through a variety of examples, comic strip shows good overall understanding of how electricity is used in daily life
Through a variety of unique and thoughtful examples, comic strip shows excellent overall understanding of how electricity is used in daily life
