Introduction
Welcome, 3rd Grade Scientists!
Have you ever wondered why one team always falls to the ground while playing tug-of-war?
The answer is forces!
In today's webquest, you will explore the difference between balanced and unbalanced forces. (3-PS2-1 Plan and conduct investigations to provide evidence of how balanced and unbalanced forces affect the motion of an object.) You will investigate how pushes and pulls can make objects move, stop, speed up, slow down, or change direction. As you work today, you will explore real-life examples of how forces affect objects.
Are you ready? Here we go!
Task
Your task is to discover how balanced and unbalanced forces work!
Your goal is to be able to identify whether forces are going to be balanced or unbalanced and give reasons for how you know.
Watch this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_-yzCNniwuw to find out!
Just think for now...If an elephant and a cat play a game of tug-of- war, who is going to win? How do you know?
After a minute, share your thoughts with your shoulder partner by each giving a thumbs up when you are ready to share.
Think to yourself... did you have similar answers?
Process
Remember that a force is a push or a pull.
Write down:
What are 3 examples of pushes?
What are 3 examples of pulls?
Think about a tug-of-war game.
What happens when both teams pull the rope with the same amount of force?
What happens when forces are equal?
What would happen if a girl was added to the left side?
Look at the picture to answer the questions:
Which side of the rope is going to move? Why?
Are the forces balanced or unbalanced? How do you know?
What needs to be added to make the forces equal?
Evaluation
|
Graded On |
Excellent (2pts) |
Needs Help (1pts) |
|---|
|
Understand Forces |
I can clearly explain what a force is and give examples. |
I can explain what a force is with some help. |
|
Understand Balanced Forces |
I can correctly identify balanced forces and explain what happens. |
I can explain what a balanced force is with some help. |
|
Understand Unbalanced Forces |
I can correctly identify unbalanced forces and explain what happens. |
I can explain what an unbalanced force is with some help. |
|
Scientific Thinking |
I can use evidence to explain why my answer is correct. |
I need help using evidence to explain why my answer is correct. |
Conclusion
Good job, 3rd-grade scientists!
You have completed your webquest on balanced and unbalanced forces.
You have discovered that a force is a push or a pull. You have learned that balanced forces are equal forces acting upon each other. For example, in tug-of-war, teams pull on the rope with the same amount of force. When the forces are balanced, the rope does not move. You also learned about unbalanced forces. This happens when one force is stronger than the other. In tug-of-war, when one team pulls harder than the other team, the forces are unequal.
I hope you can see that forces are all around you- at school, on the playground, and when you are playing sports!