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Science lesson plan · 6th grade (Year 7 in England) · 45 minutes

Contact and non-contact forces

Forces and motion

CCSS NGSS.MS-PS2-2CCSS NGSS.MS-PS2-5England: KS3 Physics: Motion and forces

Objective and success criteria

Students will: Contact and non-contact forces.

  • I can answer questions on today's skill on my own, without help.
  • I can explain each step and say why it works.
  • I can check my answer and spot a mistake.

Before and after

Needs first: Pushes and pulls; Gravity

Leads to: the next skill in this area.

Materials: Force meters, Toy cars and ramps, Mini whiteboards, A diagram or short video clip of the idea, Printed student sheet (below).

Warm-up · 5 min

  • Quick retrieval from earlier learning (Pushes and pulls; Gravity). Students answer on mini whiteboards.
  • Show answers together and note who needs support in the main task.
  1. Is this a push or a pull: throwing a ball? (push / pull) → pushPrompt: Does the thing move away from you or towards you?
  2. Who is famous for describing gravity after watching things fall? (Isaac Newton / Marie Curie / Charles Darwin / Thomas Edison) → Isaac NewtonPrompt: A story says an apple fell near him.
  3. Which needs a bigger push to start moving? (a balloon / an empty shopping trolley (cart) / a full shopping trolley (cart) / a feather) → a full shopping trolley (cart)Prompt: Which one is heaviest?

Hook · 5 min

  • Drop a sheet of paper and a scrunched-up sheet together and ask why one falls faster.
  • Share the objective: Contact and non-contact forces. Read the success criteria together.

I do: model it · 10 min

  • Work through the example out loud, saying why you do each step, not just what you do.
  • Example: Is this a contact force or a non-contact force: air resistance?
  • Step 1: Contact forces act when objects touch.
  • Step 2: So the answer is: contact force
  • Answer: contact force
  • Pause after each step and ask a student to say what comes next.

We do: guided practice · 10 min

  • Do these together. Students try each step on whiteboards before you reveal it.
  • Use the hints as prompts rather than giving the answer.
  1. Is this a contact force or a non-contact force: air resistance? (contact force / non-contact force) → contact forcePrompt: Do the objects have to touch for the force to act?
  2. Why do astronauts on the Moon still have weight? (There is air on the Moon pushing them down / They wear heavy boots / The Moon's gravity acts on them without touching / Friction holds them down) → The Moon's gravity acts on them without touchingPrompt: Gravity is a non-contact force.

You do: independent practice · 10 min

  • Students work on the student sheet. Circulate and check the first two answers of every student early.
  • Students who finish: write a question of their own for a partner, with the answer.

The 8 questions are on the student sheet below, with answers in the key.

Exit ticket · 5 min

  • Two questions on their own. Sort answers into got it / nearly / not yet to plan the next lesson.
  1. Types of force: which statement is NOT true? (Tension is a non-contact force. / Magnets can push or pull without touching. / Forces are measured in newtons using a newton meter (force meter). / Friction is a contact force.) → Tension is a non-contact force.Prompt: Does air touch a moving object?
  2. Is this a contact force or a non-contact force: upthrust from water? (contact force / non-contact force) → contact forcePrompt: Do the objects have to touch for the force to act?

Watch out for

  • Everyday meanings of words getting in the way of the science meaning: define key words explicitly.
  • Remembering facts without the reason: ask "why?" and "what is the evidence?"

Support and stretch

Support

  • Review first: Pushes and pulls.
  • Use concrete materials: force meters.
  • Give the first step of each question, or a partly worked example to finish.
  • Pair with a confident partner for the guided practice.

Stretch

  • Explain a common mistake in writing and how to fix it.
  • Write a word problem that uses today's skill, then solve a partner's.

Homework and more practice

Free online practice with hints and printable worksheets for this skill: eurekami.com/science/grade-6.

Free lesson plan from eurekami.com/lesson-plan-builder

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Contact and non-contact forces

Name

Date

Score/ 8

  1. Question 1

    Why do astronauts on the Moon still have weight?

    • A. The Moon's gravity acts on them without touching
    • B. There is air on the Moon pushing them down
    • C. They wear heavy boots
    • D. Friction holds them down

  2. Question 2

    Types of force: which statement is NOT true?

    • A. Gravity is a non-contact force.
    • B. Tension is a non-contact force.
    • C. Friction is a contact force.
    • D. Magnets can push or pull without touching.

  3. Question 3

    Is this a contact force or a non-contact force: magnetic force?

    • A. contact force
    • B. non-contact force

  4. Question 4

    Is this a contact force or a non-contact force: the normal (support) force from a floor?

    • A. contact force
    • B. non-contact force

  5. Question 5

    A boat floats on a lake. Which force from the water holds it up?

    • A. tension
    • B. weight
    • C. upthrust
    • D. magnetic force

  6. Question 6

    Is this a contact force or a non-contact force: tension in a rope?

    • A. contact force
    • B. non-contact force

  7. Question 7

    A balloon rubbed on hair can pick up small bits of paper without touching them. Which force is acting?

    • A. tension
    • B. upthrust
    • C. friction
    • D. electrostatic force

  8. Question 8

    Is this a contact force or a non-contact force: electrostatic force?

    • A. contact force
    • B. non-contact force

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Answer key: Contact and non-contact forces

  1. 1. A. The Moon's gravity acts on them without touching

  2. 2. B. Tension is a non-contact force.

  3. 3. B. non-contact force

  4. 4. A. contact force

  5. 5. C. upthrust

  6. 6. A. contact force

  7. 7. D. electrostatic force

  8. 8. B. non-contact force