Forces | Mini Lesson
Students explore forces by acting out and testing pushes and pulls on familiar objects. The lesson uses movement, simple questions, and quick demonstrations to help children notice that forces can make objects start moving, stop, speed up, slow down, or change direction.
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Force | A push or a pull that makes something move or change. |
| Push | To move something away from your body. |
| Pull | To bring something toward your body. |
| Motion | When something is moving. |
| Stop | When something is no longer moving. |
Invite students to stand safely in place. Say, “Show me a push with your hands. Show me a pull.” Demonstrate each action and name it clearly.
Mimic pushing and pulling motions with their hands and bodies.
Hold up the toy car or ball and explain that a force is a push or a pull. Briefly model pushing the object away and pulling it back with a string or hand.
Watch, repeat the words push and pull, and point to the object moving.
Place the object on the floor or table. Ask: “What happens when I push it lightly? What happens when I push it harder? What happens when I pull it?” Model one action at a time and narrate the movement using simple language.
Predict and describe what they notice using words like move, fast, slow, stop, and turn.
Show 2–3 quick actions or picture cards. Ask students to call out “push” or “pull.”
Respond together and identify each action.
Review by asking, “What makes an object move?” and “What are the two kinds of forces we learned?”
Answer with push, pull, and force.
Say, “Today we learned that forces are pushes and pulls. Forces can make things move, stop, or change direction.” Have students do one final push motion and one final pull motion together.