KS3 Science

Forces 1

Name: _____________________________
Class: _____________________________
Teacher: ___________________________
In this topic you will learn about: Key Words:
• Speed and Relative motion Speed
• Distance time graphs Acceleration
• Different types of forces Deceleration
• Weight, Mass and Gravity Relative Motion
Practical Skills: Force
• Assessed Enquiry – Speed down a ramp Stationary
This will prepare you for: Constant Motion
• GCSE physics topic ‘Forces A & Forces B’ Weight
This topic has links to Mass
• Y8 forces Gravity
Maths in science: Air resistance
• Rearranging Equations Reaction force
• Plotting Graphs Upthrust
Contents:
Lesson 1: Understanding speed
Lesson 2: Distance time graphs
Lesson 3: Exploring Journeys on Distance time graphs
Lesson 4: Assessed Enquiry
Investigating motion of a car on a ramp
Lesson 5: Relative Motion
Lesson 6: Different Forces
Lesson 7: Mass, Weight and Gravity
Revision
Student made Glossary

ANSWERS AT BACK OF BOOKLET

Week commencing 7th Dec – 18th Jan

2 lessons per week
Booklet Expectations:
The booklet is your responsibility to look after and keep tidy.
You are expected to bring the booklet to every lesson with that class teacher.
Any corrections / self assessment to be completed in green pen, as indicated
by your class teacher – Or when you see the ‘feedback & assessment’ logo
Any response to marking and literacy codes to be completed in green pen.
Any diagrams are to be drawn in pencil, graphs using a pencil and ruler etc.
All activities are to be completed, including homework, to the best of your
ability, and corrected where needed.
When reading through the notes, you are expected to highlight any words
you do not understand, then write their definitions on the glossary pages at
the back of the booklet.
 Lesson 1: Understanding speed
In and On: Write down any questions you have about speed

Learning outcomes:
• List the factors involved in defining speed.
• Describe a simple method to measure speed
• Use and apply the speed formula.
How far could you travel going 60mph and 50 mph in…
a) 1 hour?
b) 2 Hours?
c) 5 Hours?
d) 30 minutes?

Speed is ____________________________________________
In science the units we use are
Distance – meters (m)
Time – Seconds (s)
Speed – Meters per second (m/s)

Use the formula triangle above to calculate speed:

a) 100 m in 20 seconds

b) 48 m in 4 seconds

c) 57 m in 3 seconds
Challenge:
d) 3 km in 100 seconds Calculate distance travelled in km
when speed is 50m/s and the car
has been travelling for 3 hours.
e) 1 km in 1 minute

f) 350 km in 5 hours
Practical:
Aim: calculate the speed of various ways to move

Challenge task: Average speeds

Read the information & complete the questions.
Imagine a normal journey across a town that is 15 km across. The car
sets off at 9.00 am and arrives at 11.00 am. During the journey the
car reaches a highest speed of 50 km/h but has to slow down for
traffic and stop several times at junctions.
a) Work out the overall average speed for the journey.

b) Explain why the average speed is so much lower than the highest
speed.

c) Two cyclists, Victoria and Laura, also set off at 9.00 am and head
for the same destination as the car. Victoria takes the same route
as the car and arrives at 10.30 am. Laura takes the ring road,
which is a distance of 22 km, and arrives at 10.15 am. Work out
the average speeds of the two cyclists.

d) Suggest reasons why Laura arrived first despite taking the longer
route.
Speed limits are enforced in the UK.
Write down reasons why these are important.
Why can you go faster on the motorway than in an urban area?

Learning outcomes review:

• List the factors involved in defining speed.
• Describe a simple method to measure speed
• Use and apply the speed formula.

Additional notes:
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 Lesson 2: Distance time graphs
In and On: Look at the picture of the graph.
Discuss with a partner what you think this
represents.

Learning outcomes:
• Gather relevant data to describe a journey.
• Use the conventions of a distance–time graph.
• Display the data on a distance–time graph.
A journey can be represented using a distance time graph.
 The graph shows a cyclists journey.
1) What units could measure the cyclists speed?

2) How far did they travel in the first 6 seconds?

3) What was the cyclists speed?

4) Sketch another line to show the journey of a

cyclist who is travelling at half the speed.
For each graph below – write a few words to describe the speed of each
Suggestions: Constant speed, stationary, accelerating, decelerating.
Challenge: What about the direction of the movement?
Task 1: Write a brief description of each journey shown on the graphs

a) ______________________________________________________
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b) _______________________________________________________
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c) _______________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
d) _______________________________________________________
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Task 2: On the same graph, plot a distance time graph for each journey
Time (min) 0 10 15 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90
Distance travelled by car (km) 0 10 10 15 20 40 60 65 70 75 80
Distance travelled by train (km) 0 20 30 40 40 60 80 80 80 80 80

From your graph, answer these questions:

Identify the times when:
i) the car was not moving __________________
ii) the train was not moving. __________________
What was the total journey time for:
i) the car ___________________
ii) the train? ___________________
Challenge questions:
Calculate the fastest speed in km/h achieved by each mode of transport.

Calculate the average speed in km/h over the entire journey for each mode of
transport.

Suggest why one mode of transport has a quicker journey time than the other.
Plenary: Complete the sentences:
A horizontal line on a distance-time graph shows
________________________.

The steeper the line on the graph, _______________________.

A curved line shows ____________________________.

Options: Faster the speed / Object is stationary / acceleration or deceleration

Learning outcomes review:

• Gather relevant data to describe a journey.
• Use the conventions of a distance–time graph.
• Display the data on a distance–time graph.

Additional notes:
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 Lesson 3: Exploring journeys on distance-time graphs

In and On: Solve the anagrams:

Deeps: _________ Ratgiend: _________ Veeraag: ___________
Learning outcomes:
• Interpret distance–time graphs to learn about the journeys represented.
• Relate distance–time graphs to situations & describe what they show.
Task 1: Work out the missing values, use the triangle to help
Distance = 130 miles Distance = ? Km 3. Distance = 48 m
Speed = ? mph Speed = 13 km/h Speed = 4 m/s
Time = 2 hours Time = 3 hours Time = ? Seconds

Distance = 60 miles Distance = 20 km

Speed = ? mph Speed = ? km/h
Time = 30 minutes Time = 15 minutes

Task 2: Can you match the pictures with their respective graphs?

Challenge: Explain your choices:

Acceleration
On a distance–time graph, a _____
slope shows that an object is travelling
_______ than an object with a shallow
slope. If the object rapidly _________,
the slope of the line will change
rapidly. However, if the change in
speed is more gradual, the _______
will change more gradually.
Which object has the fastest starting speed? _____
Which object has the fastest final speed? _____
Task 3: Write a short story describing each graph:

_________________ _________________ _________________

_________________ _________________ _________________
_________________ _________________ _________________
_________________ _________________ _________________
_________________ _________________ _________________
_________________ _________________ _________________
Task 4: Complete the following questions: The distance–time graph shows the
journey of a tennis ball rolling down a
ramp and across the floor.
a) Label the curve to show:
i) where the ball is travelling fastest
ii) where the ball is accelerating
iii) where the ball is slowing down
iv) where the ball is stationary.

b) Explain why the ball speeds up for part of its

________________________
journey and slows down for part of its journey. ________________________
 Imagine it took 10 seconds from the moment the ball was released to when it
finally came to rest. If the motion was videoed and the recording was
stopped after each second, we would see the position of the ball at one-
second intervals.
The diagram shows the position of the ball at 0 seconds, 1 second,
2 seconds and 3 seconds, as it rolls down the ramp. Show where you
would expect the ball to be at each interval between
4 seconds and 10 seconds.

2.The distance–time graph shows the

journey of a golf ball from the tee
to the hole.
Use the graph to answer the
following questions.
a) How many shots did the golfer
take? ………………….
b) What was the total distance
travelled by the ball?
………………….
c) How far did the golfer’s longest
shot go? ………………….

Four sections of the graph are curved rather than straight. Explain what this shows.
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There are different types of speed cameras. Some measure the mean
(average) speed of a car over a certain distance, such as a kilometre or a mile.
They do this by timing how long it takes for a car to cover the distance and
then using the speed formula to calculate the mean speed.
Using a worked example, explain how a camera calculates the mean speed
over a set distance.
Plenary: Use the graph to answer the questions:

What was his speed for the first hour?

How long did he stop for?

How long did it take him to run 40km?

Learning outcomes review:

• Interpret distance–time graphs to learn about
the journeys represented.

• Relate distance–time graphs to situations &

describe what they show.
Additional notes:
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 Lesson 4: Assessed Enquiry
Investigating motion of a car on a ramp
In and On: What are the 3 types of variables?:

• Learning outcomes:
• Describe the motion of an object whose speed is changing.
• Devise questions that can be explored scientifically.
• Present data so that it can be analysed to answer questions.
Watch the teacher demo and answer the following questions:
Explain why the car accelerates down the ramp:
_______________________________________________________________
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Explain why the car decelerates once it reaches the ground:
_______________________________________________________________
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Challenge: Why do the forces in the first part of the journey make it accelerate
and those in the second part make it decelerate?
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Practical: Investigating motion of a car on a ramp
Hypothesis: The ___________ the ramp, the ____________
the distance travelled by the car.
Variables:
Independent Variable: _____________________________________
Dependent Variable: ______________________________________
Control Variable(s): _______________________________________
_______________________________________________________
Method:
For your first height, place the car at the top of the ramp. Let it go,
and then record the distance it travels from the bottom of the ramp
to where it stops. Repeat this twice more, then increase the height.
Keep doing this until you have reached the maximum height.
Calculate the mean distance travelled by the car for each height
Plot your results as a line graph on the next page
Results table:
Height of Distance travelled by the car (m)
ramp (m)
Try 1 Try 2 Try 3 Mean
Describe the pattern shown on the graph.
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Write a conclusion of your results – what did you find?
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Explain your findings – link this to your knowledge of forces
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Why was a line graph the most appropriate graph for this experiment?
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Evaluate the experiment – did anything go wrong? Why? Is your data
reliable? How could you improve the practical?
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 Lesson 5: Relative motion
In and On: Which one of the below speeds is the fastest?
30 m/s
1800 m/minute
108,000 m/hour
946,080,000 m/year
Learning outcomes:
• Describe the motion of objects in relation to each other.
• Explain the concept of relative motion.
• Apply the concept of relative motion to various situations.
Define relative speed:

Answer the questions on relative speed using the example below:

A person sets off jogging along a canal path at 12 km/h at the same
time as a boat sets off at 10 km/h.
a) How far will each one travel in half an hour?
_______________________________________________________
b) What is their relative speed?
_______________________________________________________
c) To the jogger, how would the boat appear to be moving as they
travel along the canal?
_______________________________________________________
Task: On the next Time Distance (km) Distance (km)
page, plot a graph of (minutes) CAR A CAR B
the data in the table.
0 0 0
This will need to be 2
lines drawn on the 2 2 0
same graph. Then 4 4 4
answer the questions
6 6 8
that follow based on
your graph. 8 8
Which car set of the latest?

If they were in the same lane when would they crash?

Which car finished their journey first?

Which car had the fastest speed?

What is their relativistic speed?

Challenge Question – Why are head on collisions so dangerous?

Task 1:
The diagrams show two cars
travelling along a road in the
same direction. The cars are
travelling at different but
constant speeds. Picture 2 is
taken 10 secs after picture 1.
a) How far has each car travelled between picture 1 and picture 2?
_____________________________________________________________
b) Calculate the speed of each car in m/s
_____________________________________________________________

c) What is the relative speed of the two cars?

____________________________________________________________
d) How far apart will the two cars be after a further 5 seconds has passed?
_____________________________________________________________

e) Add a third car to the diagram above, which starts 10 m ahead of car A,
but travels at half the speed of car A.
Task 2: Two cars are driving along a road in the same direction. The car in front, driven by Alex,
is travelling at a steady speed of 15 m/s. The car following, driven by Georgie, is catching up and
is travelling at 20 m/s. Draw a diagram similar to the one in task 1, to show an 800 m stretch of
road. The faster car is 100 m from the start. The slower car is 100 m ahead. Mark the position
and direction of travel of the two cars.
b) Georgie’s car pulls
alongside Alex’s car
20 s after the diagram
in part a). What
position on the stretch
of road will they have
reached?

c) Draw a second diagram to show the new position of each car when Georgie is alongside Alex.

Challenge: A third car is driven by Asma and is travelling in the opposite direction to Georgie and
Alex. It starts at the far end of the end of the 800 m stretch of road and is travelling at 10 m/s.
a) Add the position of Asma’s car to the two diagrams you drew in task 2.
b) If all cars continue at their same speeds, Could Georgie overtake safely?

c) What advice would you give to Georgie about overtaking?

d) Add to both diagrams a police car that is rushing to an emergency. It is travelling in the same
direction as Alex and Georgie at a speed of 40 m/s. In the first diagram it is 100 m behind
Georgie.
e) Suggest why police emergency response drivers need to be very highly trained.
Plenary: Which scenario is worse? Explain your answer:
a) A car travelling at 10 km/h and colliding with a parked car.
b) A car travelling at 70 km/h and colliding with a car going 60 km/h in the
same direction.
c) A car travelling at 70 km/h and colliding with a car doing 60 km/h in the
opposite direction.

Learning outcomes review:

• Describe the motion of objects in relation to
each other.
• Explain the concept of relative motion.
• Apply the concept of relative motion to
various situations

Additional notes:
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 Lesson 6: Different Forces
In and On: How many different forces can you name?

• Learning outcomes: What 3 things can a force do?

• Recognise different examples of forces.
• List the main types of force.
• Represent forces using arrows.

A force is: _______________________________________________

Task: Match the force to what it does
• upward force exerted on an object
• Weight in a fluid
• Upthrust • resistive force due to moving
through air
• Friction • resistive force due to 2 objects in
• Air contact
Resistance • force that uses motion to make an
object rise up
• Lift • downwards force due to gravity
Task: Add arrows to show the forces Task: Add arrows to show the forces acting on
acting on a person who is stationary a car which is travelling at a constant speed
Add force arrows to show the correct forces acting on each object.
Chose from the options below:
Weight Friction Upthrust Reaction
Lift Forward force Air resistance
If forces are balanced, an object will be _______________ or travelling
at a __________ speed. Unbalanced forces lead to a change in ______
(acceleration or deacceleration) or in ______________.
Task: Show arrows on each diagram below for the different scenarios
Team A pulls to the left and team B pulls to the right with the same-sized forces.

Team B pulls with a larger force Team A pulls with a larger force

Describe in words what happens in a tug-of-war when:

i) the forces are balanced
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ii) the forces are unbalanced.
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2. A tennis player hits a ball using a racket. Think about the forces acting on the ball at
different stages of a tennis match and answer these questions.
a) Explain how the ball can still be moving when it is no longer in contact with the racket.
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b) What forces act on the ball during its flight?
_________________________________________________________________________
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c) When a ball has rolled to a stop, what forces (if any) are acting?
_________________________________________________________________________
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Challenge: Forces are at work when a firework rocket is set off. Describe and
explain the forces involved during the flight of the rocket
Plenary: Add arrows to the two plane. The first is at a constant height
and speed, the second accelerating towards the ground

Learning outcomes review:

• Recognise different examples of forces.
• List the main types of force.
• Represent forces using arrows.

Additional notes:
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 Lesson 7: Weight, Mass and gravity
In and On: What is mass? What is weight? Are they the same thing? Explain

Learning outcomes:
• Describe gravity as a non-contact force.
• Explore the concepts of gravitational field and weight.
• Explain how weight is related to mass.

Mass is: _________________________________________________

________________________________________________________
Weight is: _______________________________________________
________________________________________________________
Gravity is: _______________________________________________
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Weight = ______ x ______ (weight measured in ___)
Mass = ________ / _____ (mass measured in ____)
Gravity = ______ / _____ (gravity measured in ____)
The gravitational field strength on earth is around 10 N/kg. What
is your weight if your mass is 45 kg?

An astronaut has a mass of 80 kg. When will he weigh more?

Earth – g = 10N/kg Moon – g = 1.5N/kg
My mass is __________. On earth my weight is _______. (g = 10N/kg)
On Mars, gravity is 4 N/kg.
If I lived on Mars my MASS would be ………………… kg.
If I lived on Mars my WEIGHT would be ………………… N.
Planet My mass Gravity My weight
Complete the table:
Mercury kg 4 N/kg N
Does your mass change?
Venus kg 9 N/kg N

Does your weight change? Earth kg 10 N/kg N

Mars kg 4 N/kg N
Where do you weigh the Jupiter kg 25 N/kg N
most? Least? Saturn kg 10 N/kg N
Uranus kg 9 N/kg N
Neptune kg 11 N/kg N

Decide which of the following statements are true and which are false.
Rewrite the false ones to change them into true statements.
a) The weight of an object is always the same.
b) Weight is a force, so it is measured in newtons.
c) The mass of an object depends on the strength of the gravitational field.
d) Gravitational field strength gets weaker the further you are from the object causing it.
e) The Earth’s gravitational field reaches to the edge of the atmosphere but no further.
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Use your knowledge about matter, gravitational field strength and forces to explain why,
for a particular object, mass does not vary but weight does.
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Imagine a mouse and an elephant falling towards the Earth. Calculate the force due to
gravity and the acceleration due to gravity for the mouse with a mass of 100 g and for the
elephant with a mass of 5000 kg. Assume that air resistance has no effect. Where it helps,
draw diagrams to explain your answer.
Plenary: Mini Quiz!! Write true or False
1) Mass is measured in grams and kilograms.
2) Weight is the same as mass.
3) The moon orbits the sun.
4) Gravitational forces change on other planets.
5) Earth orbits the sun every 24 hours.
6) You weigh less on the moon.
7) Your mass changes in space
Learning outcomes review:
• Describe gravity as a non-contact force.
• Explore the concepts of gravitational field
and weight.
• Explain how weight is related to mass.

Additional notes:
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Revision
The next 2 pages are left blank for you to use for revision in
preparation for the end of topic test.
Your teacher may ask you to complete a specific revision activity or ask
you to revise independently.
Suggested activities include: Mind maps, practice questions from the
text book, flash cards, memorising key words and concepts.
Glossary:
Throughout the topic – use this page to make not of key
words and their meanings. This can be a revision aid.

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 Lesson 1: Understanding speed
In and On: Write down any questions you have about speed

Learning outcomes:
• List the factors involved in defining speed.
• Describe a simple method to measure speed
• Use and apply the speed formula.
How far could you travel going 60mph and 50 mph in…
a) 1 hour? 50 x 1 = 50 miles
b) 2 Hours? 50 x 2 = 100 miles
c) 5 Hours? 50 x 5 = 250 miles
d) 30 minutes? 50 x 0.5 = 25 miles
The distance travelled in a certain time
Speed is ____________________________________________
In science the units we use are
Distance – meters (m)
Time – Seconds (s)
Speed – Meters per second (m/s)

Use the formula triangle above to calculate speed:

a) 100 m in 20 seconds
100 ÷ 20 = 5 m/s
b) 48 m in 4 seconds
48 ÷ 4 = 12 m/s
c) 57 m in 3 seconds
57 ÷ 3 = 19 m/s Challenge:
d) 3 km in 100 seconds Calculate distance travelled in km
3000 ÷ 100 = 30 m/s when speed is 50m/s and the car
has been travelling for 3 hours.
e) 1 km in 1 minute
1000 ÷ 60 = 16.7 m/s
f) 350 km in 5 hours
350 ÷ 5 = 70 km/h
 Lesson 1: Understanding speed
In and On: Write down any questions you have about speed

Learning outcomes:
• List the factors involved in defining speed.
• Describe a simple method to measure speed
• Use and apply the speed formula.
How far could you travel going 60mph and 50 mph in…
a) 1 hour? 50 x 1 = 50 miles
b) 2 Hours? 50 x 2 = 100 miles
c) 5 Hours? 50 x 5 = 250 miles
d) 30 minutes? 50 x 0.5 = 25 miles
The distance travelled in a certain time
Speed is ____________________________________________
In science the units we use are
Distance – meters (m)
Time – Seconds (s)
Speed – Meters per second (m/s)

Use the formula triangle above to calculate speed:

a) 100 m in 20 seconds
100 ÷ 20 = 5 m/s
b) 48 m in 4 seconds
48 ÷ 4 = 12 m/s
c) 57 m in 3 seconds
57 ÷ 3 = 19 m/s Challenge:
d) 3 km in 100 seconds Calculate distance travelled in km
3000 ÷ 100 = 30 m/s when speed is 50m/s and the car
has been travelling for 3 hours.
e) 1 km in 1 minute
1000 ÷ 60 = 16.7 m/s 50 x 3 x 60 x60
f) 350 km in 5 hours = 540,000 m
350 ÷ 5 = 70 km/h
Practical:
Aim: calculate the speed of various ways to move

Challenge task: Average speeds

Read the information & complete the questions.
Imagine a normal journey across a town that is 15 km across. The car
sets off at 9.00 am and arrives at 11.00 am. During the journey the
car reaches a highest speed of 50 km/h but has to slow down for
traffic and stop several times at junctions.
a) Work out the overall average speed for the journey.
Speed = distance ÷ time 15 ÷ 2 = 7.5 km/h

b) Explain why the average speed is so much lower than the highest
speed. The car’s speed is slower than the top speed for some
of the journey and this decreases the average value.
c) Two cyclists, Victoria and Laura, also set off at 9.00 am and head
for the same destination as the car. Victoria takes the same route
as the car and arrives at 10.30 am. Laura takes the ring road,
which is a distance of 22 km, and arrives at 10.15 am. Work out
the average speeds of the two cyclists.
VICTORIA Speed = distance ÷ time 15 ÷ 1.5 = 10 km/h
LAURA Speed = distance ÷ time 22 ÷ 1.25 = 17.6 km/h
d) Suggest reasons why Laura arrived first despite taking the longer
route. Laura didn’t stop at junctions or
Laura is fitter than Victoria
Speed limits are enforced in the UK.
Write down reasons why these are important.
Why can you go faster on the motorway than in an urban area?
Slower speeds are safer. Drivers have more time to react to incidents.
Collisions at slower speeds cause fewer injuries and fewer deaths.
Motorways are straighter and flatter. Visibility is better. They have
fewer turns with smaller turning angles. Lanes are wider so there is
more room for vehicles to pass each other.

Learning outcomes review:

• List the factors involved in defining speed.
• Describe a simple method to measure speed
• Use and apply the speed formula.

Additional notes:
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________________________________________ Key Vocab:
________________________________________ Speed
________________________________________ Distance
________________________________________ Time
________________________________________ Collision
________________________________________ Faster
________________________________________ Slower
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 Lesson 2: Distance time graphs
In and On: Look at the picture of the graph.
Discuss with a partner what you think this
represents.

Learning outcomes:
• Gather relevant data to describe a journey.
• Use the conventions of a distance–time graph.
• Display the data on a distance–time graph.
A journey can be represented using a distance time graph.
 The graph shows a cyclists journey.
1) What units could measure the cyclists speed?
m/s
2) How far did they travel in the first 6 seconds?
30 m
3) What was the cyclists speed?
Speed = distance ÷ time 30 ÷ 6 = 5 m/s
4) Sketch another line to show the journey of a
cyclist who is travelling at half the speed.
For each graph below – write a few words to describe the speed of each
Suggestions: Constant speed, stationary, accelerating, decelerating.
Challenge: What about the direction of the movement?

stationary Constant speed Constant speed

forward backwards

Speeding up Slowing down Constant speed forward

(accelerating) (decelerating) (slower than B)
Task 1: Write a brief description of each journey shown on the graphs

a) Constant speed forward then stationary (stopped)

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Constant speed forward (slow) then constant speed forward
b) _______________________________________________________
(fast) then stationary (stopped)
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c) _______________________________________________________
Constant speed forward
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Speeding up (accelerating) then slowing down (decelerating)
d) _______________________________________________________
then stopped (stationary)
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Task 2: On the same graph, plot a distance time graph for each journey
Time (min) 0 10 15 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90
Distance travelled by car (km) 0 10 10 15 20 40 60 65 70 75 80
Distance travelled by train (km) 0 20 30 40 40 60 80 80 80 80 80

From your graph, answer these questions:

Identify the times when:
i) the car was not moving Between 10 and 15 mins
__________________
Between 20 and 30 mins
ii) the train was not moving. __________________
What was the total journey time for: and after 50 mins
i) the car 90 mins
___________________
ii) the train? 50 mins
___________________
 train
80 X X X X X
X car
X
#2 X
60 X X
Distance travelled (km)

#1
40 X X X

20 X X
X
X X

20 40 60 80
Time (min)

Challenge questions:
Calculate the fastest speed in km/h achieved by each mode of transport.
CAR #1 Speed = distance ÷ time (60-20)÷(50-30) = 2 km/min
TRAIN #2 Speed = distance ÷ time (80-40)÷(50-30) = 2 km/min
Calculate the average speed in km/h over the entire journey for each mode of
transport. CAR Speed = distance ÷ time 80 ÷ 90 = 0.89 km/min
TRAIN Speed = distance ÷ time 80 ÷ 50 = 1.6 km/min
Suggest why one mode of transport has a quicker journey time than the other.
The car has to travel slowly in town, stopping for traffic lights and
in congestion.
The train has fewer delays and stops at stations.
Plenary: Complete the sentences:
A horizontal line on a distance-time graph shows
Object is stationary (stopped)
________________________.
the faster the speed
The steeper the line on the graph, _______________________.

Acceleration or deceleration (changing speed)

A curved line shows ____________________________.

Options: Faster the speed / Object is stationary / acceleration or deceleration

Learning outcomes review:

• Gather relevant data to describe a journey.
• Use the conventions of a distance–time graph.
• Display the data on a distance–time graph.

Additional notes:
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________ Key Vocab:
________________________________________
Acceleration
________________________________________
Deceleration
________________________________________
________________________________________
Accelerating
________________________________________
Decelerating
________________________________________
________________________________________
stationary
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
 Lesson 3: Exploring journeys on distance-time graphs

In and On: Solve the anagrams:

speed
Deeps: _________ gradient
Ratgiend: _________ average
Veeraag: ___________
Learning outcomes:
• Interpret distance–time graphs to learn about the journeys represented.
• Relate distance–time graphs to situations & describe what they show.
Task 1: Work out the missing values, use the triangle to help
Distance = 130 miles Distance = ? Km 3. Distance = 48 m
Speed = ? mph Speed = 13 km/h Speed = 4 m/s
Time = 2 hours Time = 3 hours Time = ? Seconds
130 ÷ 2 = 65 mph 13 x 3 = 39 km 48 ÷ 4 = 12 s

Distance = 60 miles Distance = 20 km 20 ÷ 0.25

Speed = ? mph
60 ÷ 0.5 Speed = ? km/h
Time = 30 minutes = 120 mph Time = 15 minutes = 80 km/h

Task 2: Can you match the pictures with their respective graphs?

B
E

Challenge: Explain your choices:

Acceleration
steep
On a distance–time graph, a _____
slope shows that an object is travelling
faster than an object with a shallow
_______
slope. If the object rapidly accelerates
_________,
the slope of the line will change
rapidly. However, if the change in
gradient
speed is more gradual, the _______
will change more gradually.
Which object has the fastest starting speed? _____
B
C
Which object has the fastest final speed? _____
Task 3: Write a short story describing each graph:

A person drives a A bus leaves school A cyclist rides home

friend’s house at at drives at constant fast for 15 mins.
constant speed, speed to a museum. She stops for 30min
stops for an hour Pupils visit for 1 hour. for lunch. She rides
and drives home at The return journey slowly back for the
constant speed. takes 30min. remaining 12km.
Task 4: Complete the following questions: The distance–time graph shows the
journey of a tennis ball rolling down a
ramp and across the floor.
4
a) Label the curve to show:
3 1. where the ball is travelling fastest
1 2. where the ball is accelerating
3. where the ball is slowing down
2 4. where the ball is stationary.

Gravity makes the ball speed

b) Explain why the ball speeds up for part of its
up as it goes down the ramp
journey and slows down for part of its journey.
Friction makes the ball slows down as it moves over the floor
 Imagine it took 10 seconds from the moment the ball was released to when it
finally came to rest. If the motion was videoed and the recording was
stopped after each second, we would see the position of the ball at one-
second intervals.
The diagram shows the position of the ball at 0 seconds, 1 second,
2 seconds and 3 seconds, as it rolls down the ramp. Show where you
would expect the ball to be at each interval between
0 1 2 4 seconds and 10 seconds.
3
4 5 6 7 8 9 10

2.The distance–time graph shows the

journey of a golf ball from the tee
to the hole. Shot 4
Use the graph to answer the Shot 3
following questions.
a) How many shots did the golfer
4
take? ………………….
Shot 2
b) What was the total distance
travelled by the ball?
460 m
…………………. Shot 1
c) How far did the golfer’s longest
210 m
shot go? ………………….

Four sections of the graph are curved rather than straight. Explain what this shows.
The speed of the ball is changing. The collision with the golf club
________________________________________________________
makes the ball speed up. Air resistance slows the ball in flight.
________________________________________________________
Friction slows the ball as is rolls on the grass.
________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
There are different types of speed cameras. Some measure the mean
(average) speed of a car over a certain distance, such as a kilometre or a mile.
They do this by timing how long it takes for a car to cover the distance and
then using the speed formula to calculate the mean speed.
Using a worked example, explain how a camera calculates the mean speed
over a set distance.
1. Measure the start time as the car enters the measured mile.
2. Measure the end time as the car finishes the measured mile.
3. Calculate the speed using :
speed = distance ÷ time
= 1 ÷ (end time – start time)
Plenary: Use the graph to answer the questions:

8 km
What was his speed for the first hour?
Speed = distance ÷ time 10÷1 = 10 km/h
How long did he stop for?
15 min ( ¼ of an hour)
How long did it take him to run 40km?
2 hours 45 min (2 and ¾ hours)
Learning outcomes review:
• Interpret distance–time graphs to learn about
the journeys represented.

• Relate distance–time graphs to situations &

describe what they show.
Additional notes:
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________ Key Vocab:
________________________________________
Speed
________________________________________
Distance
________________________________________
Friction
________________________________________
Accelerate
________________________________________
Air resistance
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
 Lesson 4: Assessed Enquiry
Investigating motion of a car on a ramp
In and On: What are the 3 types of variables?:
1. Independent variable
2. Dependent variable
3. Control variable
• Learning outcomes:
• Describe the motion of an object whose speed is changing.
• Devise questions that can be explored scientifically.
• Present data so that it can be analysed to answer questions.
Watch the teacher demo and answer the following questions:
Explain why the car accelerates down the ramp:
Gravity pulls the car down the slope and makes the car speed up.
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
Explain why the car decelerates once it reaches the ground:
Friction between the car and the ground makes the car slow
_______________________________________________________________
down.
_______________________________________________________________
Challenge: Why do the forces in the first part of the journey make it accelerate
and those in the second part make it decelerate?
On the ramp, gravity pulls the car down the slope and
_______________________________________________________________
affects the motion of the car.
_______________________________________________________________
On the ground, only air resistance and friction with the ground
_______________________________________________________________
affect the motion of the car.
_______________________________________________________________
Practical: Investigating motion of a car on a ramp
higher
Hypothesis: The ___________ bigger
the ramp, the ____________
the distance travelled by the car.
Variables:
Height of the ramp
Independent Variable: _____________________________________
Distance moved after the end of the ramp
Dependent Variable: ______________________________________
Same toy car ,
Control Variable(s): _______________________________________
Same ramp length and same ramp material
_______________________________________________________
Method:
For your first height, place the car at the top of the ramp. Let it go,
and then record the distance it travels from the bottom of the ramp
to where it stops. Repeat this twice more, then increase the height.
Keep doing this until you have reached the maximum height.
Calculate the mean distance travelled by the car for each height
Plot your results as a line graph on the next page
Results table:
Height of Distance travelled by the car (m)
ramp (m)
Try 1 Try 2 Try 3 Mean
0.1 0.22 0.25 0.27 0.24
0.2 0.35 0.36 0.34 0.35
0.3 0.45 0.45 0.45 0.45
0.4 0.58 0.52 0.56 0.55
0.5 0.68 0.61 0.63 0.64
 0.7
Distance travelled by the car (m)

X
0.6

X
0.5

X
0.4

X
0.3

X
0.2

0.1

0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5

Height of ramp (m)
Describe the pattern shown on the graph.
As the height of the ramp increases, the distance travelled by the
car increases.

Write a conclusion of your results – what did you find?

From 0.1m to 0.5m, increasing the height of the ramp increased the
distance travelled by the car proportionally (straight line)

Explain your findings – link this to your knowledge of forces

A steeper ramp gives more force downwards along the ramp. The
friction force with the ramp gets less so the car leaves the ramp at
a faster speed and with more energy.

Why was a line graph the most appropriate graph for this experiment?
The data is continuous. The height of the ramp and the distance
travelled can have any value.

Evaluate the experiment – did anything go wrong? Why? Is your data

reliable? How could you improve the practical?
The graph line is a straight line for ramp heights bigger than 0.2m.
More data is needed for heights less than 0.1m. Results for 0.1m
and 0.5m have a range of 0.05m so more trys would give a better
mean.
 Lesson 5: Relative motion
In and On: Which one of the below speeds is the fastest?
30 m/s
1800 m/minute They are all the same actual speed.
108,000 m/hour Each value matches a different unit.
946,080,000 m/year
Learning outcomes:
• Describe the motion of objects in relation to each other.
• Explain the concept of relative motion.
• Apply the concept of relative motion to various situations.
Define relative speed:
Relative speed is how much faster one object is travelling
compared to another object.

Answer the questions on relative speed using the example below:

A person sets off jogging along a canal path at 12 km/h at the same
time as a boat sets off at 10 km/h.
a) How far will each one travel in half an hour?
Distance = speed x time JOGGER 12 x 0.5= 6km, BOAT 10X0.5= 5km
_______________________________________________________
b) What is their relative speed?
Jogger is 2km/h faster than the boat
_______________________________________________________
c) To the jogger, how would the boat appear to be moving as they
travel along the canal?
backwards
_______________________________________________________
Task: On the next Time Distance (km) Distance (km)
page, plot a graph of (minutes) CAR A CAR B
the data in the table.
0 0 0
This will need to be 2
lines drawn on the 2 2 0
same graph. Then 4 4 4
answer the questions
6 6 8
that follow based on
your graph. 8 8
 8 X X
Car B
7
Car A
6 X
Distance travelled (km)

4 X

2 X

X X
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Time (min)

Which car set off the latest? Car B

If they were in the same lane when would they crash?
4 mins or 4 km
Which car finished their journey first? Car B
Which car had the fastest speed? Car B
What is the speed of car B relative to car A ?
Car A speed = 8 ÷ 8 = 1 km/h
Car B speed = 8 ÷ 6 = 1.33 km/h
Car B speed relative to car A 1.33 – 1 = 0.33 km/h

Challenge Question – Why are head on collisions so dangerous?

The relative speed of the collision is
both car speeds added together
Task 1:
The diagrams show two cars
travelling along a road in the C
same direction. The cars are 40
travelling at different but Car A Car B
constant speeds. Picture 2 is
C
taken 10 secs after picture 1. 10 + 35 = 45 70 120
a) How far has each car travelled between picture 1 and picture 2?
Car A 70 - 0 = 70 m Car B 120 - 40 = 80 m
_____________________________________________________________
b) Calculate the speed of each car in m/s
Car A speed = 70 ÷ 10 = 7 m/s Car B speed = 80 ÷ 10 = 8 m/s
_____________________________________________________________

c) What is the relative speed of the two cars?

Relative speed = Speed car B – speed car A 8 – 7 = 1 m/s
____________________________________________________________
d) How far apart will the two cars be after a further 5 seconds has passed?
Current distance apart (50m) + relative extra (1x5) = 55m
_____________________________________________________________

e) Add a third car to the diagram above, which starts 10 m ahead of car A,
but travels at half the speed of car A.
Task 2: Two cars are driving along a road in the same direction. The car in front, driven by Alex,
is travelling at a steady speed of 15 m/s. The car following, driven by Georgie, is catching up and
is travelling at 20 m/s. Draw a diagram similar to the one in task 1, to show an 800 m stretch of
road. The faster car is 100 m from the start. The slower car is 100 m ahead. Mark the position
and direction of travel of the two cars.
b) Georgie’s car pulls
alongside Alex’s car
20 s after the diagram
G A in part a). What
200 400 600 800 position on the stretch
of road will they have
A reached?
200 400 G 600 800
500m from the left side
c) Draw a second diagram to show the new position of each car when Georgie is alongside Alex.

Challenge:

a) Asma is at the far right-hand end in the first diagram, and 200 m from the
right-hand end in the second diagram.
e) Suggest why police emergency response drivers need to be very highly trained.
b) Not very likely; there is a risk of a head-on collision in just over 3 s.
c) Overtake as fast as possible; wait for a dual carriageway; be patient;
choose not to overtake, because it is unsafe.
d) Police car is at the far left-hand end in first diagram, and at the far right-
hand end in the second.
e) They need to be able to judge speed of a car and judge risks well. They
must not put the public in danger.
Plenary: Which scenario is worse? Explain your answer:
a) A car travelling at 10 km/h and colliding with a parked car.
Relative speed = moving car speed – parked car speed
= 10 – 0 = 10 km/h
b) A car travelling at 70 km/h and colliding with a car going 60 km/h in the
same direction.
Relative speed = car 1 speed (70 km/h) – car 2 speed (60 km/h)
= 10 km/h
c) A car travelling at 70 km/h and colliding with a car doing 60 km/h in the
opposite direction.
Relative speed = car 1 speed (70 km/h) – car 2 speed (-60 km/h)
= 70 + 60
= 130 km/h

Learning outcomes review:

• Describe the motion of objects in relation to

each other.
• Explain the concept of relative motion.
• Apply the concept of relative motion to
various situations

Additional notes:
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________ Key Vocab:
________________________________________ Relative
________________________________________ Speed
________________________________________ km/h
________________________________________
________________________________________
 Lesson 6: Different Forces
In and On: How many different forces can you name?

• Learning outcomes: What 3 things can a force do?

• Recognise different examples of forces. 1. Change object’s speed
• List the main types of force. 2. Change object’s shape
• Represent forces using arrows. 3. Change moving object’s direction

A force is: _______________________________________________

Task: Match the force to what it does
• upward force exerted on an object
• Weight in a fluid
• Upthrust • resistive force due to moving
through air
• Friction • resistive force due to 2 objects in
• Air contact
Resistance • force that uses motion to make an
object rise up
• Lift • downwards force due to gravity
Task: Add arrows to show the forces Task: Add arrows to show the forces acting on
acting on a person who is stationary a car which is travelling at a constant speed
Reaction from ground Reaction from ground

Air thrust
resistance

weight
weight
Add force arrows to show the correct forces acting on each object.
Chose from the options below:
Weight Friction Upthrust Reaction
Lift Forward force Air resistance

upthrust Force up from hand

Force up from spring

weight weight
weight

Reaction upthrust
Force up from string

weight
weight
weight

reaction

Reaction
weight
weight

weight
 stationary
If forces are balanced, an object will be _______________ or travelling
speed
constant speed. Unbalanced forces lead to a change in ______
at a __________
direction
(acceleration or deacceleration) or in ______________.
Task: Show arrows on each diagram below for the different scenarios
Team A pulls to the left and team B pulls to the right with the same-sized forces.

stationary
Team B pulls with a larger force Team A pulls with a larger force

Move right Move left

Describe in words what happens in a tug-of-war when:
i) the forces are balanced
Equal forces act in opposite directions. The rope remains
________________________________________________________________________
stationary.
_________________________________________________________________________
ii) the forces are unbalanced.
Unequal forces act in opposite directions. The rope moves in the
_________________________________________________________________________
direction of the biggest force.
_________________________________________________________________________
2. A tennis player hits a ball using a racket. Think about the forces acting on the ball at
different stages of a tennis match and answer these questions.
a) Explain how the ball can still be moving when it is no longer in contact with the racket.
The ball moves at a constant speed in a straight line until another
_________________________________________________________________________
force acts on it and changes its motion.
_________________________________________________________________________
b) What forces act on the ball during its flight?
Air resistance acts in the opposite direction to the direction of
_________________________________________________________________________
motion. Weight acts downwards.
_________________________________________________________________________
c) When a ball has rolled to a stop, what forces (if any) are acting?
Weight acts downwards. Reaction force upwards from the
_________________________________________________________________________
ground.
_________________________________________________________________________

Challenge: Forces are at work when a firework rocket is set off. Describe and
explain the forces involved during the flight of the rocket
1. The rocket moves up because the thrust upwards is
bigger than the weight downwards.
2. The rocket slows down because the air resistance force
is in the opposite direction to the rocket’s motion.
Plenary: Add arrows to the two plane. The first is at a constant height
and speed, the second accelerating towards the ground

lift
lift
Air Engine
resistance thrust
weight
weight

Learning outcomes review:

• Recognise different examples of forces.
• List the main types of force.
• Represent forces using arrows.

Additional notes:
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________ Key Vocab:
________________________________________ Weight
________________________________________ Upthrust
________________________________________ Lift
________________________________________ Friction
________________________________________ Air resistance
________________________________________ thrust
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
 Lesson 7: Weight, Mass and gravity
In and On: What is mass? What is weight? Are they the same thing? Explain

Learning outcomes:
• Describe gravity as a non-contact force.
• Explore the concepts of gravitational field and weight.
• Explain how weight is related to mass.

A measure of how much matter or particles an

Mass is: _________________________________________________
object has.
________________________________________________________
A measure of how strongly gravity pulls on an
Weight is: _______________________________________________
object’s matter.
________________________________________________________
A field that causes an attraction force between object
Gravity is: _______________________________________________
because all objects have mass
________________________________________________________
mass x ______
Weight = ______ gravity (weight measured in ___)
N
weight / gravity
Mass = ________ kg
_____ (mass measured in ____)
weight / _____
Gravity = ______ N/kg
mass (gravity measured in ______)
The gravitational field strength on earth is around 10 N/kg. What
is your weight if your mass is 45 kg?

Weight = mass x gravity 45 x 10 = 450 N

An astronaut has a mass of 80 kg. When will he weigh more?

Earth – g = 10N/kg Moon – g = 1.5N/kg

Weight = 80 x 10 Weight = 80 x 1.5

= 800 N = 120 N
 45 kg
My mass is __________. 450 N (g = 10N/kg)
On earth my weight is _______.
On Mars, gravity is 4 N/kg.
45
If I lived on Mars my MASS would be ………………… kg.
45 x 4 = 180 N N.
If I lived on Mars my WEIGHT would be ……………………………
Planet My mass Gravity My weight
Complete the table:
Does your mass change? Mercury 45 kg 4 N/kg 180 N

no Venus 45 kg 9 N/kg 405 N

Does your weight change? Earth 45 kg 10 N/kg 450 N

yes Mars 45 kg 4 N/kg 180 N
Where do you weigh the Jupiter 45 kg 25 N/kg 1125 N
most? Least? Saturn 45 kg 10 N/kg 450 N
Most = Jupiter Uranus 45 kg 9 N/kg 405 N
Least = Mercury or Mars Neptune 45 kg 11 N/kg 405 N

Decide which of the following statements are true and which are false.
Rewrite the false ones to change them into true statements.
a) The weight of an object is always the same. false
The mass of an object is always the same.
b) Weight is a force, so it is measured in newtons. true
c) The mass of an object depends on the strength of the gravitational field. false
The weight of an object depends on the strength of the gravitational field.
true
d) Gravitational field strength gets weaker the further you are from the object causing it.
e) The Earth’s gravitational field reaches to the edge of the atmosphere but no further. false
_________________________________________________________
Gravity goes to the edge of the Universe. The Earth’s gravity pulls
_________________________________________________________
on the Moon and makes the Moon orbit around the Earth.
Use your knowledge about matter, gravitational field strength and forces to explain why,
for a particular object, mass does not vary but weight does.
Mass depends on the number of particles in an object. The number
_________________________________________________________
of particles does not change when the object is moved. Weight
_________________________________________________________
depends on gravity and gravity is not the same everywhere.
Imagine a mouse and an elephant falling towards the Earth. Calculate the force due to
gravity and the acceleration due to gravity for the mouse with a mass of 100 g and for the
elephant with a mass of 5000 kg. Assume that air resistance has no effect. Where it helps,
draw diagrams to explain your answer.
MOUSE mass = 100 ÷ 1000 = 0.1 kg weight = 0.1 x 10 = 1 N

ELEPHANT mass = 5000 kg weight = 5000 x 10 = 50,000 N

Plenary: Mini Quiz!! Write true or False
1) Mass is measured in grams and kilograms. true
2) Weight is the same as mass. false
3) The moon orbits the sun. false
4) Gravitational forces change on other planets. true
5) Earth orbits the sun every 24 hours. false
6) You weigh less on the moon. true
7) Your mass changes in space false
Learning outcomes review:
• Describe gravity as a non-contact force.
• Explore the concepts of gravitational field
and weight.
• Explain how weight is related to mass.

Additional notes:
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________ Key Vocab:
________________________________________ Mass
________________________________________ Weight
________________________________________ Newton
________________________________________ Kilogram
________________________________________ Gravitational
________________________________________ Particles
________________________________________ N
________________________________________ kg
________________________________________ N/kg
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________