Worksheet: Balanced, Unbalanced and Resultant Forces

1: What Forces Do – Newton’s

Quick Check Questions: Tick the TRUE statements. First Law
1. Forces only change what an object is already doing.
2. An object will stay still unless a force makes it move.
3. A moving object will always stop.
4. There are no forces at all in space.
5. An moving object will keep moving unless a force makes it stop.
6. The laws of forces are different in space.

What Forces Do – Newton’s First Law:

1. Tick the correct statement:
a) Forces are needed to make things keep moving.
b) Forces only change what something is already doing.
2. Describe what would happen to a still object if no forces were acting upon it.

3. Describe what would happen to a moving object if no forces were acting upon it.

4. Imagine you had a tennis ball on your desk and you flicked it. Explain why the ball will move when
you flick it, but then eventually stops.

5. Explain why the same tennis ball in deep space would keep moving if you flicked it.

Challenge Questions:
1. What was Aristotle’s theory about forces? What was Galileo’s theory? Who was correct?

1. Why do you think Galileo developed a different theory to Aristotle? (Clue: remember Galileo
was an astronomer!)

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 Worksheet: Balanced, Unbalanced and Resultant Forces
2: Balanced and Unbalanced
Quick Check Questions: Circle the balanced forces Forces

Balanced and Unbalanced Forces:

1. If forces are balanced, what will happen to an object?

2. If forces are unbalanced, what will happen to an object?

3. Look at the images of the moving bike below. For each picture say whether the forces are
balanced or unbalanced and describe what will happen to the bike.

Left hand bike:

Middle bike:

Right hand bike:

Challenge Question: Draw the forces on a car that is reversing and speeding up as it reverses.

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 Worksheet: Balanced, Unbalanced and Resultant Forces
3: Resultant Forces
Quick Check Questions: Tick ALL the correct answers
• What is the resultant force and in which direction does it act?
• What does this tell you about the motion (movement) of the object?
a) The resultant force is 100N →
b) The resultant force is 300N
c) The forces are balanced.
d) The forces are unbalanced.
e) The object will change what it is doing.
f) The object will not change what it is doing.

Resultant Forces:
What is the resultant force, and what will happen to each of these cars?

a)

b)

c)

d)

Challenge Questions:
A boat is travelling on a river. There is a resultant force of 200N acting in the forward direction.
The force from the boat’s engine is 500N.
a) What is the size and direction of the resistive force (e.g. water resistance) acting on the
boat?

a) Describe the motion of the boat.

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