Science.3.7.A

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The student is expected to

demonstrate and describe forces acting on an object in contact or at a distance, including magnetism, gravity, and pushes and pulls; and

1666 TEKS header image

Knowledge and Skills Statement

Force, motion, and energy. The student knows the nature of forces and the patterns of their interactions.

As students describe forces acting on objects, they may indicate the strength and direction of the forces as arrows of varying lengths or thicknesses. The arrows below represent the common conventions used to describe and compare strength of forces in diagrams

Thick (large) arrows represent a stronger force.      Thin (small) arrows represent a weaker force. 

Thick and thin arrows representing differences in force
Thick Arrow: Icon made by RoundThick icons from www.flaticon.com
Thin Arrow: Icon made by Handicon from www.flaticon.com

a push or pull between two objects

a physical phenomenon where masses exert a pull on each other from a distance; the objects are pulled toward each other's center of mass

a type of physical phenomenon that includes the attraction between iron and a magnet; exhibited by both magnets and electric currents; a type of energy characterized by fields of force

a force between two objects that may cause a change in motion toward the object exerting the pulling force

a force between two objects that may cause a change in motion away from the object exerting the pushing force

Research

"Wilcox, Jesse, Naryah, Moore, Sarah Nolting, Courtney Reyna, and Caitlyn. 2021. “Don’t Force It! Using Guiding Questions to Scaffold Kindergartner’s Thinking of Pushes And Pulls.” Science and Children 59, no. 2 (2021): 33-37. 
www.nsta.org/science-and-children/science-and-children-novemberdecember-2021/dont-force-it."

Summary: Students have many common misconceptions about magnets. This article addresses these misconceptions and outlines the importance of scaffolding when teaching magnet concepts. Complex ideas about magnets can be difficult for students to comprehend because students cannot see what is happening between a magnet and the object it is attracted to. Students need to know that magnets can attract and repel or push and pull and should be allowed to explore this concept with magnets while teachers ask guiding questions. Allowing students to explore magnets strengthens other important science skills, such as making predictions and categorizing.

 

Research

"Bobrowsky, Matt. 2019. “SCIENCE 101: Q: What’s Wrong With ‘For Every Action, There Is an Equal and Opposite Reaction’?” Science and Children 56, no. 7, (2019): 69–73.
https://www.proquest.com/docview/2187121325?pq-origsite=gscholar&fromopenview=true&sourcetype=Scholarly%20Journals."

Summary: The author of this article explains how forces act on each other. Readers are asked to clap their hands together to see that they feel the same amount of force from each hand and that the forces are equal in strength and opposite in direction. Similarly, magnets can either attract or repel each other, but the forces from each magnet are the same and occur simultaneously. Many students are surprised to learn that when gravity acts on an object, like an apple falling to the ground, the apple also exerts a small gravitational tug on the Earth. Students should know that forces come in pairs. Students can observe a set of blocks stacked on top of each other and try to identify all of the pairs of forces.