T E
A C H E R ’ S
N O T E S
Focus:
Students explore forces:
what they are, what they do, and how
they affect people and structures.
Students also explore what machines
do and their relationship with forces.
Learning Goals:
Students will have opportunities to learn
• how to correctly use the terms force, simple
machine, complex machine, axle, gear,
load, structure, structural feature
• what a force is
• when a force is acting
• about the six simple machines
• what a complex machine is
• what a structure is and what forces act on
them
• what a structural feature is
• how forces can be dangerous
• about protective and preventive safety equipment
that can protect us from forces
Discussion Prompts:
© Scholastic Canada Ltd., 2010
• What is a force?
• How can you tell when a force is acting?
• What is a simple machine?
• What are the six simple machines?
• What is a complex machine?
• What is a structure?
• What is a structural feature?
• How can forces be dangerous to people?
• What kinds of equipment can protect us from forces?
Assessment Prompts:
• Do students demonstrate, in their discussion and
answers to questions, understanding of the science
vocabulary used in the cards for this unit?
• Are students able to carry out the skills of scientific
inquiry, following activity procedure steps safely and
accurately, making observations when appropriate?
• Assess students’ responses during discussions.
- Are students able to identify different forces and
how they act on objects? (e.g., tension,
compression, friction)
- Can students identify and define the six simple
machines and provide examples of each?
- Can students define what a complex machine is
and give one or two examples?
- Can students identify forces that affect structures?
Can they describe some structural features and
how they help structures stand up to forces?
- Can students identify how forces can be
dangerous? Can they describe ways in which safety
equipment can protect us from these dangers?
Links to PCSP Student Book Force Factor:
Card 1:
Card 2:
Card 3:
Card 4:
Card 5:
see Lessons 1 and 3
see Lessons 4-6
see Lessons 4-6
see Lessons 2 and 7-9
see Lesson 10
Focus:
Students explore what forces are
and how to know when forces are in action.
Activity Description: There are two orange icons in the left margin. When
students click on the first orange icon, text describes the tension force. Text from
the second orange icon describes the friction force. Students then click on the
orange icon on the right side of the “Gripping and Slipping” screen to learn more
about tension as well as two other forces: compression and torque.
Learning Goals: Students explore and identify four forces: tension, friction,
compression, and torque.
Ask Students: Why is it easy to slip and fall when you walk on ice, but easier
to stay upright on a gravel path? ( friction: friction causes two surfaces that are
in contact and moving past each other to slow down or stop; a smooth surface
like ice creates less friction than a gravel path. ) What is compression and can
you give your own example? ( Compression is when an object is squeezed from
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Introduce students to
the topic with the video
of two baseball players
pitching and hitting a ball.
Discuss the video and any
comments or questions
students may have.
Activity Description: Students click
on a series of bungee jumping images.
Each image has an accompanying caption
describing which force is acting in that
part of the bungee jump.
Learning Goal: Students identify the
forces at work during a bungee jump.
Ask Students: How does gravity act
on a bungee jumper? ( When the person
jumps, gravity pulls the person towards
the ground. Gravity causes the person’s
fall to speed up as the fall progresses. )
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© Scholastic Canada Ltd., 2010
Activity Description: Text describes that
gravity is the force acting on everything at all
times. Students then click on the orange icon
and are shown how forces work when a person
rides a bicycle.
Learning Goals: Students identify gravity as
a force that acts on them all the time. Students
examine the forces at work when they ride a
bicycle.
Ask Students: What force is constantly
at work on all things on Earth? ( gravity )
What causes a bicycle to start moving? ( a
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PCSP Interactive Science Teacher’s Notes
Activity Description: Text describes basic ideas relating to
contact forces. Students click on the orange icon and are taken to a
drag-and-drop activity about forces that act on a boat.
Learning Goals: Students identify and explore how gravity and
buoyancy act on a boat, enabling it to float or sink.
Ask Students: Does buoyancy push up on a boat or pull down
on it? ( push up ) If you load up a boat with too many things, what
happens to the boat and why? ( The boat will sink, because gravity,
which pulls down on the boat, becomes stronger than buoyancy
pushing up on the boat.)
Assessment:Can students describe how gravity and buoyancy
“push and pull” on a boat, causing it either to float or to sink?
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Activity Description: Students investigate how far a skateboard travels on rough ground
compared to smooth ground. Students click on the orange icon and are taken to a screen that
describes friction is stronger on rough rather than smooth ground. Students click on the orange
“continue” button to learn that friction causes wear and tear on machinery and can create heat.
Friction can be reduced by adding a lubricant such as oil.
Learning Goal: Students expand their knowledge of the force of friction.
Ask Students: In your investigation, why does the skateboard travel different distances? ( Friction
causes the skateboard to travel a shorter distance on rough ground than on smooth ground. ) Why
do the skateboard wheels cool when you add a bit of oil? ( Oil reduces friction between the moving
parts. Less friction reduces the amount of heat.)
Assessment: Were students able to carry out the procedure steps correctly and safely, recording
their results with accuracy? Can students provide a reasonable explanation to account for why the
skateboard travels different distances in the investigation? Are students able to describe that friction
is ultimately responsible for stopping the skateboard,
whether on rough or smooth ground?
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push-force ) What force always causes the bicycle to slow down?
( friction ) How can you overcome that force? ( by pedalling ) What
force can cause the bike to slow down or speed up? ( riding uphill,
gravity slows the bike; riding downhill, gravity speeds up the bike )
© Scholastic Canada Ltd., 2010
Assessment: Can students explain that gravity is acting on them
and on all objects on Earth? Are students able to identify different
forces that are in action when riding a bicycle and describe how
those forces affect movement of the bike?
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continued from page 2
opposite sides. ) What is tension and
can you give an example? ( Tension
is when an object is stretched from
opposite sides.) What is torque
and can you think of an example?
( Torque is when an object is turned
or rotated. ) Students may wish to
make a poster presentation with text
that defines compression, tension,
and torque.
How does tension act on
the bungee jumper? ( As
the bungee jumper falls, the
bungee cord is stretched
out, causing tension. When
the tension grows too taut,
the cord springs back,
pulling the bungee jumper
back up. ) How does friction act during a
bungee jump? ( Friction occurs between
the air rushing around the person’s body,
but friction does not slow the person down
much, as gravity is stronger. )
Assessment: Are students able
to describe why it is easier to walk
on a gravel path rather than on ice?
Can students define and provide at
least one example for each of these
three forces: tension, compression,
and torque?
PCSP Interactive Science Teacher’s Notes
Assessment: Can students describe how
gravity and tension act on a bungee jumper
during a jump?
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Focus:
Students explore the six simple machines
and how they become complex machines.
Activity Description: Students click through a series of screens, each
of which shows a simple machine and explains what each one does.
Learning Goals: Students explore the basic function of the six simple
machines.
Ask Students: What are the six simple machines? (inclined plane,
wedge, screw, lever, wheel and axle, and pulley) Choose two simple
machines. Can you describe what they do and give an example of each?
(Students may wish to make a poster with pictures or illustrations as
examples and add captions to explain what each simple machine does.
Encourage students to present more than two simple machines.)
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© Scholastic Canada Ltd., 2010
Activity Description: Students are
shown visuals of simple machines. Students play a
timed drag-and-drop activity in which they drag the
names for the correct simple machine into the blanks
of a sentence.
Learning Goals: Students extend their knowledge
of the six simple machines and learn examples of each.
Ask Students: Now that students have had greater
exposure to the six simple machines and examples of
each, ask them to define all six simple machines in
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PCSP Interactive Science Teacher’s Notes
Introduce students to the topic
with the video of a cyclist
pedalling a bicycle. Discuss the
video and any comments or
questions students may have.
Activity Description: Text and visual describe and
show that tongs are two levers joined together. Two
more visuals show how chopsticks and nutcrackers are
also two levers. Students click on the orange icon to
play a timed drag-and-drop activity.
Learning Goals: Students identify objects and
devices that are levers and wedges.
Ask Students: What is a lever? (a straight bar or rod
that rotates about a fixed place) What is a wedge? (an
object with one or more sloping sides that may end in a
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4
Activity Description: Students are asked
to design (not construct) a machine to raise
a flag in a complicated way—to use as many
of the six simple machines as possible in
their design. Students draw and label their
design to indicate which simple machines
are in the design. Students then click on the
orange icon to see an animation of simple
machines in action to raise the flag.
Learning Goals: Students follow
procedure steps and design a flag-raising
mechanism that uses many simple
machines to accomplish the task.
Ask Students: What simple machines
did you use in your design to raise the
flag? Can you describe how your machine
would work? (Ask students to show
the class their design and to describe
how each simple machine would trigger the next simple machine,
ultimately causing the flag to be raised.)
Assessment: Can students create a design to raise a flag that
would use several simple machines to accomplish the task? Can
students clearly explain how each simple machine functions in their
flag-raising design?
continued from page 4
Assessment: Are
students able to identify the
six simple machines? Can
they describe what at least
two simple machines do and
give examples of them?
© Scholastic Canada Ltd., 2010
continued from page 4
any format they choose: written, oral, or
illustrated.
Assessment: Are students able to
identify all six simple machines and
provide accurate definitions of each, along
with examples?
PCSP Interactive Science Teacher’s Notes
continued from page 4
sharp edge or point ) What are some examples of levers and wedges?
(Students may use examples from the activity and you may want to
challenge them to come up with other examples on their own.)
Assessment: Are students able to accurately identify a variety of
examples of levers and wedges?
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Focus:
Students explore
how machines do work.
Activity Description: Text describes that all machines need a source
of energy to work and that some machines use human energy—muscle
power—as their source of energy. Students click on the visuals, which
are examples of each simple machine. When clicked, each visual is
magnified, and students read text that describes how the simple machine
works. The examples of an inclined plane, wheel and axle, and lever, all
have orange icons with additional information. The example of the lever
also includes a drag-and-drop activity.
Learning Goals: To identify examples of simple machines that work
with human muscle power. Students also identify three different kinds of
levers and a variety of wheels and axles.
© Scholastic Canada Ltd., 2010
continued next page
Introduce students to the
topic with the video of
people using pulleys to
raise a sail on a sail boat.
Discuss the video and any
comments or questions
students may have.
Activity Description: Text describes how people use force with their bodies when playing sports. Text
also describes that people use simple machines when playing sports. Students click on the orange icon and
play a timed drag-and-drop activity, where they drag the correct labels of simple machines onto the sporting
equipment in the visual.
Learning Goal: Students explore simple machines in sporting equipment.
Ask Students: What is your favourite sport to play or to watch? What equipment is used in that sport?
What simple machine(s) is part of that equipment? (Students may need to use the Internet. This can help them
determine which simple machines are incorporated into the equipment.)
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PCSP Interactive Science Teacher’s Notes
6
Activity Description: Students follow procedure steps to construct a lever using a ruler,
some tape, and a pencil. Students use the pencil as the fulcrum at different points on the ruler
to gauge how much effort it takes to lift the weight taped at one end of the ruler. Students
then click on an orange icon and are asked, “How can one person lift three people on a
seesaw?” Text describes that if three people sit close to the fulcrum on one side of the seesaw,
and one person sits far from the fulcrum on the other side of the seesaw, then their weights
balance out, enabling the one person to “lift” the three people. Students see this concept in
action by dragging the three people in the animation towards the fulcrum of the seesaw.
Learning Goals: Students carry out an investigation to construct a lever and to determine
the effort it takes to life a load with the fulcrum in different positions.
Ask Students: What were your observations during the investigation? Which took the most
effort: lifting the load when the pencil was at the ¾ mark, ½ mark, or ¼ mark? How can one
person on one side of a seesaw lift three people on the other side of the seesaw? (Ask students
to explain in their own words how this is possible, using the text and animated activity to help
them.)
Assessment: Could students carry out the investigation procedure steps successfully,
recording and reporting their observations accurately? Are students able to explain how one
person can lift three people on a seesaw?
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Ask Students: What do all machines
need to do work? (a source of energy) What
source of energy is used by all the examples
of simple machines in the activity? (human
muscle power ) Can you draw diagrams
of the three kinds of levers? (This can be
difficult, so encourage students to refer to the
diagrams in the activity to help them.)
Assessment: Are students able to identify
that all machines need sources of power to
do work and that the examples in the activity
use human power? Are students able to
draw accurate diagrams of the three kinds of
levers?
continued from page 6
© Scholastic Canada Ltd., 2010
Assessment: Are students able
to identify the simple machines
found in the sporting equipment in
the activity? Can students identify
the simple machines found in the
sporting equipment of their favourite
sports?
PCSP Interactive Science Teacher’s Notes
7
Focus:
Students explore forces that
affect structures and how people design
structures.
Activity Description: Text identifies three main functions of humanmade structures. Text describes what it means for a human-made structure to
support and gives two examples of structures that support. Students click the
orange “continue” button two more times to learn what it means for a humanmade structure to surround and span, with examples given for each. On the
screen that describes how structures span, students click an orange icon to
play a timed drag-and-drop activity.
Learning Goals:Students identify and explore the three main functions of
human-made structures: to support, span, or surround.
continued next page
Activity Description: Text
describes how natural forces
in deserts, such as extreme
temperature shifts or wind, affect
natural structures such as rock.
Students click the orange “continue”
button and read that tropical regions
have different natural forces that
affect structures. Students then
click on the orange icon. They play
a timed multiple choice activity in
which they are presented with visuals
of natural structures that have been
affected by a force.
© Scholastic Canada Ltd., 2010
Learning Goal: Students
explore the forces that affect
natural structures in two natural
environments. Students identify the
forces that affected three specific natural
structures.
Ask Students: What kinds of forces
can affect natural structures in a desert?
And how are the structures affected? (the
rise and fall of temperature causes rock
to expand and contract, which weakens
the rock; wind can blow sand causing
sandstorms, which blasts the surface off
of rock) What kinds of forces can affect
structures in a tropical environment?
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PCSP Interactive Science Teacher’s Notes
Introduce students to the
topic with the video of a
tsunami rushing into a hotel
resort courtyard. Discuss the
video and any comments
or questions students may
have.
Activity Description: Students play a timed drag-and-drop word
scramble activity in which they unscramble words of different kinds of
structures.
Learning Goal: Students identify structures that are made with
different materials.
Ask Students: Make a list of the structures in the activity. What is
the purpose of each structure? What materials are they made from?
How are the materials suitable to the purpose of each structure?
(Students may wish to describe their ideas orally rather than writing
them down.)
Assessment: Are students able to identify how the materials are
suitable to the purpose of each structure?
8
Activity Description: Students follow procedure steps to test the strength of two different
design shapes (pyramid and cube shapes). Students then click the orange icon near the Think
question. Students drag and drop blocks first to form a pyramid shape and then to form a
cuboid shape. They are asked to predict which shape is the strongest. They click the orange
“continue” button to find out if their prediction was correct.
Learning Goal: Students test two design shapes to determine which is stronger.
Ask Students: All student groups compare their test results: Which shape was strongest,
the cuboid or pyramid shape? (Students’ results may vary, but they will find out during the
drag-and-drop activity that the pyramid shape is
strongest.) Ask while students are doing the dragand-drop activity: Which shape is strongest, the
pyramid or cuboid? Can you explain why? ( The
pyramid because each block in the pyramid is
supported by four blocks below.)
Assessment: Are students able to follow the
procedure steps accurately to build and test two
design shapes? Can students correctly identify
which design shape is strongest and explain why?
continued from page 8
Ask Students: What are the three main
functions of human-made structures? (to
support, span, or surround) Choose three
human-made structures in the classroom.
What is the main function of each of those
structures? (e.g., a desk supports, elastic
bands span, a hat surrounds)
Assessment: Are students able to identify
the three main functions of human-made
structures? Are students able to complete the
drag-and-drop activity correctly? Can students
successfully identify objects in the classroom
as having one of the three main functions?
© Scholastic Canada Ltd., 2010
continued from page 8
And how are the structures affected? ( Humidity causes structures to rust or rot. Salt spray, strong
wind, and rain can damage or destroy structures.) Can you find examples of natural structures on the
Internet? What forces affected these structures?
Assessment: Are students able to identify and describe the kinds of forces that affect structures
in desert or tropical environments? Can they explain how structures are affected by these forces?
Are students able to identify forces that affected the structures in the activity? Can they successfully
research other natural structures and identify which forces affected them?
PCSP Interactive Science Teacher’s Notes
9
Focus:
Students explore the dangers of forces and
how safety equipment can protect people from forces.
Activity Description: Text describes the importance of safety equipment, when
playing sports in the water, travelling in a car, riding a bicycle, and skateboarding.
Learning Goals: To identify important safety equipment in particular situations
and why the equipment is important.
Ask Students: What safety equipment is important when playing around water,
travelling in a car, riding a bicycle, or skateboarding? (Encourage students to explain
why in each instance. Students can use the detailed information from the “Think”
screens for guidance.)
Assessment: Are students able to describe different pieces of safety equipment and
why they are important to our safety—how they help protect us?
© Scholastic Canada Ltd., 2010
Activity Description: Text describes reasons why
driving at higher speeds leads to increased risk of
accident and/or injury. Students click on the orange
icon. They play a timed drag-and-drop activity about
automobile safety inventions.
Learning Goals: Students identify the reasons for
increased risk of high-speed driving. Students also
identify the correct time of the invention of automobile
safety features.
Introduce students
to the topic with
the video of an
automobile crash
test with crash test
dummies. Discuss
the video and
any comments or
questions students
may have.
Activity Description: Text describes the
difference between protective and preventive safety
equipment. Students then click on the orange icon
and play a timed drag-and-drop activity.
Learning Goals: Students learn about the
difference between protective and preventive safety
equipment and identify examples of each.
Ask Students: Why does driving at a higher speed
increase the risk of accident and injury? ( you require a
greater distance to stop the vehicle; less time available
Ask Students: What is the purpose of protective
safety equipment? ( It protects the body from
forces.) What is the purpose of preventive safety
equipment? ( It warns people of danger and to
prevent them getting into accidents.) Can you
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PCSP Interactive Science Teacher’s Notes
10
Activity Description: Students examine an illustration of a neighbourhood street scene and
identify all the potential accidents they think could happen. Students then write a letter to the
boy on the skateboard. In the letter, students describe to the boy why he should wear safety
equipment. In their letter, students also identify what forces could hurt the boy and to explain
how safety equipment can protect the boy from those forces. Students then click on the orange
icon. They are shown the same street scene. They click on orange icons to read what is unsafe
in the picture and why.
Learning Goals: Students identify what activities are potentially unsafe in a street. Students
describe why it is important to wear safety equipment when skateboarding with reference to
specific forces that impact a person’s body.
Ask Students: What accidents do you think could happen in the picture? (Students can
write down their ideas or make suggestions during a class
discussion. Record students’ ideas during class discussion
and see how they match up against what is identified as
unsafe in the second part of the activity.) What did you say
to the boy in your letter? What kinds of safety equipment
did you suggest he use and why?
Assessment: Were students able to identify the possible
accidents and unsafe situations shown in the illustration?
Did students write a clear letter to the boy in sentence and
paragraph form? In their letters, were they able to identify
specific pieces of safety equipment he should wear and
why? Did students make reference to how specific forces
could hurt the boy and how safety equipment can help
protect against these forces?
continued from page 10
© Scholastic Canada Ltd., 2010
continued from page 10
think of other examples of protective and preventive
safety equipment? (Students can describe other examples,
create a collage of images, or they can create a computer
slideshow of images.)
Assessment: Are students able to describe the difference
between protective and preventive safety equipment? Can
they identify examples of safety equipment either verbally
or in a visual presentation?
PCSP Interactive Science Teacher’s Notes
to react to hit the brakes before impact; the faster
a vehicle moves, the harder it will hit in an impact)
How do the car features in the activity help protect
people when they’re driving? (air bags cushion
people during an impact; seat belts help hold a
person’s body in place; side airbags help protect and
cushion people from impacts from the side of the car;
high-level brake lights make it easier for other drivers
to see when you brake, increasing the chances that
they will brake before hitting your car; safety-glass
windows stop small pieces of glass from flying into a
person’s body on impact )
Assessment: Are students able to identify why
higher-speed driving increases risk of accident and
injury? Can students provide explanations of how
each automobile feature in the timeline increases
safety?
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