fbpx

KidsKonnect

Force and Motion Facts & Worksheets

Force and motion are intimately related concepts. Force causes motion to accelerate, decelerate, change direction, or stop entirely.

Search for Worksheets

Worksheets /Science /Force and Motion Facts & Worksheets

Premium
Not ready to purchase a subscription? Click to download the free sample version   Download sample

Force and motion are intimately related concepts. Force causes motion to accelerate, decelerate, change direction, or stop entirely.

See the fact file below for more information on Force and Motion, or you can download our 29-page Force and Motion worksheet pack to utilize within the classroom or home environment.

Key Facts & Information

WHAT IS FORCE?

  • A force is a push or pull that an object experiences as a result of interacting with another object. Every time two things interact, a force is exerted on each of them. However, when the interaction stops, the force is no longer felt by the two objects. Only through interaction do forces actually exist.
  • Force is an external agent that has the power to alter a body’s resting or moving condition. It has a size and a movement. The direction of the force is referred to as the force’s direction, and the application of force is the place at which the force is applied.

TYPES OF FORCES

Contact Forces

Applied forces

  • Any force that is exerted on an object, whether by a person or another object, is referred to as an applied force. 

Normal forces

  • The support force that is applied to an object when it comes into touch with another stable object is known as the normal force.

Frictional forces

  • Friction is created as an object moves across a surface. The characteristics of the two interacting surfaces determine friction. Friction forces can be classified as either sliding or static.

Spring forces

  • Spring force is produced when a spring is crushed or stretched. A spring is an elastic metal structure that, when pulled or pressed, returns to its initial shape. 

Air Resistance force

  • When an object moves through the air, air resistance acts as a force. When a body is moving through the air, this force works in the opposite direction. A frictional force is applied to the moving body by air resistance. Air resistance causes a body’s speed to slow down as it moves.

Tension force

  • Tension force is a force that is communicated through a string, rope, cable, or wire when the item at the other end pulls it firmly. The wire or rope is subject to this force along its entire length.

Non-contact or Non Action at a Distance Forces

Gravitational force

  • The force that pulls something toward a tremendously enormous object like the earth, moon, or other body is known as gravity. By definition, this is the object’s weight. Every object on Earth is subject to gravity, which pulls objects downward and toward the Earth’s center.

Magnetic force

  • Magnetism is the term used to describe the force that draws an object to a magnet. North and south poles are found on every magnet. The attraction or repulsion that develops between electrically charged particles as a result of their motion is this force. 

Electrical force

  • The nucleus and electrons are drawn to one another by an electric force. An electric field is a term used to describe the area around a charge that is either positive or negative.

WHAT IS MOTION?

  • Motion is the change in an object’s position with respect to a system or reference point through time. 
  • It is a basic idea in physics and may be explained in terms of a number of different quantities, including distance, displacement, speed, velocity, and acceleration.
  • There are types of motion that can be used to characterize motion, this includes translational, rotational, circular, and oscillatory motion.
  • In contrast to rotational motion, which describes how an object moves around an axis or center of rotation, translational motion describes how an object moves in a straight path. 
  • On the other hand, oscillatory motion describes a consistent back-and-forth movement of an object; circular motion describes the movement of an object in a circular direction.

NEWTON’S LAWS OF MOTION

Law of Inertia

  • Inertia is the ability of large entities to resist changes in their state of motion. According to Newton’s first law of motion, an external force must be applied in order for an object to begin moving, stop moving, or change direction. 
  • Galileo Galilei first proposed the law of inertia for Earth’s horizontal motion, and René Descartes later generalized it. Although the fundamental premise and starting point of classical mechanics is the notion of inertia, the untrained eye finds it to be less than immediately clear. 

Law of Mass and Acceleration

  • The effects of an external force on a large body are described by Newton’s second law of motion. According to the second law of motion, a body’s force is equivalent to the product of its mass and acceleration.
  • One of the most significant laws in all of physics is Newton’s second law. F = ma, where F (force) and an (acceleration) are both vector values, can be used to represent a body whose mass m is constant. 
  • A body is accelerated according to the equation if there is a net force acting on it. On the other hand, if a body is not propelled, no net force is exerted on it.

Law of Action and Reaction 

  • According to Newton’s third law, when two bodies come into contact, they exert forces on one another that are equal in size and directed in the opposite direction. 
  • This law applies to bodies in uniform or rapid motion and is crucial for addressing problems of static equilibrium, where all forces are in balance. 

RELATION OF FORCE AND MOTION

  • In nature, force and motion are closely connected. We can state that the source of motion is force. If something is moving, we can infer that a force is acting on it or that a force previously acted on it to cause the motion. 
  • Forces are necessary to alter an object’s motion, and the strength and direction of the applied force affect the object’s subsequent acceleration. 
  • Newton’s laws of motion, which lay the groundwork for understanding how objects behave when they are moving, define the link between motion and force.
  • An object may accelerate when a force is applied, which indicates that the object’s speed or direction of motion changes. The object accelerates more quickly the more force is applied. 
  • On the other hand, if there is no external force pushing against an object, it will continue to move in that direction.
  • According to Newton’s second law of motion, which states that an object’s acceleration is directly proportional to the force exerted and inversely proportional to its mass, the link between force and motion can be quantitatively stated. 
  • A formula for this is F = ma, where F is the force, m is the object’s mass, and an is the acceleration.

Force and Motion Worksheets

This fantastic bundle includes everything you need to know about Force and Motion across 29 in-depth pages. These ready-to-use worksheets are perfect for teaching kids about Force and Motion. Force and motion are intimately related concepts. The force causes motion to accelerate, decelerate, change direction, or stop entirely.

Complete List of Included Worksheets

Below is a list of all the worksheets included in this document.

  1. Force and Motion Facts
  2. Everyday Force and Motion
  3. Effects of Force
  4. Contact Forces
  5. Non-Contact Forces
  6. The Law of Inertia
  7. The Law of Force and Acceleration
  8. The Law of Action and Reaction
  9. Force and Motion
  10. Force and Motion in Industry
  11. Quick Review

Frequently Asked Questions

What is force?

Force is a physical quantity that describes the interaction between objects and can cause them to accelerate, decelerate, or change direction. It is typically measured in units called Newtons (N) and is represented by vectors, which include magnitude and direction.

What is Newton’s first law of motion?

Newton’s first law of motion, also known as the law of inertia, states that an object at rest will remain at rest, and an object in motion will continue moving at a constant velocity in a straight line unless acted upon by an external force. In simpler terms, objects tend to resist changes in their motion.

What is Newton’s second law of motion?

Newton’s second law of motion states that the acceleration of an object is directly proportional to the net force applied to it and inversely proportional to its mass. Mathematically, it can be expressed as F = ma, where F represents the net force, m is the mass of the object, and a is the acceleration produced.

What is Newton’s third law of motion?

Newton’s third law of motion states that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. This means that whenever one object exerts a force on a second object, the second object exerts an equal and opposite force back on the first object. Forces always occur in pairs.

What is the difference between speed and velocity?

Speed refers to the rate at which an object covers a distance and is a scalar quantity, meaning it only has magnitude. Velocity, on the other hand, includes both speed and direction, making it a vector quantity. Velocity describes the rate at which an object changes its position in a specific direction.

Link/cite this page

If you reference any of the content on this page on your own website, please use the code below to cite this page as the original source.

Link will appear as Force and Motion Facts & Worksheets: https://kidskonnect.com - KidsKonnect, July 5, 2023

Use With Any Curriculum

These worksheets have been specifically designed for use with any international curriculum. You can use these worksheets as-is, or edit them using Google Slides to make them more specific to your own student ability levels and curriculum standards.

Related Resources