Grade Levels: K-3

*Click to open and customize your own copy of the Pushes and Pulls Lesson Plan

This lesson accompanies the BrainPOP Jr. topic Pushes and Pulls, and supports the standard of comparing the effects of different strengths or different directions of pushes and pulls on the motion of an object. Students demonstrate understanding through a variety of projects.

Step 1: ACTIVATE PRIOR KNOWLEDGE

Place a tennis ball on a flat surface. Ask students:

  • How hard might I have to push the ball for it to move?
  • What else might make the ball travel further?

Push the ball on a variety of surfaces to test their predictions, and allow students to share observations. 

Step 2: BUILD KNOWLEDGE

  • Play the Pushes and Pulls movie.  
  • Click the pause button each time a question appears in Annie’s Notebook and discuss it as a class. Then play to see how Annie answers it. 

TIP: The pause button turns red to remind you to pause. 

Step 3: APPLY and ASSESS

Students take the Easy Quiz or Hard Quiz, demonstrating what they learned about the topic while applying essential literacy skills.

Step 4: DEEPEN and EXTEND

Students express what they learned about pushes and pulls while practicing essential literacy skills with one or more of the following activities. Differentiate by assigning ones that meet individual student or grade-level needs.

  • Draw About It: Draw items that the wind pushes easily.
  • Activity: Sort items as things that are usually pushed and things that are usually pulled.
  • Talk About It: Identify things that can be pushed, pulled, or both. 
  • Write About It: Moby pushes a red marble on a wood floor. He pushes a pink marble on a rug with the same force. Explain which marble goes further and why. 

More to Explore 

Forces Unit: Continue to build understanding around motion by exploring more BrainPOP Jr. topics.

Teacher Support Resources: