Newton’s Laws of Motion Lesson Plan: Motion and Stability: Forces and Interactions

*Click to open and customize your own copy of the Newton’s Laws of Motion Lesson Plan. 

This lesson accompanies the BrainPOP topic Newton’s Laws of Motion, and supports the standard of interpreting and applying Newton’s three laws of motion. Students demonstrate understanding through a variety of projects.

Step 1: ACTIVATE PRIOR KNOWLEDGE

Place a ball on a surface where it has space to roll. Ask:

• What are some ways we can make the ball move?
• What will happen when I push the ball?
• What if I push it even harder?
• What will cause the ball to stop rolling?

Push the ball so it rolls and then comes to a stop. Ask:

• What forces acted on the ball?
• What can we determine about how forces act upon objects based on what you’ve observed? 

Step 2: BUILD KNOWLEDGE

• Read the description on the Newton’s Law of Motion topic page.  
• Play the Movie, pausing to check for understanding.
• Assign Related Reading. Have students read one of the following articles: “Theory,” or “Way Back When.” Partner them with someone who read a different article to share what they learned with each other.

Step 3: APPLY and ASSESS 

Assign  Newton’s Laws of Motion Challenge and Quiz, prompting students to apply essential literacy skills while demonstrating what they learned about this topic.

Step 4: DEEPEN and EXTEND

Students express what they learned about Newton’s Laws of Motion while practicing essential literacy skills with one or more of the following activities. Differentiate by assigning ones that meet individual student needs.

• Make-a-Movie: Choose a real-world example that showcases any of Newton’s laws of motion and document how it is applied. 
• Make-a-Map: Create a concept map identifying all of the forces at play when you are in a car and someone slams on the brakes. 
• Creative Coding: Code a sorting game where students sort examples of the three laws of motion. 

More to Explore 

Energy Skate Park: Explore conservation of energy by building tracks, ramps, and more for a skateboarder. 

Pendulum Lab: Play with one or two pendulums and discover which factors affect its swing. 

Teacher Support Resources:

• Pause Point Overview: Video tutorial showing how Pause Points actively engage students to stop, think, and express ideas. 
• Learning Activities Modifications: Strategies to meet ELL and other instructional and student needs.
• Learning Activities Support: Resources for best practices using BrainPOP.