SCIENCE PERFORMANCE TASK FOR QUARTER - 1

NEWTON'S LAW OF
MOTION
Newton's laws of motion
are three basic laws of
classical mechanics that
describe the relationship
between the motion of an
object and the forces
acting on it. These laws
can be paraphrased as
follows: A body remains at
rest, or in motion at a
constant speed in a
straight line, unless acted
upon by a force.

Submitted By: Christine

Michelle P. Macaraeg

Submitted To: Ms.

Rochelle D. Bondoc
SCIENCE OLYMPICS PLAN Science - 8
Science
Newton’s Science Fair Teacher

Page 0 of 7
 Newton’s Laws of Motion & Project
Sir Isaac Newton’s laws of motion form the basic principles of modern physics. When published in 1687,
the three laws were unique in that they used mathematical formulas to explain the natural world.

Newton’s Laws Defined

- Newton’s First Law of Motion, also known as the Law of Inertia, states that an object’s velocity will not
change unless it is acted on by an outside force.

This means that an object at rest will stay at rest until a force causes it to move.

Likewise, an object in motion will stay in motion until a force act on it and causes its velocity to change.

For further thought: Why do wheels and tops eventually stop spinning, without appearing to be touched
by a force?

Newton's First Law Activities

1. Ball Bounce Experiment
One way to demonstrate Newton's first law is by
observing a ball in motion. Head to your garage
and grab any type of ball you can find a
basketball, tennis ball, bouncy ball the more
varied the better. Then, have your student
execute this activity to observe the different
ways an object in motion reacts to outside
forces. Consider keeping track of hypotheses
and observations in a notebook!
Explain how the law came into the play?
As the ball bounces, it gains kinetic energy and
loses potential energy. Newton's third law states
that every action has an equal and opposite
reaction, and the coefficient of restitution
measures the ratio of final to initial speed after a
collision.
2. Marble Maze
An object in motion stays in motion, and one way to manipulate the way in which an object
moves is by constructing a marble maze. We like how easy this activity is to differentiate
depending on your student's level of understanding.
Explain how the law came into the play?
Your marble has little mass and doesn't require a lot of force to start moving it through the maze.
This is Newton's 2nd law. Finally, when the marble hits the walls of your maze, it bounces off the
walls. This is a demonstration of Newton's 3rd law as it shows that every action has an equal and
opposite reaction.

3. Quarter Catch
This activity will only cost 25 cents! The quarter catch
is another experiment that may become a favorite party
trick. Your student will place a quarter on their elbow
and practice moving quickly enough to catch it before it
falls, demonstrating inertia.
Explain how the law came into the play?
Newton's First Law of Motion states, “An object at rest
stays at rest and an object in motion stays in motion
unless acted upon by an outside force.” When you
move your elbow, the quarter wants to stay at rest for a split nanosecond before gravity takes
over and pulls it towards the ground.

1. Bernoulli's Activity
Although this activity is based on Bernoulli's principle, it
has a direct correlation to Newton's first law. Ask your
student to figure out what happens when the force of their
breath is applied to the ping pong ball and then when it is
taken away. This is a great closure activity that quickly
demonstrates the concept while making it fun!

Explain how the law came into the play?

Bernoulli's equation can be viewed as a conservation of
energy law for a flowing fluid. We saw that Bernoulli's
equation was the result of using the fact that any extra
kinetic or potential energy gained by a system of fluid is
caused by external work done on the system by another
non-viscous fluid.
Whack-a-Stack
Like a quick game of Jenga, the whack-a-stack activity
gives your student yet another example of Newton's first
law. All you need is a small stack of blocks or similar
objects and a pipe-like instrument to conduct this
experiment.
Explain how the law came into the play?
When the bottom block is knocked away by the
"whacker" force, the rest of the stack resists moving
horizontally along with it. This is due to a phenomenon
called inertia—a resistance to change in motion. Inertia
is the subject of Isaac Newton's first law of motion: An
object remains at rest, or in uniform motion in a straight
line, unless it's forced to change its state of motion by forces acting upon it.

Newton's Second Law Activities

Newton's second law of motion states that F = ma, or net force is equal to mass times
acceleration. A larger net force acting on an object causes a larger acceleration, and objects with
larger mass require more force to accelerate.

1. Marshmallow Puff Tube

To explore acceleration and unbalanced forces, grab a
marshmallow, some flour, a file folder, and a bit of tape.
We love that this can be a very simple demonstration of
Newton's second law or be pushed even further to
explore acceleration and friction.
Explain how the law came into the play?
While the marshmallow is in the tube, your blowing
increases the air pressure in the tube, creating a force on the marshmallow. If this
force is greater than the friction force, there's an unbalanced force on the
marshmallow. According to Newton's second law, F = ma, an unbalanced force
accelerates an object.

2. Egg Bungee
To conceptualize different types of energy at play, have your
student try this egg bungee experiment. You can use a range of
materials to look at the roles of potential and kinetic energy, but
don't forget the paper towels for a swift clean up!

Explain how the law came into the play?

Before the egg fell, it possessed gravitational potential energy
and no kinetic energy. At the end of the drop, the egg and rubber
band system now possess less gravitational potential energy, no
kinetic energy (it is not moving) and a lot of elastic potential
energy due to the stretched rubber bands. This illustrates the Law of Conservation of Energy.
Most of the initial gravitational potential energy transferred to elastic potential energy at the
bottom of its fall. Some energy also went to heat energy.

2. Crater Experiment
This crater experiment creates an excellent visual for
Newton's second law. The craters created by various
items will help you demonstrate how mass and
acceleration factor into an object's force. This is
another activity that will require some minor
cleanup, but placing a towel underneath your
experiment area can help.
Explain how the law came into the play?
Collect a rock and a wadded-up piece of paper.
Because gravity's acceleration is constant, all objects
fall at the same rate regardless of their mass. Test this
law by dropping both items simultaneously and
watching them fall at the same speed.
Newton's Third Law Activities
Newton's Third Law of Motion states that for every action, there is an equal and
opposite reaction. This means that when one object exerts a force on another
object, the second object also exerts an equal and opposite force on the first object.
These two forces are referred to as a force pair.
1. Popping Canister
We love this Alka-Seltzer activity! With a little prep,
this experiment can be a mess-free, interactive
experience with Newton's third law. This may take a
couple of practice rounds, but the demonstration
of equal and opposite reactions is well worth the
rehearsal.
Explain how the law came into the play?

The CO2 gas pushes against the lid of the canister until
there is so much pressure that the lid pops off. When the gas explodes downwards, it pushes the rocket in
the opposite direction, causing it to go up (Newton's Law of Motion).

2. Hero's Engine
To demonstrate Newton's third
law and introduce your student to rocketry
basics, try this Hero's Engine activity. This
activity can be done using different materials
depending on what you have at your disposal.
Try this pop can adaptation if you don't have a
plastic cup handy.
Explain how the law came into the play?
Hero's engine was a spinning copper sphere that was propelled by a thrust
produced by a jet of steam. The engine was an early demonstration of the action-
reaction principle (third law of motion) stated by Sir Isaac Newton 1,700 years
later.

3. Marble Momentum
You can demonstrate Newton's third law in
many ways using just marbles! This marble
experiment allows you to differentiate
according to your students' understanding
and interest. Keep pushing your
experimentation using a different number of
marbles or even different sizes, then push it
even further by using skateboards.
Explain how the law came into the play?
Newton's first law states that an object will
move at a constant velocity that is, in a straight line at a constant speed unless
acted upon by an outside force. This is, in other words, the principle of the
conservation of momentum.