Name of Investigation - 1st Law of Motion - Inertia

Physics with Toys student name ______________ 

Name of Investigation - 1 st Law of Motion - Inertia 

Scientific Principles Studied: 

• Laws of Motion 

1 st Law (Law of Inertia) – An object at rest stays at rest unless acted upon by a 

force. 

2 nd Law – An object moves in the same direction as its force. 

3 rd Law – To every action there is always an equal and opposite reaction. Forces 

happen in pairs. 

Vocabulary: 

Inertia – the tendency of an object to stay at rest unless an outside force acts upon it. 

Objects resist changes in motion. 

Activities: 

• Stack of Blocks 

• Tablecloth 

• Chair with Books 

• Eggs – raw egg & hard boiled egg 

• Marble and Card Trick 

• Soda Cans and a Dollar Bill 

Do each activity. Then write up a summary of what you observed and an explanation of 

WHY it worked. Give me detailed answers. You MUST use your vocabulary! 

Stack of Blocks 

Stack 5 blocks on top of each other. With a fast motion, take a small hammer and knock 

out the bottom. Explain what happened.

Tablecloth 

Jerk the tablecloth quickly from the bottom of the pan. Explain what happened. 

Stack of Blocks 

Put a stack of books in the seat of a chair that is on rollers. (like the teacher's chair) Push 

the chair and stop suddenly. Explain what happened. 

Chair with Books 

Put a stack of books in the seat of a chair that is on rollers. (like the teacher's chair) Push 

the chair and stop suddenly. Explain what happened.

Eggs – raw egg & hard boiled egg 

Spin a hardboiled egg on a hard surface. While it is spinning, touch it for a second. 

Observe. Now spin a raw egg. While it is spinning, touch it for a second. Observe. 

Describe what happened. Why did this happen? 

Marble and Card Trick 

Flick the card quickly and then describe what happened.

Soda Bottle and Dollar Bill 

Pull the paper out quickly and describe what happened. 

Questions to answer: 

1. Why does the blood rush from your head to your feet when riding on a descending 

elevator, which suddenly stops? 

_________________________________________________________________________ 

2. You’re trying to use a brand new bottle of ketchup and the ketchup won’t come out. To 

dislodge the ketchup from the bottom of the bottle, you turn the bottle upside down, 

thrust downward at a high speed and then abruptly halt. Why does this work?

_________________________________________________________________________ 

3. Why is putting headrests in cars a way to prevent whiplash injuries during rear-end 

collisions? 

_________________________________________________________________________ 

Parent Interview Outline 

I. Big Ideas we studied 

A. 1 st Law of Motion 

B. Inertia 

II Explain each demonstration

Science Parent Interview 

Student name _______________________________________ date_________________ 

Parent’s signature _________________________________________ 

Directions: 

Take home your notes about your completed experiment / demonstration. Tell your 

parent or guardian about your activity and be SURE to use the vocabulary that you 

learned. Then, interview that person by asking these questions: 

1. What scientific principle did you learn about in this activity? What was the purpose 

of this activity? 

2. Which experiment / activity did you like the best and why? 

3. What were some of the vocabulary words that I used? 

4. What are at LEAST 2 examples if inertia that we haven’t studied? (Think of things 

in the real world – at your house, on the sports field, at school, at work, etc.) 

5. Who are some people or what are some careers that you can think of that can be 

connected to this scientific principle?


Name of Investigation - 2 nd Law of Motion 

Big Idea – MOTION 



1 st Law (Law of Inertia) – An object at rest stays at rest unless acted upon by a 

force. An object in motion stays in motion unless acted upon by a force. 

2 nd Law – An object moves in the same direction as its force. 

It accelerates in the direction that you push/pull it. 

Acceleration is directly proportional to the force. 

If you push twice as hard, it accelerates twice as much. 

Acceleration is inversely proportional to the mass of the object. 

If it has twice the mass, it accelerates half as much. 

Force = Mass x Acceleration 

F=MA 

3 rd Law – To every action there is always an equal and opposite reaction. Forces 

happen in pairs. 

Vocabulary: 

Force 

Acceleration –speeding up of an object 

Mass – volume of an object 

Velocity – speed of an object 

Air Resistance – air causes something light to resist the force of gravity 

Which is heavier – bowling ball or a soccer ball? 

So, if you drop both balls from the roof of the school, which would hit the ground first? 

A. An object moves in the same direction as its force. 

It accelerates in the direction that you push/pull it.

We know that gravity accelerates all objects at the same rate. Gravity pulls on you and me 

and the chair and your car with the same RATE OF FORCE. 

So, gravity (force) will pull on both the bowling ball and the soccer ball with the same 

amount of (equal) force. So, both balls will accelerate at the same speed. ANSWER: The 

balls will hit at the same time. Surprise! 

Go outside and hold a full bottle of water and a half-full bottle of water from the top of the 

slide. Drop both bottles at the same time. What happens? 

1. Explain why this happened. 

____________________________________________________________________ 

So, if the 2 nd Law of Motion is true, why don’t a feather and a soccer ball hit at the same 

time? Because of Air Resistance. The feather is so light that air helps the feather to resist 

the force of gravity.

B. Acceleration is DIRECTLY proportional to the force. 


If you are pushing on an object causing it to accelerate and then you push it three times 

harder, then the object will accelerate three times faster. 

*Push my chair that has wheels on it and observe the movement. 

*Push my chair twice as hard as you did before and observe the movement. 

WHY did the chair move further the 2 nd time? 

Now take out ONE of the black balls in the baggie. Push it gently and watch how far it 

goes. Then push THE SAME BALL harder and watch how far it goes. Write down 

what happened and WHY it happened. 

C. Acceleration is INVERSELY proportional to the mass of the object. 


If you push equally on two objects and one object has 5 times more MASS than the other, 

the heavier object will accelerate 1/5 the acceleration of the other. 

Now take both black balls out of the baggie. One ball is heavy and one ball is light. Put a 

ball in each hand and at the same time, roll them out of your hands. 

Which ball went the farthest distance? _________________ 

Which ball went the shortest distance? _________________ 

Why?

D. FORCE 

Now let’s talk about FORCE. Mass changes things. The bowling ball & the soccer ball 

have different masses. They may hit the ground at the same time when dropped because 

they have the same equal amount of force pulling on them, but which ball will 

HIT THE GROUND with the greatest amount of FORCE– the bowling ball or the soccer 

ball? 

The _______________________ weighs the most because it has more mass. 

Therefore, the ____________________ would hit with the greatest amount of force. 

PHYSICS EXPLAINS KARATE! 

Could you break 3 bricks in half with just your hand? Not me! But a karate master could! 

He uses Newton’s 2nd Law - Force = Mass x Acceleration. 

The karate master trains for years to focus on using his entire body’s MASS and 

ACCELERATES that mass to create enough FORCE to break 3 bricks. Acceleration is the 

Key! 


F=MA 

Mass 

FORCE = Human Hand & Forearm X 

.75kg 

FORCE = 3550 N of Force 

Acceleration 

50 m/s

Now let’s look at a train and a bullet. Which has the most mass – a train locomotive or a 

bullet? So, we naturally think the train, being the biggest and heaviest, would cause the 

most damage. Right? 

BUT, when we accelerate ONE mass and not the other, things change. 


F=MA 

TRAIN BULLET 

Mass = 5000 lbs Mass = ½ lb 

Acceleration = 30 mph Acceleration = 30 mph 

Force = 5000 x 30 = 150,000 N Force = ½ x 30 = 15 N 

Going the same speed, which object would have the most force? ________________ 

Change the ACCERATION of the bullet and which object would have the most force? 

_________________________ 

TRAIN BULLET 

Mass = 5000 lbs Mass = ½ lbs 

Acceleration = 30 mph Acceleration = 500,000 mph 

Force = 5000 x 30 = 150,000 N Force = ½ x 500,000 = 250,000 N 

What changed the amount force? _________________________________

Fill in the blanks below with A,B,C,D. 

A. An object moves in the same direction as its force. 


B. Acceleration is directly proportional to the force. 


C. Acceleration is inversely proportional to the mass of the object. 


D. Force = Mass x Acceleration 

1 ________ You kick the soccer ball and it moves forward. 

2. _______ You hit a ball with a stick and it rolls 3 feet. Then you hit a ball as hard as 

you can with a baseball bat and it goes 20 feet. 

3. _______ You throw a dart at a window and it doesn’t break the window. You throw a 

baseball at the same speed and it does break the window. 

4. _______You push a car and a chair with wheels on it with the same amount of force. 

The car barely moves but the chair scoots across the room. 

5. _______You are playing soccer and you control the ball by gently kicking the ball 

down the field. 

6. _______You are playing soccer and you see an opportunity to make a goal so you kick 

as hard as you can and score! 

7. ______ You gently throw a dart at a target. It bounces off. The you speed up your 

throw causing more force and the dart sticks into the target. 

8. Why does the 2 nd Law of Motion explain how a tiny little bullet can go through a 

wooden door causing a hole and a bigger bowling ball doesn’t go through the door?

9. Why is it that if you are on the 20-yard line of a football field and you throw the 

football toward the uprights you can’t make a field goal? But, if you KICK the 

football you can make a field goal? 

10. Why is a Slinky is a good demonstration of an object moving in the same 

direction of its force? 


I. Big Ideas we studied - MOTION 

A. 2 nd t Law of Motion 

1. An object moves in the same direction as its force. 


2. Acceleration is directly proportional to the force. 


3. Acceleration is inversely proportional to the mass of the object. 


4. Force = Mass x Acceleration 

B. Vocabulary - Force; Mass; Acceleration 

II Explain each demonstration




Directions: 




1. What are the 4 parts of the 2 nd Law of Motion? 

2. Why do a ½ bottle of water a a full bottle of water hit the ground at the same time? 

3. Why does the 2 nd Law of Motion explain how a tiny little bullet can cause more 

damage than say a bigger bowling ball? 


5. Why does a Slinky demonstrate the 2 nd Law of Motion?


Name of Investigation - 3 rd Law of Motion 


• 3 rd Law – To every action there is always an equal and opposite reaction. 

Force happens in pairs. 

• Transfer of energy 

Vocabulary: 

Kinetic energy 

Action 

Reaction 

Transfer of energy 

Activities: 

• Pennies 

• Clacker 

What do you think will happen to the pennies when you bump a penny into the line of 

pennies? 

Hypothesis 

Conclusion


1. Flick a penny so that it rolls into the row of pennies. Write down what you observe. 

Why do you think this happened? 

_________________________________________________________________________ 

2. Try flicking the penny harder and softer. What happens to the end penny? 

3. If you have seen the row of pennies move just a little bit, do you think this little bit of 

movement is necessary in order to pass on the force of the first penny? Explain your 

thoughts. 

4. Now ask a friend to hold down one of the coins (just lightly not hard) in the row of 

pennies but not the one at the very end. Try flicking the coin again. What happens? 

5. Now try flicking two identical coins against the row to see what happens. What 

happened?

6. Now try flicking 4 identical coins against 3 marbles to see what happens. What 

happened? WHY did this happen? 

7. The first penny and the last penny moved. Explain how energy caused this to happen. 

8. Explain how Clackers are a good demonstration of Newton’s 3 rd Law of Motion. 

9. What do you call it when force/energy is passed through the middle pennies to the end? 

_____________________________________________________________________ 

10. What would happen if you flicked a penny to pennies 

lined up in a “V” shape? Test your theory. 

______________________________________________ 

______________________________________________

_____________________________________________ 

11. Now put your pennies in a circular pattern like this: 

Describe what you think will happen. Which 

Pennies will move? Why did this happen? 

___________________________________________________ 

___________________________________________________ 

___________________________________________________ 

___________________________________________________ 

12. Here’s the ACTION. Now, what’s the opposite and equal REACTION? 

Action: Action: 

Reaction: Reaction: 

Student Assessment 

Directions: 

Use your notes about all three Laws of Motion. Create a “talking” puppet to tell 

about what you learned. Be sure to elaborate and give lots of details because this is 

your TEST to see what you have learned. If your puppet doesn’t talk about all the 

things you learned and use the vocabulary you learned, I’ll assume you DIDN’T 

LEARN ANYTHING! 

Your puppet must tell about these things: 

1. All three Laws of Motion. 

2. Explain an experiment / activity that demonstrated each law. 

3. Use some of the vocabulary. 

4. Have your puppet give some other examples of all Laws of Motion.

Newton’s 3 rd Law of Motion 

To every action there is always an 

equal and opposite reaction. 

Force happens in pairs. 

Kissing 

Forces in opposite directions!

Physics With Toys student name ___________________ 

Name of Investigation – Balloon Pump 

Big Idea – Air 

Vocabulary 

Rubber gaskets Piston nozzle 

O-ring gasket Piston rod valves Air pressure 

1. Blow up a balloon with your mouth. Blow and stop and blow and stop. What happens to the 

balloon when you stop? What causes the air from leaving the balloon? Observe carefully and 

describe what you see. 

2. Blow up a balloon with a bicycle pump. Watch the size of the balloon very carefully as you pump 

– both the upstroke and the down stroke. What happens when you pull back on the pump? What 

happens when you push down on the pump? Observe carefully and describe what you see. . 

3. Blow up a balloon with a balloon pump. Watch the size of the balloon– both the upstroke and the 

down stroke. What happens when you pull back on the pump? What happens when you push 

down on the pump? Observe carefully and describe what you see.

4. How are the two pumps different? 

Now undo the balloon pump. 

1. Look at the top and bottom caps. What purpose do you think those holes have? 

2. Look at the gasket in the bottom cap. Try pumping the pump and watch the gasket. Does it 

move? What makes it move? What is happening when it moves? 

3. Now put the bottom of the pump against your cheek and try to pump it. Can you do it? 

4. What’s the purpose of the gasket moving? 

5. Now look at the gasket in the top of the cap. Try pumping the pump and watch the gasket. Does 

it move? What makes it move? What is happening when it moves? 

6. Take off one of the gaskets and try to pump up a balloon. Does it work the same way? What 

made the difference?

7. What do you think is the purpose of the greased O-gasket? 

Hypothesis: 

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Questions 

1. What is the biggest complication of any tool that uses air pressure? 

2. Why is blowing up a balloon with a balloon pump more efficient than blowing up a 

Homework 

balloon with a bicycle pump? 

Study the heart as a pump and compare its valves and chambers to the valves and chambers of 

the balloon pump. What mechanism stops the flow of blood? What would be the “piston” of 

the heart? What would be the “pressure” that causes the flow? What would be the 

“piston rod” of the heart?




Directions: 




1. How is a balloon pump different from a bicycle pump? 

2. How does the air pressure change when the piston rod is pulled to the top of the pump? 


4. What is a gasket and how is it used in the balloon pump?


Name of Investigation – Catapult Gun (“Chicken Chucker”) 

Big Idea – Force 

Vocabulary 

Kinetic energy U-shaped spring 

Elastic Potential energy Levers 

Thermal energy 

Conversion of energy 

Air Resistance - friction with air 

Anomaly – something that doesn’t follow the pattern of data 

Purpose: 

*To investigate how a catapult gun works and to discover the use of a U-shaped spring. 

*To demonstrate the relationship between: 

the mass of an object, the speed of an object, and the distance traveled. 

*Use the transparencies to show the inner workings of the catapult gun. 

1. The catapult gun stores __________________ _____________________ 

___________ in its U-shaped spring. 

2. As the launching tray springs forward, the energy from the spring is transferred to the 

tray and its projectile. This means the elastic potential energy is converts to 

______________________ energy. 

3. Now the projectile and tray have kinetic energy but when the tray STOPS in the 

upright position the tray’s kinetic energy is converted to ___________________ 

energy. (Clap your hands to feel this energy.)

Speed determines distance 

When the potential energy of the spring is converted to kinetic energy of the launching tray, 

the projectile with the larger mass (heaviest) will have the less speed of the tray. 

Lightweight mass = fast speed = longer distance 

Heavier mass = slower speed = shorter distance 

Hypothesis 

Which projectile (see chart on next page) will land farthest from the Catapult Gun when 

fired? 

__________________________________________________________________________ 

__________________________________________________________________________ 

Conduct a scientific experiment in groups of four. 

Student Jobs 

Shooter – hold the gun and fire and load the gun from a collection of projectiles 

Viewer – look at the gun sideways to make sure it is parallel with the top & end of table 

AND measure distances and record data 

Marker –mark the landing spot with tape (not where the projectile ended up) 

Make this a “fair” experiment: 

• Angle at which gun is held is the same 

• Height from which the projectile is launched is the same 

• Conditions of the environment (wind) is the same 

Have Shooter load the gun from a collection of projectiles &

hold the gun against a tabletop in a horizontal position (parallel to the floor). 

Have Viewer view the gun from the side to make sure the gun barrel stays horizontal & 

measure the distances of each projectile and record the data. 

Have Marker mark the landing spot of the projectile with a small piece of masking tape. 

Speed determines distance 

Lightweight mass = fast speed = longer distance 

Heavier mass = slower speed = shorter distance 

* To measure mass of objects, measure 10 objects and then divide by 10. This will give you 

the weight of just one object. 

Projectile Weight/Mass 

of 

object 

Chicken 

Metal Screw 

Screw w/ 1 

bolt 

Screw w/ 2 

bolts 

Screw w/ 3 

bolts 

Package 

Peanut 

Distance 

Traveled Trial 

#1 

Distance 


#2 

Distance 


#3 

Anomalous Data 

Sometimes data doesn’t fit with all the rest of the data. Something seems “odd.” 

Average 

Distance cm 

1. What is the anomaly in this experiment? ____________________________________ 

2. Why is this data an anomaly? 

3. What causes this anomaly?




Directions: 




1. What is air resistance? What are some examples of things that would have air 

resistance if thrown through the air? 

2. What is a “U- spring” and what kind of energy does it have when the spring is 

RELEASED? 


4. What is an anomaly and what was the anomaly in this activity?


Name of Investigation - Center of Gravity 

BIG IDEA - Balance 

Vocabulary: 

Center of gravity 

Stability 

Triangulation 

Equilibrium – two forces are equal 

Given a popsicle stick, try to balance it on your finger. 

Can’t do it? 

Sure you can! 

Now use wire and weights and see if you can do it. 

Why would the popsicle stick not balance by 

itself but did balance when you used the wire 

and weights? 

Stations: go to each station and follow the directions at the station or on your worksheet. 

• Finding the Center of Gravity 

• The Human Body Eagle Balance 

• United States Map Clown Balance 

• Fork and Spoon Balance Belt Balance 

• Hammer and Ruler Wooden Man Balance 

Do each activity. Then write up a summary of what you observed and an explanation of 

WHY it worked. Give me detailed answers. You MUST use your vocabulary! 

The Human Body 

1. Place a cup in front of your toes.. 

2. Stand against the door with your heels and shoulders touching. 

3. Without bending your knees, pick up the cup without falling forwards. 

When you stand up straight, the center of gravity is about where your belling button is (but 

inside of you). You can stand up because the center of gravity is directly above your feet. 

Your weight above your belling button is the same as the weight below your belly button, 

so the weight is equal on either side of your center of gravity. You're balanced. 

But, when you bend down to pick up an object, you shift the distribution of your weight. 

The center of gravity is the same place - directly above your feet - but the POINT of the 

center of gravity is different because you have shifted your weight. (Now it's about where 

your chest is) Now half of your weight is in front of you and the other half is in back of 

you. Notice that your behind is NOT over your feet anymore. It sticks out because you 

have shifted your weight in order to balance.

Now, if you stand against the door and try to pick up an object without bending your 

knees, you can't do it. Hold on to the doorknob and bend down. Now your weight is NOT 

distributed equally. All your weight is in front of you and nothing is behind you. 

This is you standing This triangle represents This is you bending against the 

Straight up and down. you bending down touching door. Weight distribution is 

Weight distribution your toes.Weight distribution different. All on one side of Cen 

Is equal on both sides Is equal on both sides 

weight equally distributed 

More weight on this 

side of your Center of 

Gravity pulls you 

down. 

1. What makes it impossible to pick up the cup if you are standing against the wall? 

2. Why do we tend to fall forward when bending from the wall? 

3. Where is your center of gravity when you are standing up straight against the door? 

4. Where is your center of gravity when you are bending (not against the door) to get the 

cup?

Finding the Center of Gravity (Kit) – follow directions at the station. 

Once you’ve found the center of gravity for each shape, try to balance the shape on the 

stand found in the station. Be sure to keep your shapes so you can show your parents! 

Finding the Center of Gravity of your own irregular shape. 

• Draw your own design on card stock and cut it out. Punch out 3 holes in 3 corners. 

• To find the center of gravity, suspend the shape from each of its corners on the peg. 

• Hang the weighted fishing line on the peg. 

• When the fishing line has settled in position, take a ruler and draw the line of the 

thread straight down across the card. 

• Next, suspend the shape by another corner. Draw a line. 

• The center of gravity of the irregular shape is where the two diagonals cross each 

other. 

• Now try to balance your shape on the sharpened stick found in the station! 

Where is the center of gravity for the “L” shape? Place the edges of rulers along the 

diagonals to find the center of gravity for this shape.

United States Map 

Use the “Hanging Pole” to find the center of gravity of the map. In what state do you find 

the map’s center of gravity? 

# _____ name __________________ 

Fork & Spoon Balance 

Draw what you see at 

this station. Bird’s eye view 

1. Is the fork and spoon “balancing 

act” balanced in the exact center 

of the matchstick? 

2. What is the purpose of the 

handles of the fork and spoon 

when it is balanced on the match? 

3. Draw the exact point of the center of gravity 

in this whole balanced system.

Hammer and Ruler 

Draw what you see at 

this station. Side view 

1. Why would this not 

work if the handle was hollow 

instead of made of metal? 

2. Draw the exact point of the center of gravity 

in this whole balanced system. 

Eagle Balance 

If you carved this eagle out of wood in a FLAT form, the eagle would not balance. Any 

point on a flat surface should weigh the same, right? 

Feel the weight on the eagle on the head, tail, and tip of the wings. Do they feel the same? 

Now explain what makes the eagle balance on its beak.

Draw the triangulation of the eagle. 

Clown Balance 

1. Look at the center of gravity on the girl clown and then the boy clown. Is the center 

of gravity the same on each clown? 

2. How is the weight distribution different on the clowns? 

3. What is the purpose of the weights> 

Belt Balance 

The Belt Balance uses a toy from Colonial Days (1700s). Children would use their belts 

(or rope) to amaze their parents with their balancing ability. This will not work if you use 

a stiff belt. 

Try to balance my belt. Why do you think a stiff belt would not work?

Wooden Man Balance 

Explain why this works. 


1. You are at the circus and an acrobat is riding a white horse. He is going to pick up his 

Partner. Where will he put her as he rides the horse and why that particular spot? 

_________________________________________________________________________

2. Many racecars are built low to the ground. Explain (using your vocabulary) the benefit 

of building low to the ground. 

_________________________________________________________________________ 


I. Big Ideas we studied - BALANCE 

A.Center of Gravity 

II Explain each demonstration 

• Finding the Center of Gravity Wooden Man Balance 

• The Human Body Eagle Balance 

• Clown Balance Hammer and Ruler 

• Fork Balance Belt Balance 

• United States Map




Directions: 






2. Which station did you like the best and why? 


4. Since I have explained how the center of gravity works, tell me how the clown and 

the wooden man can balance.


Name of Investigation – Drinking Bird / Handboiler 

Big Idea – Motion 

Vocabulary 

Pressure evaporation = cooling 

Heat energy heat engine 

Mechanical energy boiling points of liquids 

Transfer of energy temperature 

States of matter – liquid, solid, gas 

Have you ever heard of a steam engine? 

Old trains and boats were first powered by steam engines. 

Well, the Handboiler and Drinking Bird act as simple heat engines. 

Handboiler Hypothesis 

What makes the Handboiler work? 

Do all liquids heat up at the same rate? 

Water – 212 F (100 C) 

Ethel alcohol – 80 C 

Methelene chloride – 

1. When you put the Handboiler in your hand, what gets transferred to the liquid inside 

the handboiler? ___________________

2. What happens to air when it is heated? ___________________________________ 

3. So what causes the liquid in the handboiler to rise? 

4. What causes the liquid in the handboiler to heat up? 

Drinking Bird 

Now that you understand what makes the liquid rise in the Handboiler, let’s take a look at 

the Drinking Bird. The rising of the liquid works the same way, but …….. 

Hypothesis : What makes the bird drink – bob up and down? 

Rub alcohol on the back of your hand. What 2 things happen? 

________________________________ and __________________________________ 

• Play with the bird with a dry head. Write down your observations. 

• Now wet the head. What happens? Write down your observations.

1. Hold the bottom of the bird with your warm hand. Does the bird dip more 

frequently? 

2. Fan the fuzzy head. How does this affect the dipping frequency? 

3. Remove the cup of water. Does the bird continue to dip? 

4. Place hot water in the cup. How does this effect the dipping action? Why? 

5. Place ice water in the cup. How does this effect the dipping action? Why? 

6. What ways could you INCREASE the rate of bobbing? 

7. What ways could you DECREASE the rate of bobbing? 

8. Where is the energy for the dipping coming from? 

9. Is the center of gravity important to this toy? Why or why not? 

10. Could the bird bob up and down without felt on the beak and head? Why or why not?

Count the number of bobs per minute under various conditions and graph the results. 

Heat lamp on bird 

Conditions # of bobs per minute 

Humidifier blowing on bird 

Just in regular room temperature 

9 

8 

7 

6 

5 

4 

3 

2 

1 

# of bobs HEAT HUMIDITY ROOM TEMPERATURE 

Assessment – fill in the blanks 

The Drinking Bird uses _______________________ and ____________________ to move 

the fluid in its body. When the fluid moves, it changes the center of ___________________ 

and makes the bird tip. The toy drinking bird operates by the changing 

_____________________________ of the methelene chloride inside its body and by the 

_____________________________ of the water from the outside surface of its head. The 

lower body contains liquid methelene chloride, which has a lower ___________________ 

________________________ than water. This causes the liquid to ____________ rapidly. 

As its temperature increases gas is formed. This creates increased ___________________

inside the lower chamber. The pressure pushes the liquid up the tube (____________ rises, 

you know). When there is more liquid in the top part of the bird, the bird becomes 

unbalanced and dips its head into the glass of water. When the ___________(material) on 

the head and beak absorbs the water, the liquid begins to cool. This cooling causes the 

pressure in the head area to become ___________________ (higher / lower). As the water 

evaporates, the liquid becomes ________________ and the pressure changes. This allows 

the liquid to return to the lower chamber of the bird. Each dip of the bird wets the felt 

surface of the beak and head and the cycle is repeated. 

This bird is a simple ______________ _______________. The bird takes _____________ 

from the room (or hand or lamp) into the lower chamber and changes the heat into 

__________________________________ (potential / mechanical) energy just like a steam 

engine does. It is this kind of energy that causes the bird to “work.” 

Evaporation = _______________________ 

The temperature difference of the bird is primarily a result of cooling by 

________________________________. The ____________________(faster/slower) the 

evaporation, the slower the rate of bobbing.


Name of Investigation - Fortune Telling Fish 


• Scientific Method of Inquiry 

Vocabulary: 

Hygroscopic 

Cellophane 

Take the Fortune Telling Fish out of the plastic bag and place the fish in the palm of your 

hand. Observe what happens. Return the fish to the plastic bag and once again place the 

fish (inside the bag) in the palm of your hand. Observe what happens. 

What do you think causes the fish to move? 

Think. What could be reasons for the difference in the behavior of the fish INSIDE and 

OUTSIDE the bag? 

Hypothesis: 

Conclusion:

Now test your hypothesis: 

Write down your observations in the chart below. Put headings in the empty columns that 

would support your ideas for deciding what you are testing to see if that could be the 

reason for the movement of the fish. What are you testing? Heat? Wind? Light? 

Fish in Hand Fish in the Bag Fish On Heated 

Surface 

Fish on Cool Surface 

Fish on Moist Surface 

Fish on Static Electric 

Surface (move balloon 

on head)

What made the fish move? 

The cellophane fish is HYGROSCOPIC. “Hygro” means water and “scopic” 

means to view or to find. Hygroscopic means to find water. The fish absorbs 

the water from the sweat glands in your hand. The more you sweat, the more 

moisture in your hand and the more the fish moves. 

The Fortune Telling Fish curls, twists, and bends in the palm of your hand 

because the cellophane absorbs moisture from your hand. As the side of the 

fish toward your hand absorbs moistures, the paper begins to swell (like a 

flattened sponge swells when it gets wet.) This causes the ends of the Fish to 

curl up, away from your hand. The lightness of cellophane makes it very 

susceptible to air currents, which adds to the effect as the Fish seemingly 

dances in your hand. 

This type of movement does not occur when the Fish is inside the plastic bag. 

The plastic bag presents a barrier that prevents the absorptions of water from 

your palm by the cellophane. As a result, the fish does not move. 

Fortune Telling Fish Interview Outline 


A. Scientific Method of Inquiry 

Hypothesis; Design a test; Observation; Collect data 

Conclusion based on results of data 

II Explain what your ideas were when you tested your fish for the cause of movement. 

A. Look at chart 

B. Explain what your ideas where 

C. Explain HOW you ran your test 

III Explain what caused the fish to move? 

A. Sweat Glands - moisture 

B. Hygroscopic


Fortune Telling Fish 



Directions: 






2. What part of my experiment / activity did you like the best and why? 


4. What were the steps in the Scientific Method?


Name of Investigation – Marshmallow Vacuum 

Big Idea – Pressure 

Vocabulary 

Colloid – a gas inside a solid (marshmallow, whipping cream, shaving cream, ivory soap) 

Boyle’s Law – volume varies inversely with pressure 

volume increases pressure decreases 

pressure increases volume decreases 

states of matter – solid, liquid, gas 

air pressure 

volume 

• Blow up a balloon so that it fills less than half the chamber. 

• Using a ruler, draw a line 1 cm long on the balloon. 

• Put the balloon in the chamber. Use the vacuum pump to remove as much air from 

the chamber as you can. 

• Observe the balloon. What do you observe about its size? 

• Use the ruler to measure the length of the line you drew (without removing the 

balloon form the chamber.) How long is it now? ___________cm 

• Press on the side of the stopper to let the air back in. Describe what you observe. 

Hypothesis 

What made the balloon act this way?

Answer: 

A balloon grows bigger because of the air you blow into it. The air that you blow into the 

balloon pushes out on the balloon walls. You are increasing air and the air pressure 

inside the balloon. 

There is also air on the outside of the balloon pushing in. When you remove some of the 

outside air (that’s air inside the chamber), you have changed the pressure on the inside and 

outside of the balloon. It is easier for the inside air to push the balloon walls outward 

because there is more pressure on the inside of the balloon than there is on the outside of the 

balloon and the balloon expands. 

Decreased pressure. 

Increased pressure 

Marshmallows 

Now place fresh large marshmallows inside the vacuum pump. What will happen to the 

marshmallows?

1. Place the cap and plunger on top of the vacuum pump. Pull the plunger 

repeatedly. The plunger will take air (and thus air pressure) out of the chamber. 

So will pressure increase or decrease?_________________________________ 

2. What happened to the marshmallows? 

3. Compare the marshmallows inside the chamber to a marshmallow from a regular 

marshmallow from the bag. Describe the difference. 

4. Why did this happen to the marshmallow in the chamber? 

5. Now release the vacuum seal and allow air back into the chamber. Will the 

pressure increase or decrease? _____________________________________ 

6. Predict what will happen when the vacuum seal is released. 

7. Describe the marshmallow now. 

Shaving Cream 

Now put another colloid into the vacuum pump. Squirt shaving cream into the chamber and 

repeat the procedure as you did with the marshmallows. 

Hypothesis 

What do you think will happen to the shaving cream when you decrease the air pressure?

What do you think will happen to the shaving cream when you increase the air pressure? 

Fill in the Blanks 

A marshmallow is an example of a ______________________ because it is a gas inside 

a solid. When you pump the air out of the chamber, the air pressure inside the chamber 

is ________________________(increased / decreased) and the 

______________(volume / mass) of the marshmallow___________________(increases / 

decreases). The weight and mass of the marshmallow remains the same, but the 

_____________________________ changes. 

When the vacuum seal is released, air pressure returns to the chamber, thus pressure is 

________________________(increased / decreased). So the volume of the 

marshmallow is ________________________(increased / decreased). The 

marshmallow appears shrunken because some of the air that was inside the marshmallow 

escaped when the pressure was decreased. 

Questions 

1. Pretend you put a marshmallow inside a steel can and took it into space with you. 

What would happen if you opened the can inside the Space Shuttle?

2. What would happen if you opened the can while you were outside the shuttle on a 

space walk? 

3. What would happen if you opened the can while on a deep-sea dive at a depth of 

1,000 feet? 

4. You drive into the mountains for a picnic. While unpacking for the picnic, you 

discover that the bag of potato chips you brought has blown up like a balloon. 

What happened? 

5. You go on a trip to Hawaii. In your bag, you pack a half-full battle of shampoo. 

Your bag gets tossed into the cargo hold of the jet so that the bottle is upside 

down. During the flight, the pressure in the cargo hold is much lower than it was 

on the ground. What will happen to your shampoo? 

6. What would happen if the bottle of shampoo were completely full?


Name of Investigation - Monkey on a Highwire 


• Conversion of Energy 


Vocabulary: 

Potential Energy Orthogonal Energy - perpendicular motion 

Kinetic Energy Rotational Motion 

Perpendicular Linear Motion 

The motion of the monkey is 

perpendicular to the “wire” it is 

attached to. This is Orthogonal 

motion. 

When you squeeze at 

the top of the toy, 

the wooden slats The monkey moves around the wire. 

move in a horizontal It “rotates” around the wire. 

fashion away from each 

other. This is 

Linear Motion. 

This is Rotational Motion. 

When you squeeze at 

the bottom of the toy, 

the wooden slats move 

in a horizontal fashion 

toward each other. This 

is Linear Motion.

Questions to answer 

1. What happens to the top of the wooden slats when you squeeze the bottom of the 

toy? 

2. How does the monkey move when the toy is squeezed? 

3. What happens to the string at the top when the toy is squeezed? (give details) 

4. Do you think when stringing the string through the hands of the money the toymaker 

originally strung the strung to be straight and each strand parallel to the other or the 

strands were twisted? 

5. Would the string being straight or twisted be important to making this toy work? 

Why or why not? 

6. Turn the monkey upside-down and try to make him move. What happens? 

7. Now while holding the toy upside-down, observe the string. Is it straight or twisted?

8. So, did the toymaker string the toy to be twisted or not? 

9. Would the toy work if the monkey’s hands only had one hoe for the string to go 

through? Why or why not? 

10. Which of Newton’s Laws does this toy demonstrate? 

11. This toy converts kinetic energy: linear motion to orthogonal motion. Explain this 

conversion of energy. 

12. Explain how the direction of the force was change? (What makes the toy change 

direction of the force?) 

13. Where (2 places) on the toy do you see Orthogonal Energy- perpendicular motion?

1. DRAW the mechanism that makes this toy work and explain it. 

Explanation of Mechanism:



A. Potential Energy 

B. Kinetic Energy 

C. Rotational Motion 

D. Linear Motion 

E. Orthogonal Energy- perpendicular motion 

F. Laws of Motion 

II Mechanism that converted energy 

A. Muscle power 

B. Middle part of toy




Directions: 






2. What caused the monkey to rotate? 

3. From what I’ve told you about this demonstration, explain Orthogonal Energy - 

perpendicular motion. 


5. Which of Newton’s Laws of Motion does this toy demonstrate?

Physics with Toys Rubric 

Student name _____________________________________ 

Homeroom Teacher _________________________________ 

Rubric low High 

1. I identified the purpose of each demonstration 1 2 3 4 5 

2. Saw the effect of toys and looked for a cause 1 2 3 4 5 

3. I completed in-depth thought when developing 1 2 3 4 5 

my hypothesis. 

4. I wrote complete sentences in my Hypothesis 1 2 3 4 5 

and Conclusion. 

5. I saw connections of how physics works in 1 2 3 4 5 

the real world 

6. I identified types of energy used in toys: 1 2 3 4 5 

chemical, mechanical, heat, sound, light, 

kinetic, potential 

7. I observered carefully and collected data 1 2 3 4 5 

8. I was neat with my work. 1 2 3 4 5 

9. I kept up with my work and did not waste time. 1 2 3 4 5 

10. I conducted a Parent Interview and returned it. 1 2 3 4 5 

Teacher Comments:


Name of Investigation - Push ‘n Go Cars 

BIG IDEA: POWER 


• Conversion of Energy 

• Simple Machines 


Vocabulary: 

Potential Energy gear rack and pinion spring 

Kinetic Energy compress drive train 

Newton’s Laws of Motion friction axle 

Hypothesis: 

Conclusion: 

Questions to Answer: 

1. What device stored the POTENTIAL energy?_______________________________ 

2. Which of Newton’s Laws did the Push ‘n Go toy NOT FOLLOW?

3. Explain how the direction of the force was changed? (What inside the toy makes the 

direction of the force change?) 

4. How many gears were inside the toy? 

5. In what direction did the last gear make the wheels turn? 

6. In the gear demonstration, what happens when a little 8-toothed gear pushed the big 

24-toothed gear? (Explain about ratio and the direction of the gears.) 

7. Since the rack (“unfolded gear laid flat”) causes the axle to turn while the rider is 

being pushed up, why doesn’t the same thing happen when the rider is being 

compressed? 

8. Does the distance the car travels depend on how far you push down on the little 

person? Explain

9. DRAW the mechanism that makes this toy work and explain it. 

Explanation of Mechanism:



A. Conversion of Energy : Potential – Kinetic 

B. Laws of Motion 

1. 

2. 

3. 

C. Simple Machines 

1. Gears – ratio/direction 

2. Rack 

3. Axles 

II Maechanism that converted energy 

A. Rack and pinion 

B. Gears 

C. Wiggle room 

III Explain why wheels don’t move when compressed down. 

A. Wiggle room a must


Name of Investigation – Water Gun 

Big Idea – Force 

Vocabulary 

Pressure 

Spring 

Piston 

Materials 

Balloon 

Water guns 

Fill a balloon with water. Don’t tie a knot in the balloon. Now squeeze the balloon. This 

squeeze puts pressure on the water and forces it out of the mouth of the balloon. 

1. Did the water go a long way? 

2. How could we change the mouth of the balloon to cause water to go farther? 

Now look at the water gun. This simple toy has complicated insides! It uses pressure 

to make it work! 

Hypothesis 

What causes the pressure inside the water gun to squirt the water? 

*now use transparencies to show parts

MYTH BUSTERS 

Here’s something to help you understand how the pin at the top works. The tv show, “Myth 

Busters” explains this when they “busted” the myth about the tailgate of a truck being down 

or up. 

The myth says that you can drive a farther distance on a tank of gas if the truck’s tailgate 

is down rather than if it was up.” ……..BUSTED! 

The reality is that if the tailgate is up, a small little “pillow” of air circulates round and 

round right behind the cab of the truck. This “pillow” keeps the air current flowing 

smoothly over the entire truck making it aerodynamic. 

If the tailgate is down, the flow of air flows over the cab of the truck, but because the 

“pillow” of air is not there, the air flows directly over the cab and straight DOWN. The air 

flow hits the bed of the truck. causing drag, which slows down the truck. The air then flows 

out of the truck bed. 

When the air falls down behind the cab, it pushes down on the truck bed and causes slight 

drag. Therefore, the drag causes the truck to use more gas so the truck travels a shorter 

distance if the tailgate is down. SURPRISE!

NOW, take that information to answer this question. 

1. What causes the top pin to stay in the dome part of the tubing? 

2. What would happen if the top pin was turned upside down and the ball part was at 

the bottom and the finger part was on top? 

3. Why would this happen? 

4. What is the purpose of the 2 small pins in the tubing? 

5. Your finger’s _____________________ transferred energy to the piston. 

6. When the piston is pushed in it causes _______________________ on the water 

because two thing things can’t take up the same space. 

7. When the piston moves back into its original position it sucks up water into the 

bottom of the tubing. What makes the piston return to its original position?

HOW A WATER GUN WORKS: 

Now look at the gun transparencies to see if your hypothesis is correct. 

When you squeeze the trigger you move the piston back into the gun. The piston puts 

pressure on the water already inside the chamber. Can two things take up the same space? 

No. So, the water has to go somewhere! Pressure is the force exerted on a surface. The 

pressurized water looks to find a way to escape. The escape route is up through the tubing 

and through the tiny hole at the end of the gun. Because the hole is so small, the water 

didn’t come out until great pressure was put on it. This greater pressure caused the water to 

squirt a long distance. 

But, what keeps water from being squeezed out both ends of the tubing? 

Tiny “PINS” -stems with balls on one end - plug the openings.

Educational Innovations 

362 Main Ave 

Norwalk, CT 06851 

203 229-0730 

Resources 

• Center of Gravity set 

• Balancing Birds 

• Dropper Poppers 

• Fortune Telling Fish (pkg of 144) 

• Astroblaster 

• Yellow Duck Walker 

Arbor Scientific 

P O Box 2750 

Ann Arbor, MI 48106 – 2750 

800 367-6695 

• Drinking Birds 

• Vacuum Pump Class Set 

Archee McPhee & Co 

P O Box 30852 

Seattle, WI 98113 

425 349-3009 

www.mcphee.com 

• Chicken Chuckers 

Homewood Toy and Hobby 

2830 South 18 th St. 

Homewood, AL 35209 

204 879-3986 

• 4 Push ‘n Go Cars 

NSTA 

1840 Wilson Blvd. 

Arlington, VA 22201-3000 

Books 

• Energy – Stop Faking It! 

• Forces and Motion – Stop Faking It

Martin Wood Products 

1385 River Annex Rd 

Cantonment, FL 32533 

850 968-9497 

• Acrobat Wood Toys 

Edmund Scientifics 

60 Pearce Ave 

Tonawanda, NY 14150-6711 

800 728-6999 

www.scientificsonline.com 

• 13 Handboilers 

• 1 Newton’s Cradle 

• 1 AstroJax 

Oriental Trading 

P O Box 2380 

Omaha, NE 68103-2308 

800 288-2269 

• Lobster Claws (doz) 

• 1 Neon Grip Squirt Buns (1/2 doz) 

The Joy of Toys 

www.terrificscience.org 

• Fortune Telling Fish 

• Handboiler 

• Color Changing Duck 

• Grow Dinos 

• Diving Sub 

• Mood Mud 

• Cartesian Diver 

OnlineScienceMall 

www.onlinesciencemall.com 

PO Box 725 

Birmingham, AL 35201 

205 853-2711 

GREAT SOURCE!!!!!




Directions: 

Take home your notes about your completed experiment / demonstration. Tell your parent or 

guardian about your activity and be SURE to use the vocabulary that you learned. Then, 

interview that person by asking these questions: 

1. What scientific principle did you learn about in this activity? What was the purpose of this 

activity? 

2. What part of my experiment / activity did you like the best and why? 


4. What are some careers that you can think of that can be connected to this scientific 

principle?

“Storey” Board 

Think back on all the Physics toys that we have looked at this year. List vocabulary and definitions. Then 

draw a toy in the boxes and write a few words that we learned while using that toy. 

List Vocabulary & definitions List Vocabulary & definitions List Vocabulary & definitions Draw a toy 

Draw a toy 

Draw a toy Draw a toy Draw a toy

Student Assessment: 

Create a “talking” puppet to tell about what you learned. 

Directions: 

Use your notes about all three Laws of Motion. Create a 

“talking” puppet to tell about what you learned. Be sure to 

elaborate and give lots of details because this is your TEST to see 

what you have learned. If your puppet doesn’t talk about all the 

things you learned and use the vocabulary you learned, I’ll assume 

you DIDN’T LEARN ANYTHING! 

Your puppet must tell about these things: 

1. All three Laws of Motion. 

2. Explain an experiment / activity that demonstrated each law. 

3. Use the vocabulary. 

4. Have your puppet give some other examples of all Laws of 

Motion.

Toy Fest I – Newton’s Laws 

Please play with these toys and decide which of Newton’s Laws of Motion apply to their 

behaviors. Under each Law WRITE THE LAW. Remember the 2 nd Law has 4 parts. 

Action/Reaction Moves in the direction of its force 

Action happens in pairs Acceleration is directly proportional to force 

Stays at rest unless acted upon by force Acceleration is inversely proportional to mass 

Stays in motion unless acted upon by force F= MA 

Transfer of energy Potential or Kinetic Energy 

Toy 

Dropper Poppers 

(look at what 

happens when it 

hits the floor.) 

AstroBlaster 

(watch the red 

ball at top) 

Walkers 

(you have to 

force it to move 

by pulling 

the ball down to 

get it started.) 

Ball 

(ONE throw/ 

ONE force – 

You are pushing 

it in one 

direction) 

Which Law of Motion? 

_______ Law 

______ Law 

_____ Law 


Dropping the popper is the 

______________________. 

Popping up is the 

______________________. 

Dropping the Blaster is the ________________. 

The top ball flying off is the 

________________________. 

What causes the ball to fly off? 

This is like which activity we did in 

class?_____________________ 

What is the force pulling down on the ball 

that makes the toy walk? 

_________________________ 

When you push the ball forward, it moves 

in what direction? 

___________________.

Toy Which Law of Motion? 

Silver Clacking 

Hanging Balls 

(desk accessory) 

(drop one ball 

and see what 

happens) 

Walking 

Duck 

(moving in one 

direction from top 

to bottom of ramp 

until it stops) 

Mug of Beads 

(pull the end of 

the beads in one 

direction to get 

it started.) 

Cinderella 

Top 

(spin and watch 

motion until it 

stops) 

Dropping 

Penguin 

Beanie Baby 

& Large Die 

at the same time & 

landing at 

same time 






Be sure to use your vocabulary to explain the 

action of the toys and why it works this way. 


class?_____________________ 

The force of ________________ makes 

the duck move down the ramp. 

Once you see the duck move, what kind 

of energy do you see? 

_______________________________ 

What is the force pulling down the beads? 

_______________________________ 

What stops the motion of the top? 

____________________________ 




class?_____________________

Kissing!! 

Pushing 

Blades of my 

Noah’s Ark in 

one direction 

Balloon Car 

(blow up 

balloon and let 

car go) 

Slinky 

(pull slinky 

down to get it 

started) 

Clacker 

(watch balls as 

they hit) 








The blades go in the direction of the 

________________________________. 






action of the toys and why it works this way.

Penny/Card/Cup 

(flick card and 

watch the 

penny) 

Raw Egg 

Spinning 

(touch egg as it 

spins) 







Which Law of Motion would be applied to these situations? 1 st , 2 nd , 3rd 

1. __________ The Tower of Terror at Disney World making blood rush to your head 

(like fast elevators) 

2. __________ a girl karate student who breaks a brick with her bare hand 

3. __________ two football players colliding with each other 

4. __________ keeping safe in a car accident by wearing a seat belt 

5. ___________ a baseball player catching a baseball in his glove 

6. __________ riding a bike and bumping into the curb. You go flying but bike stops. 

7. __________ playing soccer and controlling the ball by gently kicking the ball 

downfield

Name of Investigation - 1st Law of Motion - Inertia

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