What makes things move? part of MnSTEP Teaching Activity Collection:MnSTEP Activity Mini-collection
This activity is an inquiry approach to teaching what force is. Students will learn what push, pull, gravity, and friction are.

Investigating Motion: What Causes Objects to Move? part of MnSTEP Teaching Activity Collection:MnSTEP Activity Mini-collection
This activity is a structured inquiry into why objects move and why some objects move farther than others. Students will make predictions on how far an object will move when blown on, blow on the objects, measure the distances they moved and record their findings.

Projectile Motion and Gravity part of MnSTEP Teaching Activity Collection:MnSTEP Activity Mini-collection
This activity is a mini lab where students see the effects of gravity on objects falling from a resting state and objects projected out from the same level.

The First Law of Motion: The Tower of Coins part of MnSTEP Teaching Activity Collection:MnSTEP Activity Mini-collection
This activity will provide the students with an opportunity to use inquiry. This activity will also help them to begin to understand friction and inertia,.

Hot Wheelin' with Speed, Acceleration, and Data Graphs part of MnSTEP Teaching Activity Collection:MnSTEP Activity Mini-collection
This activity is a lab investigation where students observe, record, and gather data on the speed, acceleration, constant speed, and average speed of toy cars. This activity allows for futher investigation of speed, time, and distance of objects to calculate speed and acceleration.

Motion - Investigating Motion Graphs part of MnSTEP Teaching Activity Collection:MnSTEP Activity Mini-collection
In this activity students analyze the motion of a student walking across the room and predict, sketch, and test distance vs. time graphs and velocity vs. time graphs.

Physics Motion Activities for Second Grade part of MnSTEP Teaching Activity Collection:MnSTEP Activity Mini-collection
The activity consists of a story and two experiments demonstrating how push and pull can make objects move.

Investigation of Newtonian Forces on Plate Tectonics part of MnSTEP Teaching Activity Collection:MnSTEP Activity Mini-collection
This model-making activity gives students an opportunity visualize Newtonian forces acting on a single point as well as combined forces acting to produce synclines and anticlines in Earth's crust. Students will analyze models to interpret findings of plate movements.

Bridges, Building and Breaking part of MnSTEP Teaching Activity Collection:MnSTEP Activity Mini-collection
This activity s a student project to construct and test the load bearing capacity of a scale model bridge from toothpicks.

Investigating Motion: Understanding Frame of Reference part of MnSTEP Teaching Activity Collection:MnSTEP Activity Mini-collection
In this lab activity, students observe and describe motion from different frames of reference and measure the time for the motion. They analyze their findings and develop a working definition of "frame of reference".

Investigating Newton's 3rd Law: Coin Flick part of MnSTEP Teaching Activity Collection:MnSTEP Activity Mini-collection
This activity is a structured inquiry for students to observe how Newton's 3rd law of motion which states that to every action there must be an equal reaction. By flicking a set # of coin into a row of coins they will observe the force of the impact being passed along until the last coin flies off when no other coin prevents it from moving.

Identifying the force (push/pull) used to put sports equipment into motion part of MnSTEP Teaching Activity Collection:MnSTEP Activity Mini-collection
This activity is designed for a primary classroom (large area) investigation where students investigate sports equipment and decide what force; push or pull (twist) is used to put the object in motion. Students develop a method of recording the data colleted and can present the information gathered.

Investigating Motion: Calculating and Graphing Students Walking Speed part of MnSTEP Teaching Activity Collection:MnSTEP Activity Mini-collection
This activity is a field investigation where students gather data on their motion and how it compares to another person.

Catapults: controlled investigations part of MnSTEP Teaching Activity Collection:MnSTEP Activity Mini-collection
This activity is a controlled investigation of a catapult system.

Force and Motion: Gravity and Wind Resistance part of MnSTEP Teaching Activity Collection:MnSTEP Activity Mini-collection
The egg-drop activity is designed to help students develop a deeper understanding of the force created by wind resistance and how it interacts with the force due to Gravity. Students will note how surface area affects the resistance of a falling object as Gravity works on it. Students will record and share observations and questions regarding the experiment.

Investigating Motion: Paths of a marble part of MnSTEP Teaching Activity Collection:MnSTEP Activity Mini-collection
This inquiry based activity will help students discover that marbles move in a variety of ways and the path in which it starts to move can be changed.

The physics and engineering of a trebuchet part of MnSTEP Teaching Activity Collection:MnSTEP Activity Mini-collection
This activity is a hands on investigation in which students will construct, and launch a trebuchet.

Newton's Second: Having A Ball With Motion part of MnSTEP Teaching Activity Collection:MnSTEP Activity Mini-collection
This activity is a field investigation where students design and test a gravity ball launcher, record their observations, and share their findings in the large group setting.

Water Bottle Rockets- Understanding Energy part of MnSTEP Teaching Activity Collection:MnSTEP Activity Mini-collection
This lab activity is an exploration of Newton's Three Laws, forces and energy. Students will design, build, launch and analyze rocket data.

Investigating Friction: Investigate how the force of friction opposes motion. Learn how to describe and measure motion. Describe how force affects motion. List the three laws of motion. part of MnSTEP Teaching Activity Collection:MnSTEP Activity Mini-collection
This activity needs large linoleum, carpet and tar or asphalt space to race student constructed balloon powered cars. Students will learn that speed, velocity, and changes in velocity are the result of the action of forces on objects