What forces are acting on an object? 

J. Dewhirst, ​Grade 3  
This lesson will take about 55 minutes. Students will demonstrate and create a force interaction 
with the given materials and force values provided. After creating this example, each group will 
demonstrate their creation to the rest of the class, revealing many types of force interactions to 
the class. Students will experience net force, balanced forces, unbalanced forces, and how to 
sketch these interactions. After creating and demonstrating these interactions, students learning 
will be elaborated with the concept of unseen forces such as friction and gravity. 
 
NGSS targets:  
3-PS2-1. Plan and conduct an investigation to provide evidence of the effects of balanced
and unbalanced forces on the motion of an object. ​[Clarification Statement:
Examples could include an unbalanced force on one side of a ball can make it start
moving; and, balanced forces pushing on a box from both sides will not produce any
motion at all.] [​Assessment Boundary: Assessment is limited to one variable at a time:
number, size, or direction of forces. Assessment does not include quantitative force
size, only qualitative and relative. Assessment is limited to gravity being addressed as a
force that pulls objects down.​]

SEP: Planning and Carrying Out Investigations

● Plan and conduct an investigation collaboratively to produce data to serve as the basis for
evidence, using fair tests in which variables are controlled and the number of trials
considered.
DCI: PS2.A: Forces and Motion
● Each force acts on one particular object and has both strength and a direction. An object at
rest typically has multiple forces acting on it, but they add to give zero net force on the
object. Forces that do not sum to zero can cause changes in the object’s speed or direction of
motion.
DCI: PS2.B: Types of Interactions
● Objects in contact exert forces on each other

CCC: Cause and Effect

● Cause and effect relationships are routinely identified

Student Learning Objectives 

1. Students will investigate and demonstrate a push/pull force interaction with their given 
force arrow necklaces and applying the information to different scenarios in the 
classroom, including moving students on wheeled chairs, heavy books inside boxes, and 
other materials to explain overall net force with force direction and relative strength.  

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2. Students will sketch the force interactions occurring on the object after demonstrating the 
force interaction in groups and solve for net force by mathematical computation.  

Engage 
Students desks and chairs will be arranged in the classroom that will make an open central area 
for demonstrations. Ask for 3 volunteers. Have one volunteer sit on their wheely chair holding a 
rope in each hand. Ask the other 2 volunteers to both gently hold the other ends to the rope that 
the student in the wheely chair is holding. Place force value card necklaces around the student’s 
neck (“← 2 N”, “5 N →” and “object”). The student in the chair will wear the object necklace and 
the other students will wear the force values. Make sure the directions of the arrows are away 
from student in the chair, as this will be a pulling force example.  
 
Ask volunteers and students around the classroom what they think the numbers on the necklaces 
mean? Given this information on the necklaces, what do they think will happen to the student in 
the chair? Will this be a pull or push force? After answers are gathered and guided to the correct 
solution, tell the volunteers to act this out. Make sure to teach and confirm with students that they 
must pull gently to make sure not to hurt anyone or any chairs/materials. Tell students that we will 
be doing more examples like this, and if any students are not gentle, then this opportunity will be 
taken away immediately and we will use objects instead of students in the wheely chairs.  
 
In the demonstration, the student will roll towards the right side of the classroom, as 5 N is 
greater than 2 N. Call up two new volunteers, and repeat this example, except reverse the force 
cards, so that it is now pushing. Have students discuss what is different and demonstrate this new 
force interaction, this time pushing a cardboard box.  
 
After demonstrations, ask the students: Are both students on either side putting force on the 
student on the chair? Why is the student moving one way when both students are applying force? 
What would happen if the forces were the same on both sides? 

Explore 
Pass out materials and force card necklaces to students. Have the students work together to 
create the force interaction based on the values on their force cards and materials. Have 
students work in their table groups (4 students). Students will assemble their force interaction and 
practice as they will be demonstrating this in front of the class. 

This will be the different demonstrations and what will be on the force card necklaces: 

Group 1 BLUE: Pulling force example, student as “object” on wheely chair, “3 N right”, “4 N right”, 
and “5 N left”. 

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Group 2 PINK: Pushing example, cardboard box is the object. “3 N left”, “4 N left”, “1 N right” “2 N 
right”. 

Group 3 PURPLE: Pushing example, cardboard box is the object “7 N left, 1 N left”, “4 N right”, “4 
N right”. 

Group 4 PINK LINES: Pushing example, cardboard box is the object, “2 N left”, “2 N left”, “1 N 
left”, “6 N right” 

Group 5 GREEN: Pulling example, student in chair as “object”, “3 N right”, “2 N right”, “5 N left”. 

Group 6 YELLOW: Pulling example, student in chair as “object”, “1 N right”, “4 N right”, “1 N left”. 

Group PURPLE LINES: Pushing example, cardboard box is the object, “5 N left”, “2 N left”, “6 N 
right”, “4 N right”. 

Have students sketch a design of the force interaction they will be demonstrating on their 
worksheet. 

Explain 
Have the different table groups demonstrate their force interactions to the whole class. Correct 
students' mistakes in their demonstrations if incorrect by prompting questions. As the students 
demonstrate their examples, introduce and explain the concept of net force. Also, students will 
define and explain the idea of balanced and unbalanced forces as they appear in the 
demonstrations. Explain that in the demonstrations where the object does not move because 
there is balanced forces on each side, that the net force is zero. Have students discover that the 
net force is found by subtracting the different directional forces being applied on the object 
through exposing this in the demonstrations. Ask them which direction did the object move in the 
demonstration? Why? At what force was the object moving at? How do you know? 

After each demonstration, sketch with the students a picture of the force interaction that occurred 
on their worksheet in the chart. 

Elaborate 
Pull up a chair without wheels. Ask students if the same demonstration that was shown in the 
beginning of class was done on this chair instead of a wheely chair, would anything be different? 
Have students (the same volunteers as in the engage section) redemonstrate this on the chair 
without wheels? They will see that the chair is harder to move, and although they are pulling at 
the same force level, not as much movement is occurring. Ask students why this is different? The 

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student is the same weight right? And they are pulling at the same force levels? Is there another 
force acting on the chair differently now that on the wheely chair? This will lead students to the 
force of friction. The wheels caused the force of friction to be lesser than the chair that is rubbing 
against the carpet. 

If time allows, ask students to explain that gravity and how we know that gravity is another force 
that we can not see, yet still acts on objects. Explain how one’s weight is different on another 
planet due to the force of gravity pushing someone to the surface. 

Have students use the last open box in the chart of their worksheet to sketch the force 
interaction of the chair without wheels, including the direction and force of friction in the sketch. 

Evaluate 
Formative: Student will assemble a force interaction with the given materials and demonstrate 
this to the class. The teacher will guide learning and walk around as students attempt to make 
their force interaction based on the force values and materials given. 

Summative: Students will turn in their worksheets in which they sketched the force interaction 
examples that were taught and demonstrated today. The lesson will close with a recap and 
casual assessment as the teacher asks questions and students respond. 

Force Interactions 

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Sketch your force interaction demonstration here. Include the strength and 
direction of force on the object in your sketch: 

Demonstrations and Net Force: 

   
   
   
   
   
Net Force:  Net Force: 

   
   
   
   
   
Net Force:  Net Force: 

   
   
   
     
   
Net Force:  Net Force: 

   
 
 
 
 
Net Force: 

 
References

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The Physics Classroom Tutorial. (n.d.). Retrieved from

https://www.physicsclassroom.com/class/newtlaws/Lesson-2/Determining-the-Net-Force. 

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