T E A C H E R S N O T E S

T E A C H E R S N O T E S Focus: Students explore forces: what they are and how they affect objects, people, and the environment. Learning Goals: Students will have opportunities to learn how to correctly use the terms forces, tension, compression, gravity, friction, distance, repel, static electricity, tsunami, fertile, geothermal water what forces are and what they do what gravity is that forces can cause an object to speed up, slow down, stop, and change direction what friction is what magnetic force is what static electricity is how natural forces harm and help us Discussion Prompts: What is a force? What does a force do? What is gravity? What does it do to objects? How can forces cause an object to speed up, slow down, or change direction? What is friction? What happens when the north and south poles of two magnets meet? What happens when the north and north or south and south poles meet? What are examples of natural forces? How do natural forces help and harm us? Assessment Prompts: Do students demonstrate, in their discussion and answers to questions, understanding of the science vocabulary used in the cards for this unit? Are students able to carry out the skills of scientific inquiry, following activity procedure steps safely and accurately, making observations when appropriate? Assess students responses during discussions. - Can students describe what a force is and what a force does? - Can students describe ways in which to change the shape, speed, or direction of an object? - Can students describe what gravity is and how it affects objects? - Can students explain what friction is and how it affects objects? - Can students describe what magnetic force is and what static electricity is? - Can students identify and describe some natural forces and how they can harm or help us? Links to PCSP Student book Spring Into Action: Card 1: see Lessons 1 3, 5, 13 Card 2: see Lessons 2 4, 11, 12, 14 Card 3: see Lessons 2 and 4 Card 4: see Lessons 6 10 Card 5: see Lesson 12

Focus: Students explore what forces are and what they do. Text describes to students that tension pulls or stretches objects and that compression squeezes or pushes an object. Pictures and captions provide one example each of how compression and tension each work on everyday objects. Students click the orange icon to play a timed drag-and-drop activity in which they drag a C or T onto pictures that show examples of compression or tension acting on everyday objects. learn simple definitions of tension and compression. Students identify when tension or compression are acting on everyday objects. Ask Students: What is tension? (a force that pulls or stretches objects) What is compression? (a force that pushes or squeezes objects) What objects Introduce students to the topic with the video of kids being pushed on swings. Discuss the video and any comments or questions students may have. Students are shown pictures of three objects (toys). They are asked if a push or pull will start the objects moving. Students click on each picture to find out which object requires a push, a pull, or both. Students then click the orange icon to play a timed drag-and-drop activity. identify when objects are pushed or pulled. Ask Students: What happens when a force is acting on an object? (a push or pull) What games do you play at recess? When you play those games are you pushing or pulling on objects, or both? Can you give examples? Ask students to identify specific actions in each game that would be either a push or a pull, for example, kicking a soccer ball is a push, but a player can also PCSP Interactive Science Teacher s Notes Students click on a series of boxes that provide examples of actions that start and stop an object, speed up or slow down an object, change the shape of an object, or change the direction of an object. identify examples of how objects move, stop, change shape or direction. Ask Students: What is one example of how you start an object moving? Suggest other examples of how you stop an object or change its direction or shape. (There are numerous examples students could use just from within their school life experience. For example, when they throw a ball, it begins moving. When they catch the ball, it stops moving. If they are playing with a volley ball, they can change its shape by squeezing it between their hands. If they are playing baseball, they never have to stop a ball to 2

continued from page 2 change its direction; by hitting a moving ball with a bat it changes direction. Encourage students to make pictures of their examples and to include a caption under each picture such as, When I kick a ball, it starts to move. ) Assessment: Can students identify examples of how to start and stop objects from moving and ways to change their shape and direction? continued from page 2 pull back on the ball to keep control of it. Assessment: Are students able to identify which forces exerted on objects are pushes or pulls? Are they able to identify examples of pushes and pulls from their life? Students follow procedure steps of an activity to find objects in the classroom that either bend or stretch, or neither bend nor stretch. Students create a chart to record their results. Students then click on the orange icon and play a timed activity. They are told that their hands can bend and stretch some objects. They are asked to click on each picture of an object that they think they can bend or stretch with their hands. Students then click on another orange icon and move to an activity called Changing Shape. They see six pictures of objects that can be bent, stretched, or twisted or a combination of those actions. Students click on the orange continue button and they are shown each picture individually. They are asked to identify how that object is being changed: Is it bent, stretched, twisted or a combination of those actions? They make identifications by dragging labels onto each picture. identify objects that can be bent or stretched, or neither. Students also identify objects whose shapes can be changed by twisting, bending, or stretching or a combination of these actions. Ask Students: How many objects in your chart can be bent or stretched? How many objects did you find that can be neither bent nor stretched? Compare your charts with other groups in the class. Did you come to the same conclusions about the same objects, or do you disagree about which objects can be bent or stretched, or which objects can be neither bent nor stretched? If you disagree, how can you find out who is correct? (Students could safely carry out a test to demonstrate why they believe the disputed object can be bent, stretched, or neither.) What is an example of an everyday object that can be twisted? (e.g., a pencil being turned in a small pencil sharpener) Assessment: Are students able to carry out the procedure steps safely, and can they accurately identify classroom objects that can be bent or stretched? Are they able to prepare a chart that accurately represents their findings? continued from page 2 in your life do compression and tension act on? (e.g., When students pull their shoe laces, they exert tension on the laces. Or when they pull up their socks, they exert tension on the sock, which stretches out the material. When students wear shoes or boots, they exert compression on the shoe or boot each time they take a step and push off the ground.) Assessment: Are students able to explain what the forces of tension and compression do to objects? Can students identify objects that are under tension or compression? PCSP Interactive Science Teacher s Notes 3

Focus: Students explore gravity, friction, and how forces can speed up, slow down, or change the direction of an object. Introduce students to the topic with the video of white water rafting. Discuss the video and any comments or questions students may have. Text describes that we can t move an object without touching it. However, some forces, in particular, gravity, can move objects from a distance. Gravity pulls on objects without directly touching them. Students then click on an orange icon. They click on the pictures to find out how gravity moves three specific objects. discover that people can only move objects by touching them, whereas gravity can move objects without touching them. Ask Students: Can you move a desk or chair without touching them? (Students have to touch a desk or chair to move them. Some students may point out that they could use a stick or a hook Text and images describe how four different toys are affected by forces. explore how toys are affected by forces. Ask Students: What causes a yo-yo to move and be a fun toy to use? (the force of pulling by gravity and by the person s hand) How do forces affect the other toys shown in the activity? Explain your ideas for each toy. What s your favourite toy that you play with? Can you describe how forces work on that toy? Draw a picture of the toy. Write one or two sentences under the picture to describe how forces work on the toy. Would the toy still be fun to use if there were no forces acting on it? Explain your ideas. Assessment: Are students able to describe how each toy in the activity is affected by forces? Can students identify their favourite toy and how it is affected by forces (orally or in pictures and words)? PCSP Interactive Science Teacher s Notes 4 Students play a timed activity, in which they answer a series of multiple-choice questions that focus on how to make vehicles go faster. Students then click on the orange icon and move through a series of animations to learn more about speed. explore different factors that affect how fast and how far a vehicle will travel. Ask Students: Which truck travelled farthest in each test? Ask students to identify the truck based on the specific physical differences of each test. In test 1, the truck going downhill travels farthest. In test 2, the truck with the small load travels farthest. In test 3, the truck with the large load going downhill travels farthest. In test 4, the truck with the small parachute travels farthest. Encourage students to suggest

continued from page 4 to push or pull the desk or chair. In this regard, they do not touch the desk and chair directly with their hands, but the tool they use becomes an extension of their body. They are not able to move the desk or chair without somehow physically manipulating them.) What are some other examples of objects you can move? How do you move them? If you hold a pencil above the floor and then let go of it, what will happen to the pencil? Why? (The pencil will fall to the floor, because gravity pulls it down.) Does gravity touch the pencil as it pulls the pencil to the floor? Explain your ideas. (No, gravity pulls on the pencil from a distance. Unlike people, gravity does not touch objects to make them move.) What are some examples of objects that gravity moves? (Everything is affected by gravity, but give students the opportunity to explain particular examples.) Assessment: Can students explain that people need to touch objects in order to move them? Can they describe that gravity works from a distance and moves objects without touching them? Are students able to identify objects that they can move by touching them? Can they identify objects that gravity moves from a distance? Students follow procedure steps to make two different-sized parachutes attached to toys. They conduct tests to determine which parachute-toy will land first. Students then click on the orange icon to watch an animation that recreates the test they carried out with their own parachute-toys. After the animation ends, a text box pops up to describe that the force of gravity pulls the parachute-toys towards the ground, and the force of air pushes up into the parachutes. Students learn that the big parachute takes longer to land. The larger parachute has a larger surface area, so a greater amount of air pushes up into the larger parachute. This causes it to slow down during its descent more than the smaller parachute. safely carry out the procedure steps of an investigation. Students explore the effects of the forces of gravity and air resistance on parachutes. Ask Students: What is the difference between the two parachutes that you made? (One is bigger and one is smaller. One has a larger surface area for air to push into.) Which parachute-toy hit the ground first during your test? Why did this happen? (Encourage students to conduct the test and answer this question in their own words prior to them reading the text box on the animation screen.) Assessment: Are students able to carry out the procedure steps correctly and safely? Can students describe why the smaller parachute hits the ground before the larger parachute? continued from page 4 reasons why each test ends how it does, though they may have difficulty describing the correct answers. For example, why does the truck with the small load travel farthest when both trucks are on level ground, but then the truck with the large load travels farthest when both trucks travel downhill?) Assessment: Are students able to identify the physical differences between trucks in each test? Can they suggest reasons why each test ends as it does? PCSP Interactive Science Teacher s Notes 5

Focus: Students explore friction. Introduce students to the topic with the video of a bowling ball rolling down a bowling alley lane. Discuss the video and any comments or questions students may have. Text describes that, in some cases, we want less friction for particular activities. Students click the spin button as many times as they wish, and the animated wheel lands on different numbers. Each number reveals an activity or situation that benefits from less friction. explore how less friction is beneficial to particular activities. Students click on pictures of objects that help us grip that is, help increase friction. explore the benefits of increased friction. Ask Students: Is friction stronger or weaker between two rough surfaces? (stronger) How does putting chains around truck tires increase friction? (The chains create a surface that is rougher, and the more rough the surface, the more friction increases.) Golf gloves have little bumps on them to help the golfer grip the golf club. If we took the bumps off the gloves, would friction increase or decrease? Why? (Friction would decrease, because the glove would become smoother. The glove would slide more easily on the club, reducing the grip of the glove.) Ask Students: What is friction? (Friction is a force that acts between two objects. It can change the speed or direction of objects or even cause them to stop.) What happens when you have less friction between objects? (They move more easily past each other; they can travel more quickly.) When would you want to have less friction? Can you give some examples? (Students can provide examples from the activity. Encourage them to expand upon those examples) What is a lubricant? (It is PCSP Interactive Science Teacher s Notes 6 Text describes that shoes with tread help stop someone from slipping. Then, in a timed drag-and-drop activity, students identify which shoes would grip the most and which would slip the most. Students then click on an orange icon to play a timed matching game about items that slip or grip. identify objects that are affected by greater or lesser amounts of friction. Ask Students: In the first activity, which shoe grips the most and which slips the most? Why? (The sole with the most tread grips the most. The sole with the smoothest surface slips the most, because it has no tread.) What is tread on the sole of a shoe? (Tread is the bumps on the sole of the shoe.) In the second activity, how does gripping or slipping help with

continued from page 4 usually a liquid, such as water or oil, which reduces friction and helps objects slide more easily.) What is the lubricant on a waterslide? (water) How does water help make a waterslide fun? (It makes the waterslide slippery and helps you travel down the slide quickly.) What would happen if there was no water on the waterslide? (You wouldn t slide down the slide very easily, and it would be very slow). Students may wish to draw two pictures to illustrate the differences made to friction with and without a lubricant. Assessment: Can students describe why less friction is sometimes useful in certain activities? Can they explain what a lubricant is? Are students able to demonstrate an understanding of how water affects a waterslide through pictures? Students follow procedure steps to carry out an investigation to find out how far a marble will roll on different surfaces. Students then click on an orange icon to watch an animation of the same test. investigate how a marble will roll on different surfaces, due to friction. Ask Students: On which surface did the marble travel the farthest distance? The shortest distance? What can you conclude from your results? How do different surfaces affect the friction between the marble and the surface? How does friction affect the distance that a marble travels? (smoother surfaces reduce friction, enabling the marble to travel a greater distance; surfaces that are more rough increase friction, which reduces the distance a marble can travel) Assessment: Are students able to carry out the investigation safely and record measurements accurately? Can students explain how different surfaces affect friction? Can they describe how increased or decreased friction affects the distance that a marble can travel? continued from page 4 Assessment: Do students demonstrate an understanding that rougher surfaces increase friction and thus reduce the slippage between two surfaces? continued from page 4 each activity that is shown? (e.g. Slip: The smooth bowling ball slips along the smooth alley so it can move smoothly and quickly to strike the pins. Grip: The hiking boot with spikes grips the snow and ice of the mountain to increase friction and reduce the chances of slipping.) Assessment: Can students identify which shoes have the most and least tread in the first activity? Can they explain how tread increases friction and helps to stop a person from slipping? In the second activity, are students able to identify reasons why gripping or slipping is beneficial to each activity that is shown? PCSP Interactive Science Teacher s Notes 7

Focus: Students explore magnetic force and static electricity. Students drag animated magnets towards each other. They drag north poles of two magnets towards each other and they drag the north and south poles of two magnets towards each other. identify that two north poles of a magnet repel each other, while the north and south poles of two magnets attract each other. Ask Students: What does the word repel mean? (to push an object Introduce students to the topic with the video of metal nails being attracted by a magnet. Discuss the video and any comments or questions students may have. Students play a timed dragand-drop activity. They are asked to drag objects into a balloon that a charged balloon would attract. Text describes that when a magnet attracts an object such as a paper clip, the paper clip attracts other paper clips. Students click on an orange icon and play a timed drag-and-drop activity. They are shown a series of pictures and are asked to drag them into the correct box: either magnets can pick up or magnets can t pick up. identify metallic and non-metallic objects that a magnet can and cannot pick up. Ask Students: Objects that can be picked up by a magnet in the activity share one thing in common. What is it? (They are all metallic objects.) Objects that cannot be picked up by a magnet in the activity share one thing in common. What is it? (They are all non-metallic.) What can you conclude from these two ideas? (magnets can pick up metallic objects but cannot pick up non-metallic objects.) Assessment: Can students identify that magnets pick up or attract metallic objects but do not attract non-metallic objects? PCSP Interactive Science Teacher s Notes identify objects that are attracted to a charged balloon. Ask Students: What is static electricity? (electricity that does not move) Can you see it? (no) Then how do you know it s there? (You can see its effects on objects.) Assessment: Are students able to identify the objects that would be attracted to a charged balloon? Can they describe what static electricity is and how they know it exists? 8

Students follow the steps of an activity to make an animal magnet. Students click on the orange icon to solve a series of word scrambles related to magnets. carry out procedure steps safely to make an animal magnet. Students solve a word scramble to identify terms related to magnets. Ask Students: What animal did you design for your magnet? Did the magnet stick to your fridge at home? What three words did you solve in the word scramble game? What are some other terms related to magnets that were not in the word scramble? (repel, north, south, force, distance) Assessment: Were students able to carry out the procedure steps safely to create an animal magnet they can use at home? Were they able to identify the scrambled terms in the timed activity? continued from page 8 PCSP Interactive Science Teacher s Notes away) What does the word attract mean? (to bring an object closer) What do the N and S stand for on magnets? (north and south) What happens when north and north meet in the activity? (The magnets push each other away; they repel each other.) What happens when north and south meet? (The magnets come closer together; they attract each other.) Assessment: Are students able to identify and describe how magnets behave when north and north meet and when north and south meet? 9

Focus: Students explore how natural forces harm and help us. Introduce students to the topic with the video of ocean waves crashing into a pier. Discuss the video and any comments or questions students may have. Text and visuals describe natural forces that can cause harm (flash floods, hailstones, volcanic eruptions, wildfires). identify natural forces that can cause harm. Ask Students: How can a flash flood cause harm? (A flash flood causes harm because of very fast-moving water.) How can hailstones cause harm? (They can hurt living things including people and crops as well as damage goods such as cars and buildings.) How can a wildfire cause harm? (They can destroy forests, buildings, towns and kill wildlife and people.) How can a volcanic eruption cause harm? (It can send ash and poisonous gas into the air. Fast-moving, hot lava can destroy living things and objects in its path.) Assessment: Are students able to identify and describe the ways in which natural forces cause harm to objects and living things? Text and an animation describe to students how lightning forms. From the animation, students click on an orange icon to engage in a timed activity about how to stay safe during a lightning strike. explore how lightning forms. Students identify correct ways to stay safe during a lightning strike. Ask Students: What are the steps that cause lightning to form? What are two things you can do to stay safe during a lightning strike? (sit in a car; crouch down) What are things you should not do during a lightning strike? (stand near or under a tree; stand near or in water; use the telephone) Assessment: Are students able to describe the main steps that cause lightning to form? Can students identify ways to stay safe in a lightning strike? PCSP Interactive Science Teacher s Notes 10 Students click on four orange buttons to find out how geothermal water helps people. Students then click on the orange icon to find out how other natural forces can help people. Learning Goals: Students explore how some natural forces can help people. Ask Students: What is geothermal water and how does it help people? (Geothermal water is water that is heated underground. Primarily, this water is used to generate electricity and to heat homes. It is also used recreationally when people soak in hot springs.) What are three other

continued from page 10 natural forces that help people? (floods, wildfires, volcanic eruptions students may remark on the fact that these forces are also very dangerous, but they should recognize that people and the environment benefit from the aftereffects of these forces. The after-effects help bring nutrients to soil, which help to regenerate the growth of forests, plants, and crops.) Assessment: Can students identify that some natural forces help people, even those that cause harm as well? Text describes what a tsunami is. Students are asked to design a tsunami safety sign. Before they do, ask students to gain more knowledge about tsunamis, their warning signs, and what to do if they are near an ocean and suspect a tsunami may strike. Students can find this knowledge first by clicking on the orange icon that sits on the picture of the ocean. Students then return to the main screen where they click the orange icon associated with the Think question. This timed drag-and-drop activity asks students to drag the correct captions onto the virtual tsunami warning sign. Students then click on one final orange icon. This next drag-and-drop activity asks students to drag five pictures onto the picture of the house. When the pictures are dragged into place, text boxes pop up to describe how to protect a house from a wildfire. explore tsunamis and develop their own tsunami safety sign. Students identify ways in which to protect a home from wildfire. Ask Students: What is a tsunami and what happens when one occurs? (A tsunami is a powerful ocean wave caused by an underwater earthquake or volcanic eruption. Just before a tsunami, the water at a beach drains away quickly and rushes back to the shore as a huge, powerful wave or series of waves.) Where do tsunamis occur? (in coastal areas of oceans, though they can also travel up rivers and streams near the coast) What are some warning signs of a tsunami, and how can you protect yourself? What are some ways to protect a home from wildfire? (You may wish to encourage some students to develop a safety sign for protecting a home from wildfire as an alternative to creating a tsunami safety sign.) Assessment: Are students able to describe a tsunami and a wildfire? Can they provide safety tips for both occurences? Are their safety signs correct and effective? PCSP Interactive Science Teacher s Notes 11