Friction resources

Task: Order wheels according to technological development, then answer questions about advantages and disadvantages of different wheels. Assessment focus: how wheels work.

Task: Answer questions about car tyres. Assessment focus: friction; air pressure.

Task: students, in small groups, discuss a concept cartoon about rolling cans, before making a prediction about which will roll further. Assessment focus: making predictions about friction.

Task: Discuss opinions, presented as a concept cartoon, about why a toy car rolled down a slope eventually stops and develop group explanation. Assessment focus: explanations

Task: Select cards to show how to control the variables of an investigation into the rolling distance of marbles on different surfaces. Assessment focus: controlling variables.

Students are provided with a diagram of a rocket showing the different stages. Students use this to answer four questions.

Task: Answer questions about making a bike go faster. Assessment focus: friction; gearing.

Students compare cars from different eras. They describe how different features of modern cars make them safer. The task assesses students' understanding of how technology can make cars faster and safer.

Task: select a card to show how to control the variables of an investigation into the rolling distance of marbles on different surfaces. Assessment focus: controlling variables.

Task: describe how different features of a racing car help it go fast. Assessment focus: technological responses to forces.

Task: Students answer questions about what will make mountain bike riders go faster. Assessment focus: Air resistance.

Students suggest why two girls of the same weight go down a slide at different speeds, and then identify the forces acting on the girls. The assessment focus is on the forces of gravity and friction.

Task: Complete a graph from data in a table, and answer two questions. Assessment focus: speed and stopping.

Task: students investigate the rolling distance of marbles on different surfaces. Assessment focus: processing information to answer a question.

Explain what affects the distance travelled by toy cars, and why they eventually stop. Assessment focus: science explanations using ideas about forces and energy.