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Gravity in Action
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Explore the effects of gravity on a slowly falling object: a parachute you make out of plastic bags, string and stones.

Physics Tug of War
Learners set up books with rubber bands stretched between the books. When two identical books are stretched apart and released, they move back toward each other an equal distance.

Lifting with Levers!
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In this fun hands-on activity learners explore a simple machine: the lever. What happens to a load when you multiply the length of a lever? Find out here!

Soup Can Derby
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In this activity (on page 2 of PDF under GPS: Roller Coaster Design Activity), learners will use food cans of many different properties (sizes, shapes, and weights) and set two cans on their sides at

Watch It Fly
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Learners observe projectile motion by launching wooden balls off of a table top. They set up a rubber-band launcher so that each ball experiences a consistent amount of force.

Heavyweight Champion: Jupiter
Source Institutions
In this activity, learners confront their perceptions of gravity in the solar system.

Canine House of Cards
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This simple construction activity teaches the importance of architectural structure. Learners build and test designs for a paper "doghouse" strong enough to hold the weight of a jumbo dog biscuit.

Dunking the Planets
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In this demonstration, learners compare the relative sizes and masses of scale models of the planets as represented by fruits and other foods.

The Pull of the Planets
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In this activity, learners model the gravitational fields of planets on a flexible surface.

Space Stations: Follow the Bouncing Ball!
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In this activity, learners predict whether a ball on Earth or a ball on the Moon bounces higher when dropped and why.

Blow-and-Go Parachute
Learners make a skydiver and parachute contraption and launch it. They see that the drag created by air resistance slows the descent of skydivers as they travel back to Earth.

Space Stations: Beans in Space
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In this activity, learners perform 20 arm curls with cans that simulate the weight of beans on Earth versus the weights of the same number of beans on the Moon and in space.

Tug-of-War
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This activity (on page 2 of the PDF under SciGirls Activity: Tug O' War) is a full inquiry investigation into tug-of-war physics. Groups of learners will test two tug-of-war strategies.

Weighty Questions
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In this activity about humans and space travel (page 1 of PDF), learners compare and contrast the behavior of a water-filled plastic bag, both outside and inside of a container of water.

Skateboard Disaster
Learners examine collisions between two skateboards carrying different masses. They learn about conservation of momentum in collisions.

Swing in Time
Learners build and investigate pendulums of different lengths. They discover that the longer the string of the pendulum, the longer the time it takes to swing.

How Do Things Fall?
Learners engage in close observation of falling objects. They determine it is the amount of air resistance, not the weight of an object, which determines how quickly an object falls.

Bend That Bar
Learners play the role of materials engineers as they test the flexibility of different materials.

Make a Mobile!
Source Institutions
In this activity, learners make mobiles to explore the concepts of balance, counterbalance, weight, and counterweight.