October 11, 2022 // by Sydney Peters
Science is an exciting subject for elementary students and learning about friction can be one of the most interesting topics in elementary science. Friction is something we see and use every day, but often times elementary-aged students have a difficult time understanding the concept. These friction activities for elementary students are designed to give your students a hands-on learning experience that will enhance their understanding of friction. Whether you’re teaching friction activities at home or in your classroom, these simple and stimulating activities are sure to ignite a passion for science in your students.
Discover the different materials that cause different levels of resistance when pushing a toy car along a path. Friction might be a challenging concept for elementary students to learn, but in this friction activity, students will see friction in action!
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Who would've thought that using used paper towel tubes, pool noodles, and marbles could create an activity exploring friction? Students explore the changes in friction as they modify the track. Students also learn how a roller coaster works by using friction.
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The floating rice experiment is a must-try for teaching friction to elementary students. Friction activities can be engaging and this one is no exception. Using some rice, a pencil, and a bottle, students explore the science of friction.
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Science and art go hand in hand. In this simple experiment, students use a marble, a tray, and paint to demonstrate friction. Not only will your students learn about friction, but with this friction activity, they'll also have a beautiful piece of artwork to take home and share!
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Demonstrate the concept of friction with this fun friction activity that only requires two notebooks and a little strength! By interlacing the pages of the notebooks, students hold the ends and pull. This action shows the relationship between force and friction.
Some materials make things easier to move and some materials make things more difficult to move. In this experiment, students glue different materials to blocks to see which material causes more friction and which one causes less friction.
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If you've ever played hockey or even know the game of hockey, you've seen the hockey puck glide across the ice. In this friction activity for kids, students explore a variety of objects that move across the ice and how friction impacts the way they move.
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In this experiment, students explore how many straws it takes to make a cotton ball at a predetermined distance. Will it be one? Two? More? This friction activity guides students in the exploration of friction, force, and motion.
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For teachers, it can be complicated to explain the scientific meaning of friction. In this fun game, students explore friction examining different liquids and their ability to transfer gelatin cubes.
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What happens when one car goes down an incline and one car goes down a straight path? In this experiment, students explore the effects of friction on a car ramp.
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Watch your students glow with excitement when you create a hovercraft out of a balloon and a CD disk. Using pressure from the balloon, the object rises and glides across the floor.
Test the strength of friction with this fun experiment involving sticky notes and clamps. Students discuss the ability of friction and just how powerful friction can be.
At some time or another, most of us have played a game of tug of war, but did you know there's actually science behind the classic game? Tug of war isn't a game of strength, it's actually much more than that.
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It's almost always easier to introduce a new topic when you can demonstrate it instead of explaining it. In this video and the friction lessons, the idea of friction is demonstrated to students through a variety of activities and exercises.
While not all students have access to snow or may not have even seen snow in real life, this experiment allows students to use snow to demonstrate friction. Activities like this show that science is all around us! Even in our own backyards (well not if you live near palm trees I guess)!
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In this experiment, students will answer the question, "is friction good or bad." The experiment starts with a demonstration and allows students to develop their own experiments using critical thinking.
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This STEM activity uses materials you probably already have around the house. Students create a parachute using coffee filters and develop an understanding of the concept of friction by dropping the parachute from different heights.
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There's no doubt about it, students love anything that involves creating something out of ordinary objects. This STEM activity focused on friction is no exception. Students develop a marble maze using straws, glue, and a few other materials to test the concept of friction.
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Building blocks, Zipline, science? I'm in! Students will absolutely love this STEM activity that teaches friction through hands-on learning. But what does a Zipline have to do with friction? Students will test different cages made of building blocks to see which one goes faster and why.
Aerodynamics has a lot to do with friction. In this STEM experiment, students participate in a friction activity that will test the friction of a toy car by adding a piece of paper that has different angles and shapes.
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