Simple timing tasks using a stopwatch. Everyday activities are timed to see how long they take and to see how close the student's previous estimates were.

A simple challenge where students in small groups or on their own must decide which materials and much of them they should "buy" to build a bridge that must span a 15cm gap(between 2 chairs or boxes) They are allowed a budget and must not spend more than allowed so must choose wisely. The bride is tested to destruction by hanging masses (100g at a time) until the bridge fails

A simple activity which gets students thinking about how things fall and how they can be protected when they hit the floor

simple activity to test a variety of materials as well as challenging students to draw the circuit correctly

3 activities which I use in turn. As soon as the student has completed the first activity and had it checked, they get the next one. Students love the challenge. It is not a race! Students learn through trial and error as well as each other

Short simple quiz that allows you to judge the understanding and level of your students

Students use there own shoe, yes can get smelly, and use a newtonmeter to pull along a table, as the shoe is steadily moving the force being used is recorded. The experiment is repeated but with 100g mass (1N weight) is put into the shoe and so on with more weights Studnts should spot the pattern of larger forces needed with heavier weights. This goes some way in explaining why big kids seem to have more grip

Short simple quiz that allows you to judge the understanding and level of your students

Short simple quiz that allows you to judge the understanding and level of your students

By simply looking at each other the students can "guess" who would win an arm wrestle. Simply looking gives them a little EVIDENCE so they are actually predicting NOT just guessing. BUT just looking is not good enough for dependable predictions so this worksheet is used again but after the PUSH force of every student is measured first using an ERGOMETER (very large newtonmeter) students can then match a small force against a very large one , can be fun, even more fun is when closely balanced forces DO generally take ages and it is the cheering of the rest that decides the winner This sheet allows for some surprises as you will discover the small, weaker students actually beat some bigger students because of training, clubs, etc

Moving on from arm wrestling the students measure their max pulling force. I usually hold one end of the ergometer and the students pull (steadily) the other, the whole class is done...you can have great fun here. (no snatching as it is not fair) 2 goes each and the best force is recorded. You do need a tug of war rope, but it is worth it's weight in gold. Students predict who will win and hopefully see it is not the number of people that counts but the total force 1 vs 1, 2 vs 1, in some cases if the totals are closely balanced 3 vs 1 and it WORKS ultimately the students predict a well balanced war using the whole class (FORCES not number of people is key) students can draw and cut out people write names and forces on them and a poster (with a long piece of string) can be produced to show the 2 teams

I use this often with many groups. The challenge is to protect their raw egg by only using specific materials and amounts (FAIRLY all groups are given exactly the same materials) how much they use is up to them, they can cut, bend etc what they want You must make a wooden jig, simple 2 bits of wood and 3 lengths of dowling, mine has lasted me 20 years so far and does not smell of eggs at all as it is washed everytime The best result I have ever had was a tube(crum,ple zone and balloon (airbag) affair which protected the egg from a 2kg mass dropped on it from over 2m height

Short simple quiz that allows you to judge the understanding and level of your students

Moving on from parachuting eggs this activity gets students to accept it will hit hard so must be protected another way

simple worksheet which gets students thinking about everyday appliances in a more scientific way

Short simple quiz that allows you to judge the understanding and level of your students

simple activity to first predict and then to test if predictions were correct different materials tested to see if they are Conductors or insulators

Using only a sheet of A4 the students are challenged to do something to it to make it travel as far as possible, no throwing, just simply let go see how far. You might think that some sort of wings are in order use the elastic bands somehow if they want

This sheet allows for the whole group to be measured one by one with an ergometer, have fun measuring each student's push force(much like a bullworker) for both arms. ie student holds one end of ergometer(large newton meter)in one hand close to waist while the other arm pushes the other end down from above. You can give the class 2 attempts as they watch their peers with better techniques get bigger FORCES and record the higher one Then the fun starts picking arm wrestle competitions, some silly and easily predicted others beautifully balanced

A simple A4 template that allows students to make a small but useable periscope, you will need the mirror card to glue onto the periscope. Challenges to make them longer...ie make an extension tube...does not need to be square! could be tin foil tube etc...periscope is cut in half and the ends slipped over the extension tube. I have had students make a "sea" out of tables, they crawl around underneath and pop up a periscope in gaps between tables to look around.