STEM Challenge Newton’s Cradle – 3rd Law of Motion Problem-Solving Activity
measurement problem solving engineering 5th grade 6th grade activities printables lesson
Here's a perfect way to learn about Newton's 3rd Law. This upper elementary STEM Challenge is a student favorite and easy prep for you. Editable lab sheets are included and will guide students through the design process.What is the challenge?Students will use materials to design and create a Newton'...
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Here's a perfect way to learn about Newton's 3rd Law. This upper elementary STEM Challenge is a student favorite and easy prep for you. Editable lab sheets are included and will guide students through the design process.

What is the challenge?

Students will use materials to design and create a Newton’s Cradle. In this event, students will review what they know about the laws of motion- especially the third law. Students will have to build the frame for the device, a way to attach strings to the marbles, and a way to attach strings to the frame. This can include measuring as the length of the strings is a factor.

What is your prep?

You will need supplies in addition to this package. This includes craft sticks, straws or beads, masking tape, marbles, string, low-temp glue guns, and glue- one glue gun per team. The option of using low-temp glue for the assembly is yours to make. You may want to ask for parental help in your classroom- depending on the age of your students.

NOTE: This was tested with fifth graders and is recommended for that age group or older students. This is an amazing challenge, but it is a challenge. It may take many tries to get the strings attached and working. Students will love the task and cheer when their device works - even if it works imperfectly!

The package specifically includes:

Cover

Teacher background

Materials and preparation page

9 pages of teacher directions

Constraints list in 2 styles

A special page of information about Newton’s Laws of Motion

5 pages of photographs

Student lab sheet in 2 versions

Scoring rubric

Terms of Use page

Forms for this challenge are provided in an editable format!

Student answer sheets are not included, but samples from student work are included in the teacher direction pages.

The page count listed for this package includes everything.

This challenge will need 1 - 2 class sessions to complete. We needed two full-class sessions to complete this project.

This challenge works perfectly with these Newton challenges:

Build a Bottle Car

Build an Egg Car

➡️ Click here to save 20% on this STEM Challenge in a bundle of 3!

➡️ Click here to save 20% on this STEM Challenge in a bundle of 6!

NEWTON'S LAWS

The simplified version of the third law is that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.

So How Does This Apply to Newton’s Cradles?

This is easily demonstrated with a purchased Newton’s Cradle. We had to drop one marble, then 2, then 3, and then 4 to get every student to see that the force is always equal and works the same on opposite sides. Building a Newton’s Cradle is the perfect item to share with the third law of motion.

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