🔬 Science · Forces & Motion

Pushes & Pulls

Understand that pushes and pulls are forces that can change the speed or direction of an object's motion, and compare the effects of different strengths and directions

Typical age: 5–6 years

“Can your child explain that pushing a toy car harder makes it go faster, and pushing it sideways makes it change direction?”

0 / 3 mastered

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Needs first

Drawing Force Diagrams
Understanding pushes and pulls as forces is supported by the arrow representation of magnitude and direction

Unlocks next

Speed and energyREQUIRED
Must understand forces change motion before relating speed to energy
Balanced & Unbalanced ForcesREQUIRED
Must understand pushes/pulls before investigating balanced vs unbalanced forces
Resultant ForcesREQUIRED
KS3 forces as vectors extends KS2 introduction to pushes and pulls changing speed and direction
Friction & SurfacesREQUIRED
Must understand forces change motion before comparing movement on different surfaces
Testing Push & Pull DesignsREQUIRED
Must understand pushes/pulls before analysing design solutions using them