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Educational diagram illustrating compound machines and their components.

Diagram showing compound machines and their parts, including scissors with levers and fulcrum, wheelbarrow with levers and wheel and axle, and a crane with wheel and axle, pulley, and lever.

Diagram showing compound machines and their parts, including scissors with levers and fulcrum, wheelbarrow with levers and wheel and axle, and a crane with wheel and axle, pulley, and lever.

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Show Answer Key & Explanations Step-by-step solution for: Compound machines interactive worksheet
Let’s go step by step to label the parts of each compound machine correctly.

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1. Scissors

Scissors are made of two levers joined at a fulcrum (the screw in the middle). The blades act as wedges — they’re sharp and cut by pushing material apart.

Looking at the arrows:

- The handles where you put your fingers → these are part of the levers.
- The pivot point (screw) → already labeled “fulcrum” — that’s correct.
- The blades → these are wedges, because they slice through paper or fabric by concentrating force on a thin edge.

So for scissors:
→ Left arrow pointing to blade tip = wedges
→ Right arrow pointing to handle ends = levers

*(Note: Both handles together form one lever system, but since there are two separate blue dots on the handles, we assign “levers” to those points.)*

So:
Left dot (blade tips) → wedges
Right dot (handle ends) → levers

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2. Wheelbarrow

A wheelbarrow uses:

- A wheel and axle — the big wheel at the front with its axle.
- Levers — the long handles you lift up; also, the whole tray acts like a lever pivoting on the wheel.

Arrows:

- Arrow pointing to the wheel → this is clearly the wheel and axle.
- Arrows pointing to the handles → these are used to lift and push — so they’re part of the lever system.

So:
Dot near wheel → wheel and axle
Dots near handles → levers

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3. Crane

This is a mobile crane. Let’s break it down:

- The long arm (boom) that lifts things → this acts as a lever (it pivots at the base).
- The hook and cable system → uses a pulley to lift heavy loads with less effort.
- The truck wheels → these are wheel and axle systems that let the crane move.

Arrows:

- Top arrow pointing along the boom → this is the lever (the main lifting arm).
- Bottom-left arrow pointing to the hook/cable area → this is the pulley system.
- Bottom-right arrow pointing to the truck wheel → this is the wheel and axle.

So:
Top dot (on boom) → lever
Bottom-left dot (hook area) → pulley
Bottom-right dot (wheel) → wheel and axle

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Now, let’s match all labels correctly based on the diagram’s structure.

Final labeling:

Scissors:
- Left blue dot (pointing to blade tips) → wedges
- Right blue dot (pointing to handle ends) → levers

Wheelbarrow:
- Dot near wheel → wheel and axle
- Dots near handles → levers

Crane:
- Top dot (on boom) → lever
- Bottom-left dot (hook) → pulley
- Bottom-right dot (wheel) → wheel and axle

All given word banks match exactly what we need.

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Final Answer:

Scissors:
- Left dot → wedges
- Right dot → levers

Wheelbarrow:
- Wheel dot → wheel and axle
- Handle dots → levers

Crane:
- Boom dot → lever
- Hook dot → pulley
- Wheel dot → wheel and axle
Parent Tip: Review the logic above to help your child master the concept of compound machines worksheet.
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