Here is the completed
Newton's 3 Laws Identification Worksheet, with each scenario identified and explained:
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1. Sally rolls two balls, a heavy bowling ball and a light tennis ball. She notices that it is much easier to roll the tennis ball.
Newton’s Second Law
This demonstrates Newton’s Second Law (F = ma), which states that acceleration is inversely proportional to mass when force is constant. The tennis ball has less mass, so it accelerates more easily than the heavier bowling ball when the same force is applied.
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2. A car slides out of control on ice.
Newton’s First Law
This illustrates Newton’s First Law (law of inertia). On ice, there is very little friction, so the car continues moving in its original direction at a constant speed unless acted upon by an external force (like friction or a collision).
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3. John notices that if he gives a box a harder push, it moves faster across the ground.
Newton’s Second Law
This shows Newton’s Second Law: greater force results in greater acceleration (assuming mass remains constant). The harder John pushes, the more force is applied, causing the box to accelerate faster.
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4. Ashely notices that when she is paddling her kayak, she needs to push the water backwards to make her kayak go forwards which confuses her.
Newton’s Third Law
This is Newton’s Third Law: for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. When Ashely pushes water backward, the water pushes her kayak forward with an equal force.
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5. A 35,000-pound truck needs a larger engine than a 2,000-pound car.
Newton’s Second Law
This reflects Newton’s Second Law—greater mass requires more force to achieve the same acceleration. The truck has much more mass, so it needs a more powerful engine (more force) to move effectively.
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6. When Jasmine kicks a soccer ball, she notices that it travels along the ground but then stops.
Newton’s First Law
The ball initially moves due to the kick, but it stops because of opposing forces like friction and air resistance. This shows that objects in motion tend to stay in motion unless acted upon by an unbalanced force (friction).
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7. Dwayne throws a ball down toward the ground. After it hits the ground, it bounces back up to him.
Newton’s Third Law
When the ball hits the ground, it exerts a downward force; the ground exerts an equal and opposite upward force, causing the ball to bounce back. This is an example of action-reaction forces.
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8. To make a rocket go into the air, NASA engineers point it directly upwards prior to launch.
Newton’s Third Law
The rocket expels gas downward at high speed, and the reaction force pushes the rocket upward. This is a classic application of Newton’s Third Law: the action of pushing gas down creates an upward reaction force.
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9. Trisha notices that when playing tennis, the harder she swings her racquet, the faster the ball travels.
Newton’s Second Law
Greater force from a harder swing increases the acceleration of the tennis ball, as described by F = ma. The more force applied, the faster the ball moves.
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10. Kyle is driving a car that suddenly collides with the car in front. As the cars collided, Kyle kept moving forward but his seat belt kept him safe. It is lucky that Kyle was wearing his seat belt!
Newton’s First Law
Kyle’s body continued moving forward at the same speed due to inertia when the car stopped suddenly during the collision. The seat belt provided an external force to stop him, preventing injury.
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✔ Summary of Laws Used:
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Newton’s First Law (Inertia) – #2, #6, #10
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Newton’s Second Law (F = ma) – #1, #3, #5, #9
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Newton’s Third Law (Action-Reaction) – #4, #7, #8
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Parent Tip: Review the logic above to help your child master the concept of newton laws worksheet high school.
