Newtons Laws of Motion worksheet - Free Printable

Let’s go through each scenario one by one and match it to Newton’s 1st, 2nd, or 3rd law of motion.

First, recall what each law says in simple terms:

- 1st Law (Inertia): An object at rest stays at rest, and an object in motion stays in motion at the same speed and direction — *unless* a force acts on it.
→ Key idea: resistance to change in motion; no net force = no acceleration.

- 2nd Law (F = ma): The acceleration of an object depends on its mass and the net force applied: Force = mass × acceleration.
→ More force → more acceleration; more mass → less acceleration for same force.

- 3rd Law (Action-Reaction): For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.
→ Forces always come in pairs: if A pushes B, B pushes back on A with equal force.

Now let’s analyze each bullet point:

1. A coin put on top of a paper on the table will stay in place when the paper is pulled.
→ The coin wants to stay still (inertia) while the paper moves out from under it. This is 1st Law.

2. A farmer could not move his cart full of vegetables with only one horse, so he added another horse in order to move the cart.
→ He needed more *force* to overcome inertia/mass — but this is about needing more force to accelerate a massive object. Since F = ma, more mass needs more force for same acceleration. So this reflects 2nd Law.

3. A truck with less mass will have a bigger acceleration than a truck with more mass.
→ Same force applied → smaller mass → larger acceleration. Directly F = ma → 2nd Law.

4. Daddy hit the golf ball with more force than little Johnny. Daddy’s ball went the farthest.
→ More force → more acceleration → higher speed → goes farther (assuming similar mass). Again, 2nd Law.

5. When a basketball player shoots a jump shot, the ball follows an arcing path because of gravity and friction.
→ This describes *why* the motion changes (gravity pulls down, air resistance slows it), but the key idea is that the ball keeps moving forward (inertia) until forces act on it — however, the arc itself is due to *forces changing* motion. But the question is asking which law is *exemplified*. The fact that it continues moving after release (until gravity/friction act) points to 1st Law — objects in motion stay in motion unless acted upon. Gravity and friction are the external forces that *change* the motion. So this is best matched with 1st Law.

6. The harder you pedal your bicycle, the faster your bicycle will go.
→ More force (pedaling) → more acceleration → higher speed. That’s 2nd Law.

7. A book resting on the table exerts a downward force on the table while the table exerts an upward force on the book.
→ Equal and opposite forces between two objects → classic 3rd Law.

8. The large snowball was much harder to move than the smaller one.
→ More mass → more inertia → harder to accelerate. This is 1st Law (inertia depends on mass), though some might think 2nd. But “harder to move” means it resists starting motion — that’s inertia → 1st Law.

9. A ball that rolls on a flat surface will continue to roll until friction brings it to a stop.
→ Without friction, it would keep rolling forever. This is textbook 1st Law.

10. If you push a small table and a big table with the same amount of force, the small table will move faster.
→ Same force, smaller mass → greater acceleration → 2nd Law.

11. When a car slams on brakes the passengers’ body is thrown forward until stopped by the seat belt.
→ Bodies want to keep moving forward (inertia) while car stops. Classic 1st Law.

12. Walker hits the ball with more force than Max, so Walker’s ball went farther into the outfield.
→ More force → more acceleration → higher launch speed → goes farther. 2nd Law.

13. It takes a track runner several yards after the finish line to come to a stop.
→ Runner is in motion and keeps moving due to inertia; friction eventually stops them. 1st Law.

14. When an air-filled balloon is set free, the air inside rushes out and the balloon moves forward.
→ Air pushed backward (action), balloon pushed forward (reaction). 3rd Law.

15. When walking on a sandy beach, while we exert force forward with each step, we push the sand backward.
→ We push sand back (action), sand pushes us forward (reaction). 3rd Law.

16. The bowling pins fell down when they were hit by the bowling ball.
→ Ball applies force to pins → pins accelerate (move/fall). But more precisely: the ball exerts force on pins, pins exert equal force back on ball (which slows it). However, the *falling* is due to net force on pins causing acceleration — but the core interaction is action-reaction. Still, many textbooks use this as 3rd Law example (ball hits pin, pin hits ball). Let’s double-check: the *motion change* of pins is due to force (2nd), but the *cause* is contact force pair. Since the question emphasizes “pins fell down when they were hit”, it's about force causing acceleration → 2nd Law? Hmm. Wait — better look at standard interpretations. In most school contexts, “object A hits object B, causing B to move” is often tied to 2nd Law (F = ma on B), unless the focus is on mutual forces. But here, no mention of the ball slowing — just pins falling. So likely 2nd Law. However, let’s hold and compare with others.

But wait — look at #7 and #14 and #15: those are clearly 3rd Law (explicit force pairs). #16 doesn’t mention the reaction — just effect. So safer to say 2nd Law.

17. A rider on a running horse is thrown forward when the horse stops suddenly.
→ Rider’s body continues forward (inertia) while horse stops. 1st Law.

18. The boy had to apply extra force to move the big bag.
→ More mass → need more force to accelerate → 2nd Law.

19. A 50 pound rock is much harder to move than a 5 pound rock.
→ More mass → more inertia → resists starting motion → 1st Law.

20. The biker was moving at 25 mph until he hit a rock that threw him over the handlebars.
→ Biker was in motion, rock applied force to stop bike, but biker kept moving (inertia) → 1st Law.

Now let’s list all with numbers:

1. 1
2. 2
3. 2
4. 2
5. 1
6. 2
7. 3
8. 1
9. 1
10. 2
11. 1
12. 2
13. 1
14. 3
15. 3
16. 2 *(best fit: force causes acceleration of pins)*
17. 1
18. 2
19. 1
20. 1

Let me double-check #16 again. Alternative view: When the ball hits the pins, the pins exert equal force back — but the question says “pins fell down when they were hit”, focusing on *why pins moved* → net force on pins caused acceleration → 2nd Law. Yes.

Also #5: ball follows arc due to gravity/friction — but the reason it *keeps moving horizontally* after release is inertia (1st law), and gravity is an external force changing vertical motion. Since the scenario emphasizes the *continuation* of motion (arc implies it doesn’t stop instantly), it's still 1st Law.

All consistent.

So final sequence (20 answers):

1, 2, 2, 2, 1, 2, 3, 1, 1, 2, 1, 2, 1, 3, 3, 2, 1, 2, 1, 1

Now output only that as final answer.

Final Answer:
1 2 2 2 1 2 3 1 1 2 1 2 1 3 3 2 1 2 1 1