Science / Year 7 / Science Understanding / Physical sciences

Curriculum content descriptions

Change to an object’s motion is caused by unbalanced forces, including Earth’s gravitational attraction, acting on the object (ACSSU117)

Elaborations
  • investigating the effects of applying different forces to familiar objects
  • investigating common situations where forces are balanced, such as stationary objects, and unbalanced, such as falling objects
  • investigating a simple machine such as lever or pulley system
  • exploring how gravity affects objects on the surface of Earth
  • considering how gravity keeps planets in orbit around the sun
General capabilities
  • Literacy Literacy
ScOT terms

Motion

Video

Different paper plane designs

How many different paper plane designs are there? Lots! Watch as Dylan Parker, paper plane expert, demonstrates some of his favourites. Notice the way the different shapes and features of the planes cause them to move through the air in different ways. Which one do you like the most? Why not have a go at making something similar?

Interactive

experiMENTALS: Magic rocking candle

This resource contains a materials and instruction list and brief explanation for students about the process of burning both ends of a balancing candle. This activity is most likely to be done as a teacher demonstration for safety and classroom management reasons, particularly at primary school level.

Interactive

experiMENTALS: Levitating balloon

This resource contains a materials and instruction list and brief explanation for students about the process of levitating a balloon.

Interactive

Sites2See: Surf safety

A webpage about surfing safety, dangerous waves and rips, and the history and science of surfing. A 'For Kids' section provides games and quizzes for young swimmers and surfers.

Interactive

NASA: Eyes Eclipse 2017

This interactive 3D simulation of the total eclipse of August 21st, 2017 enables users to navigate to different locations to watch a simulation of what the eclipse would look like from that area from start to finish. The simulation is available as a web and desktop applications suitable for most devices.

Interactive

Earth rotation: night and day

Watch an animation of the Earth rotating in space showing day and night, the equinox where locations on Earth experience close to equal hours of daytime and night-time (12 hours) and views of the Earth from above the North and South Poles. Turn an animated model of the Earth to explore how rotation is related to night and ...

Interactive

Indigenous weather knowledge

An interactive map of traditional weather and climate knowledge that has been developed and passed down through countless generations by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. The site provides descriptions of the sixteen seasonal calendars used by First Nations peoples across Australia.