This is the LAST resources post regarding my Grade 7 Science curriculum planning and it covers the unit of Forces & Structures. All together, there are four units covered over the course of the school year and I have been sharing my individual unit breakdowns and online resource database. Until I actually meet my students and spend time learning their needs and interests, I have been building a plethora of resources to have in my back pocket as we make our way through the school year. Over the past 2 months, I have been sharing these resources with you! Check out my previous Grade 7 Science resources posts, broken down by individual units:
- Interactions with Ecosystems
- The Earth's Crust
- Particle Theory of Matter
This unit was really enjoyable to plan out because it lends itself very naturally to having a lot of hands-on building activities. In regards to my full year planning, I have placed this unit as our very last one so that students have an opportunity to have lots of busy, hands-on, exploratory learning opportunities at the end of May and June. I feel like this will be a good fit for that time of year when students are not feeling like being in the classroom listening to lecture or working on written assignments.
Forces on Structures
Enduring Understanding: Structures are under internal and external forces that affect their strength and stability.
7-3-01 Use appropriate vocabulary related to their investigations of forces and
structures.
Include: frame, shell, solid, centre of gravity, stability, compression,
tension, shear, torsion, internal and external forces, stress, structural
fatigue, structural failure, load, magnitude, point and plane of application,
efficiency.
7-3-02 Classify natural and human-built structures found locally and around the
world.
Include: frame, shell, solid
7-3-03 Identify the centre of gravity in a model structure, and demonstrate that
changes in the location of a structure’s centre of gravity affect its stability.
7-3-04 Identify internal forces acting on a structure, and describe them using
diagrams.
7-3-05 Identify external forces acting on a structure, and describe them using
diagrams.
7-3-06 Recognize the internal and external forces apply stress to structures, and
describe examples in which this stress has lead to structural fatigue or
structural failure.
7-3-07 Investigate to determine that the effect of a force on a structure depends on
its magnitude, direction, and point and plane of application.
Analyzing & Designing Structures
Enduring Understanding: Specific materials & structural shapes can increase the strength and stability of structures so that they can withstand external forces.
7-3-08 Describe, using diagrams, how common structural shapes and components
can increase the strength and stability of a structure
7-3-09 Describe and demonstrate methods to increase the strength of materials.
7-3-10 Determine the efficiency of a structure by comparing its mass with the
mass of the load it supports.
7-3-11 Evaluate a structure to determine the appropriateness of its design, using
the design process.
7-3-12 Use the design process to construct a structure that will withstand the
application of an external force.
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In addition to hard-copy resources I have available in the school and from colleagues, I also started to organize some online resources to supplement our classroom activities. Here are the resources I found, organized by the themes I stated above. For each one I've included the title, a very brief point about what it includes, and the link.
Forces on Structures
Structures & Forces YouTube Video
- Review Video
- No sound but good demonstration and explanation of vocabulary
Science 7: Forces & Structures YouTube Playlist
- 13 Videos
Sturdy as an Egg Test
- U of M Lab Test
- Investigating pressures
Structures & Forces Textbook
- Chapter from a Textbook
- Good to put on website or pull info from
Domino Tower
- U of M Lab
- Centre of Gravity test
Unit 4 Structures & Forces Webquest
- External & Internal, classifying structures, strength & stability
Types of Forces
- U of M Lesson
- Compression, Tension, Torsion, Shear
Structures & Forces PowerPoint
- Good teaching resource
Investigating Forces & Structures
- Webquest Activity
- Good for Supplementary Activity or if there is a Sub
Forces of Wonder Game - Wonderville
- In-class Fun Activity
- Good game to have when students are done early
Forces & Structures Study Notes
- Good review activity
- Includes everything
Analyzing & Designing Structures
Canada’s Wonderland Structure Design Lab
- Good for real-life application
Structures Around the World
- Interactive, large-group activity
Children’s Engineering Educators
- LOTS of different labs, interactives, and articles
Building Big PBS Forces Lab
- SMART Board, large-group activity or center activity
NOVA Physics of Stone Arches Interactive
- Large-group activity
Structures & Forces Interactive
- Really good online activity
- Vocabulary, design sky scrapers
Stable & Unstable Structures Discovery Ed Lesson
- 2 Day plan
NOVA Smart Bridges Video
- Analyzing structures
- 9 mins
- http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/tech/smart-bridges.html
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I hope you find these resources as awesome as I do! If there is something you think I should add to my list let me know, I'd love to hear about the awesome things you are using with your class :)
Labels: ed resources, grade 7 science