Ramps Make Work Easier

Lab Brief #2

🎯 Your mission

Predict it first. Then prove yourself right (or wrong).

⚡ The twist

Energy never disappears — it just hides somewhere else.

What you'll learn

Simple machines make work easier. A ramp helps you move heavy things to a higher place.

Key words

simple machine
A basic tool, like a lever or pulley, that makes work easier.
ramp
A flat surface that slants to help move things up or down.

Make a hypothesis first

Before you start: which will move faster, and why?

Say your guess out loud — then find out if you were right.

Get ready

🧰 What you need

ramps

⚠️ Safety first

Small parts and balloon fragments are a choking hazard — keep them away from young children.

Step 1 of 4 · Read

Look at the new words. Can you say each one?

Step 2 of 4 · Do

Make a ramp from a book. Roll a marble down from different heights. Measure how far it rolls.

Step 3 of 4 · Observe

Use your senses to describe what you notice.

Step 4 of 4 · Record

Write 1-2 sentences about what happened.

Question 1 of 3

Which simple machine is a ramp?

How sure are you?😐 maybe

Question 2 of 3

What makes a ball go faster down a ramp?

How sure are you?😐 maybe

Question 3 of 3

How can you make something move?

How sure are you?😐 maybe

Mind = blown

⚡ Static electricity is the same physics as lightning, just smaller.

Nice work!

You got 0 of 3 right.

Next: North and South Poles All lessons

🎯

Next Smart Experiment

We'll pick an experiment that matches exactly how you're thinking right now.

✨ More to explore

🌍 Where you see this in real life: You use this every time you flip a light switch, ride a bike, or kick a ball.

🏆 Stretch challenge (try it this week): Time how long a small ball rolls down something, then change the slope and try again.

👨‍👩‍👧 For the dinner table: “Show me something at home that uses this kind of energy.”

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Ramps Make Work Easier

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