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Lesson 6 of 7 · Motion and Forces

Experiment30 XP Spark Lab

Terminal Velocity

🧪Lab Brief #6

Motion and Forces.

🎯 Your mission

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

⚡ The twist

Energy never disappears — it just hides somewhere else.

🤯

Mind = Blown

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

🔮

Make a hypothesis first

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

What You'll Learn

Terminal velocity is the steady top speed a falling object reaches when air resistance pushing up equals gravity pulling down. Once these forces balance, a skydiver stops speeding up and falls at a constant rate.

Key Words

Tap a word to see its definition.

Materials Needed

  • weights
  • spring scale

Safety First

  • Have an adult check your set-up before you start, and tidy everything away afterwards.

Steps

Step 1Read

Look at the vocabulary words and write a definition for each in your own words.

Step 2Do

Test friction: pull a weighted box across 4 surfaces (carpet, tile, sandpaper, foil). Use a spring scale to measure the force needed for each.

Step 3Observe

Note any unexpected results and think about why they happened.

Step 4Record

Share your findings with the class or a partner and discuss what you learned.

Check Your Understanding

Question 1

1 of 3

What is gravity?

🌍

Where you see this in real life

This is why airplanes can fly and why rockets reach space.

🏆

Stretch Challenge

Try this in real life this week.

This week, find one thing in your house that turns one kind of energy into another.

👨‍👩‍👧

For the dinner table

Show me something at home that uses this kind of energy.

🎯

Next Smart Experiment

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

🔬Share card

Share this experiment

Send it to a parent who's looking for a 10-minute kitchen science win.

Ready?

Terminal Velocity

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

Full screen — no distractions

🖨️

Checkout complete lesson on Motion and Forces for 8th Grade

Get the full Motion and Forces track as a printable PDF — all lessons, worksheets, and answer keys.

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Terminal Velocity — Motion and Forces | 8th Grade Science | LittleActivity