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Push or Pull

First graders discover that every time something moves, a push or a pull started it, and sort everyday actions into the two kinds of force.

Grade 1Push or Pull50 minutes1 class period5E ModelExplicit teaching4 StandardsNGSS
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Lesson at a Glance

Everything you need before the bell rings

Learning Objectives

Students will be able to…

  • ✓Know a force is a push or pull.
  • ✓See forces make things move.
  • ✓Tell a push from a pull.
  • ✓Sort each action.
Essential Question

A wagon will not move on its own; you push it forward or pull it behind you. Every moving thing got a push or a pull to start. How do you tell them apart?

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Lesson Phases
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Vocabulary Terms
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Standards Aligned
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Interactive Task
Sort the Actions · Interactive

Sort the Actions

Project this and sort each action into push or pull — tap an action, then tap which force it is.

🛒 Sort each action: push or pull?Try it
👉 Push (away from you)
👈 Pull (toward you)
Tap an action, then tap whether it is a push (away from you) or a pull (toward you).
The Lesson · 5E Instructional Model (Engage · Explore · Explain · Elaborate · Evaluate)

50 minutes, five moves

Tap any phase to open the teacher moves and student actions.

1

Hook — What Makes It Move

5 min

A wagon will not move on its own. You push it to go forward or pull it behind you. Every moving thing got a push or a pull to start. Which one is it?

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Push and pull a toy.
  • Ask which is which.
  • Set the goal.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Watch.
  • Think.
  • Get ready.
2

Use — Sort the Actions

12 min

Students sort actions into push and pull.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Send students to Sort the Actions.
  • Drop each one.
  • Explain each choice.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Sort.
  • Say.
  • Explain.
3

Modify — Push It, Pull It

13 min

Students test forces on an object.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Pick an object.
  • Push it, then pull it.
  • Say what happened each way.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Pick.
  • Try.
  • Say.
4

Create — My Force Hunt

15 min

Students find forces around them.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • List three things you push.
  • List three things you pull.
  • Draw one of each.

🎒 Student Actions

  • List.
  • List.
  • Draw.
5

Reflect — Pushes and Pulls

5 min

Students reflect on forces.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • What is a push?
  • Can a force make something stop or turn?
  • Complete the exit ticket.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Say it.
  • Say it.
  • Complete the exit ticket.
Standards Alignment

Built to the standards you report on

Aligned to the Next Generation Science Standards (Grade 1 / Elementary Science).

NGSS
K-PS2-1

Plan and conduct an investigation to compare the effects of different pushes and pulls on motion.

NGSS
K-PS2-2

Analyze data to show that a push or pull can change the speed or direction of an object.

NGSS
3-PS2-1

Investigate the effects of balanced and unbalanced forces on motion.

CCSS
W.1.7

Participate in shared research, recording what you observe.

Differentiation

One lesson, every learner

Multilingual Learners

ELL / EMERGING READERS
  • Action picture cards.
  • Sentence frame: “A ___ moves it ___ me.”
  • Sort two actions at a time.

Support & Access

IEP / 504
  • Start with pushing and pulling a toy.
  • Act out one action together.
  • Sort the pushes first.

Stretch & Extend

GIFTED / EARLY FINISHERS
  • Add actions that use both, like a swing.
  • Test how a bigger push moves things more.
  • Explain how a force can change direction.
Materials

What to gather

  • 📽️Projector / board
  • 🛒A toy cart or wagon
  • 💻Sort the Actions
  • 🧸Objects to push and pull
  • ✏️Pencils
  • 🎫Exit-ticket slips
Vocabulary

Key terms — hover for a quick definition

forcea push or a pull that can move an objectpusha force that moves something away from youpulla force that moves something toward youmotionthe act of movingspeedhow fast something movesdirectionthe way something movesstopto end motion, which also takes a forcegravitya pull from the Earth that brings things down
Evaluate

Exit Ticket

Preview the three formative checks. Tap “Sample answer” to see what mastery looks like — hide them before you print for students.

QUESTION 1
What is a push?
A force that moves something away from you, like shoving a cart forward.
QUESTION 2
Can a force make something stop or turn?
Yes; a push or pull can start motion, speed it up, slow it down, stop it, or change its direction.
QUESTION 3
Is opening a drawer toward you a push or a pull?
A pull, because you move it toward you.

Create: my force hunt.

Have students list three things they push and three they pull, then draw one of each, so forces connect to their everyday world. A printable push-or-pull worksheet is in the Science library.

Study · Flashcards

Study the key terms

Tap a card to flip it, then rate whether you knew it. Built from this lesson’s vocabulary.

🃏 Push or PullFlip
Card 1
Term
Tap to flip →
Meaning
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Nice work!

Practice · Quiz

Check your understanding

A quick self-check with instant feedback, drawn from this lesson’s key terms.

📝 Push or PullQuiz
Score: 0
1 / 6
Question 1
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Nice work!

Practice · Worksheet

Printable worksheet

A print-and-go review sheet with a built-in answer key. Tap “Show answer key” to reveal answers, or print the clean version for students.

🖨️ Push or PullPrint
Name: ________________________
Date: ____________

Part A · Write the word that matches each meaning

Word bank: direction, force, gravity, motion, pull, push, speed, stop
  1. the act of moving
  2. how fast something moves
  3. to end motion, which also takes a force
  4. a pull from the Earth that brings things down
  5. a force that moves something toward you
  6. the way something moves
  7. a push or a pull that can move an object
  8. a force that moves something away from you

Part B · Show what you learned

  1. What is a push?
  2. Can a force make something stop or turn?
  3. Is opening a drawer toward you a push or a pull?
Answer key — Part A: 1) motion · 2) speed · 3) stop · 4) gravity · 5) pull · 6) direction · 7) force · 8) push
Part B: 1) A force that moves something away from you, like shoving a cart forward. 2) Yes; a push or pull can start motion, speed it up, slow it down, stop it, or change its direction. 3) A pull, because you move it toward you.