Friction on the Slides
From The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That! · 2018
3 min1st2nd3rdScience
Summary
Why do you zoom down some slides and creep down others? The Cat helps Nick and Sally discover friction — the rubbing force that slows things down — and how smooth vs. rough surfaces change a slide.
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All ages
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Teaching resources
Discussion questions
Discussion
Friction is a force that slows sliding things down.
- Which slides were fast and which were slow?
- What is friction, and how does it change how fast you slide?
- What could you add to a slide to make it faster or slower?
Quick work-a-long
Vocabulary: friction, force, smooth, rough, speed.
Try it: Slide a coin across your desk, then across a sweater. Tell which surface had more friction.