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How do Bike Gears Work?

From Design Squad Global

How do Bike Gears Work?
3 min3rd4th5th6thScience
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Summary

A bite-size Design Squad explainer: how shifting gears changes how hard you have to pedal. In a couple of minutes it makes clear how gears trade speed for force on a bike.

Viewer safety

All ages
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Our rating is a quick teacher-to-teacher guide — preview before showing.

Teaching resources

Discussion questions

Quick questions to check understanding:

  1. In your own words, explain how gears trade speed for force on a bike.
  2. Where have you seen this idea show up in real life?
  3. How could an engineer use this idea when they design something?

Quick work-a-long

Words to know: bike gears, plus one new word you heard.

Try it:

  1. Explain the main idea to a partner in one sentence.
  2. Find one example of it around you and draw or describe it.