Lever and Screw Simple Machines Lesson Plan

If you have screwdrivers, hex-head screws or screwdrivers, hammers, shovels or trowels, vises or c-clamps, or an auto jack, please bring them.

1. Stretch. Pray. Review work, inclined planes, and wedges.

2. Read & discuss James 4:10. Compare our humility for God's glory to one side of a lever. The more humble and servant-hearted we are, the more God raises us up.

3. Read "Screws to the Rescue" by Sharon Thales. Ask how screws help us. What are some examples?

4. Pass around screws or bolts of different that have different pitches/threads. How is each screw similar? How is each screw different? How might each screw be used? Introduce the word "pitch/thread/ridge." Does it look like there are many threads/circles or one continuous one going in a spiral?
TEACHER/FAMILY 1: YOU WILL NEED: 5 wood screws, and 5 metal screws. The wood & metal screws should have different pitch (thread width).

5. Hand each child 2 pencils and 1 each of the right triangles. What simple machine does the right triangle look like? (inclined plane). Have them draw a line along the slanted edge of each triangle with a crayon. Have the children tape a plain edge of the triangle to the pencil and then wrap it tightly around the pencil making sure they can see the colored line. Repeat with the second pencil and sheet of paper. Ask: What does the colored edge represent? Which distance is greater, the height of the circular inclined plane or the spiraled distance around the rolled paper?

TEACHER/FAMILY 2: YOU WILL NEED: 10 sheets of paper cut into right angles that are 3"x3", 10 sheets of paper cut into right angles that are 3"x6", tape, 20 pencils, & 10 crayons

6. (If you're not limited by time) Make edible screws. Give each child ¼ of a cheese stick and an unbaked triangle of a crescent roll. Have them roll up the crescent roll dough ("inclined plane") around the cheese stick (rod) just like they did with the pencils and paper triangle. Bake according to package directions (about 375F for 13 minutes). Let children eat these while you read about levers.

TEACHER/FAMILY 3: YOU WILL NEED: two 8-count packages of crescent roll dough, 4 cheese sticks (each sliced or pulled into 4 long strips), baking sheet, 14 napkins, 14 cups for water

7. Point out the difference between flat head and Philip's head screwdrivers. Divide children into pairs. Have children tap a hole in wood with a nail. Emphasize that they are not nailing the nail into the wood! They are just making a hole in the wood to start the screws. Have them try to screw in the 2 screws. Which pitch/thread is easiest to screw: larger spaces or shorter spaces? Which takes more turns to screw it in? Which screw do you think will hold better? Why? Which screw has the most distance wrapped around it? Which requires more work? Have them remove the screws for the next activity.

TEACHER/FAMILY 4: YOU WILL NEED: 5 pieces of scrap wood, 10 nails, 5 hammers, & 5 screwdrivers (Screws will be used from above activity.)

8. How do screws help us? They hold things together. Hand each pair of children 2 quarters of a Styrofoam plate. Have one person shove a nail through the plates to hold them together. Have them pull the 2 pieces apart. Their partner can try this as well. Was it easy to pull the 2 halves apart? Now have them screw a screw into the paper plate. Have them both try to pull it apart. Is it easier or more difficult to pull the 2 plates apart than when the nail was holding them together?

TEACHER/FAMILY 1: YOU WILL NEED: 5 Styrofoam plates cut in quarters (Screws and nails will be used from above activities.)

9. Ahead of time fill 2 bottles/jugs with water. One should have a screw lid & one should have a snap on lid. Take the children to the back patio. Ask what they think will happen when you stand on a chair and drop each of the jugs. Demonstrate how the screw top holds better. We used 2 large plastic vinegar containers and dropped them from the second story onto pavement.
TEACHER/FAMILY 2: YOU WILL NEED: 2 bottles/plastic jugs like water bottles or milk jugs - 1 with a screw top & 1 with a snap on top

10. How many other examples of screws that fasten can you name? Show a light bulb, a jar lid, a tube of toothpaste, etc.
TEACHER/FAMILY 3: YOU WILL NEED: examples of screws that fasten like a light bulb, jar lid, tube of toothpaste, etc.

11. Have children get back into their pairs. What else does a screw do? It lifts. Let each partner turn a large, threaded bolt into a nut until the bolt shows through. Put a piece of play-dough on the end of the bolt. Hold the nut and continue to turn the bolt. What happens? (The play-dough lifts up as the bolt turns.) What is one thing a screw can do? (Lift things.) (Note: Not all the children were able to get the play-dough to go up threads of the screw, and it was only a tiny amount that did go up the threads.)

TEACHER/FAMILY 4: YOU WILL NEED: 5 threaded bolts with nuts and play-dough

12. (Optional) Show how an Archimedes screw/auger works. Ahead of time create an auger. If you have extra time you can let each child make one, but I just made one ahead of time with my children. We let everyone turn it around a few times to draw up Rice Krispies so they could see how it works. To make an auger, follow the directions on p. 10 of "Science Book of Machines" by Ardley. Cut the top and bottom off a 2-liter bottle. Trace the open bottle circle onto a piece of cardstock and cut out 6 circles that size. On each circle, trace the bottom of the dowel rod onto the middle of the circles and cut a line into the middle of each circle and cut out a small circle in the middle that is the size of the dowel rod. Lay the circles on top of each other and tape the opposite cut sides of the circle to the circle below it. Pull the circles apart so that you have a screw/continuous spiral. Tape the top and bottom circle slit to the rod. Place it inside the cut 2 liter bottle. Place your auger in a large bowl of Rice Krispies and turn it in circles to spin the cereal to the top of the auger.
TEACHER/FAMILY 1: YOU WILL NEED: 1 auger (directions above) and 1 large bowl of Rice Krispies

13. (If you have extra time) Screws also push. Demonstrate how a screw pushes. (On p. 38 in "Sensational Science Projects with Simple Machines" by Gardner.)

14. Hand a child a broom or shovel and a brick and tell them to lift you off the floor without touching you. Let each child try. Try moving the brick (fulcrum) closer to the child and then have them try to lift you again. What happened?
TEACHER/FAMILY 2: YOU WILL NEED: a wooden-handled broom or shovel or a sturdy piece of plywood about that length and a brick

15. Read "Levers to the Rescue" by Thales. Ask how levers help us. What are some examples?

16. Give each child a ruler, a pencil (used in the above screw activity), and a book. Have them use the pencil as a fulcrum. Place the book on one end of the ruler. Each child should push down on the opposite end while varying the distance of the fulcrum. Does your effort increase or decrease as the fulcrum moves closer to you? (The closer the fulcrum is to the object, the easier it is to lift.) The distance between you and the fulcrum is called the load arm. The distance from the fulcrum to where you are pushing is called the force/effort arm.
TEACHER/FAMILY 3: YOU WILL NEED: 10 rulers & 10 heavy books

17. Briefly mention the different classes of levers. In a first-class lever, the fulcrum is between the load (resistance) and the effort (force). One example is the crowbar. The girl lifting the big rock exerts effort on one end of the bar, the rock is the resistance, and the small rock that provides a pivot is the fulcrum. In a second-class lever, the load or the resistance is between the fulcrum and the effort. One example is a nutcracker. The resistance is the nut, the effort is the hand pressing on the handles, but the fulcrum is the screw on the edge of the nutcracker. In a third-class lever, the effort is between the load and the fulcrum, as with a pair of tongs.
TEACHER/FAMILY 3: YOU WILL NEED: Examples of 3 types of levers (like ruler, nutcracker, and tongs)

18. Go outside and have children take turns scooping dirt out of a pile using a shovel. Have them try holding the shovel with both hands at the top of the shovel and then with one hand (your lifting force) close to the bottom of the shovel. Which requires less work? This is a 3rd class lever. Your hand that is furthest out is the fulcrum. Your hand that moves is the lifting force. What is the load you're trying to lift? (dirt) Notice that with the first class lever, when you lifted me off the ground, the fulcrum was between the lifting force (you) and the load (me). Now with this 3rd class lever the lifting force (the hand you moved) is between the load (dirt) and the fulcrum (your hand that stayed still).
TEACHER/FAMILY 2: YOU WILL NEED: 2 shovels or trowels

19. Show various types of catapults. (We made examples of some of the below catapults.) Lay out the items and let children have 25 minutes to create a catapult, which is a type of lever. Afterward, give everyone 2 large marshmallows. Write their initials using a sharpie marker on one marshmallow. Let them eat the other one. Line them up and have them test out their catapults using large marshmallows as the "rocks." See who can propel the marshmallow the furthest. Then place a shoe-box size container where most of the marshmallows landed. Let them propel their marshmallow again and try to aim for the bucket. See whose catapult is the most accurate.
TEACHER/FAMILY 4: YOU WILL NEED: 1 bag of large marshmallows, 100+ rubber bands of various sizes, 24 large binder clips, 12 3x5 index cards, 24 small paper cups, & 24 pieces of 12-inch string/yarn
TEACHER/FAMILY 1: YOU WILL NEED: 150+ craft/popsicle sticks, 15 plastic spoons, 3 rolls of masking tape, 6 screw-on lids (like ones from a 2 liter soda bottle), & shoe-box size container
TEACHER/FAMILY 2: YOU WILL NEED: 5 pairs of scissors, 6 containers of tacky glue (or similar fast-drying adhesive), 24 clothes pins, 6 small boxes (about the size that checks come in), & 24 wooden shish-kabob sticks or dowel rods
TEACHER/FAMILY 3: YOU WILL NEED: Examples of some of the below catapults
Clothes Pin Catapult
A few children tried this model. It works best if you tilt it upward rather than lay it flat.
Paper Cup Catapult
This was another popular model because of its ease in creating it. It was also the winner in the distance contest. Simply put some rubber bands over a small stack of upside down cups. Put a spoon in the rubber bands. Place masking tape over the rubber bands so they don't slide off. The winner of the distance contest said the secret is to use the smallest rubber bands.
Rubber Band Catapult
A few simple options for catapults
We made a version of the spoon catapult.
Binder Clip Catapult
Triangle Catapult
This one is a bit more complex but could be done by one of the older children.
Homeschool Lesson on Catapults with Many Examples

20. Sing Simple Machines Song & Review.
"Simple Machines Song" (Tune: Yankee Doodle)
(Variation from this lesson.)

When it's moved by force
we call it work,
but here's what I've been told:
Use any simple machine to help and ease that heavy load.

The inclined plane is like a ramp,
a ladder, stairs, or hill.
Increase the distance = reduce the work.
Mechanical Advantage thrill.

The wedge is used to separate,
lift, or hold in place.
You use a wedge to cut your cakes,
Long and narrow = less force it takes.

Our levers come three different ways,
depending on the fulcrum.
Lift, squeeze, cut, pull, haul, or toss
to get all of that work done.

The screw just turns to do its job
- like opening your juice.
Or use the screw to hold things tight,
so that they won't get loose.

The wheel and axle turns around
to help you get things going:
Uphill, downhill, straight ahead,
your force or distance growing.

The pulley uses cord or ropes
or even chains or strings.
Pull longer distance with less force
To lift enormous things.

CHORUS:
Wheel and axle, pulley, wedge
Screw, inclined plane, lever
When you learn to use simple machines
You'll show you are so clever.

TEACHER/FAMILY 4: YOU WILL NEED: words to the song

If you'd like to create a Simple Machines lapbook this week, here are some options:
1. Lapbook cut-out for each simple machine at the end of this lesson plan. You will have to click on a button to download the pdf.
2. Mini-book on simple machines. You can make the pages into a lapbook.
3. Lapbook links for simple machines
4. Simple machines worksheets
5. A coloring page of each simple machine
6. Simple Machines Lapbook from Hands of a Child (Costs Money)

Konos Curriculum
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