Science Forces & Motionusually ages 5–8

Forces Vocabulary

Name and describe forces using precise vocabulary — force, push, pull, twist, stretch, squash, contact force, non-contact force, gravity, weight, friction, air resistance, upthrust — and distinguish between forces that require physical contact and forces that act at a distance

How to tell they’ve got it

Tick these off as you see them — no test required.

Correctly name the force acting in at least five given scenarios (e.g. 'friction slows the sledge', 'gravity pulls the apple')
Distinguish between contact forces (friction, upthrust) and non-contact forces (gravity, magnetism) using the correct terms
Use 'weight' correctly as a force — distinct from 'mass' — in descriptions

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Try this together

If your child slides down a slide and slows near the bottom, can they name the force responsible and spell it correctly?

Where this sits on the map

Stuck here? Check the skills it builds on first. Confident? Here’s what it unlocks.

Builds on

Nothing on the map comes before this — it’s a starting point.

Forces Vocabularythis skill · ages 5–8

Unlocks

Contact & Non-Contact Forcesages 7–8Distinguishing contact from non-contact forces requires these exact terms

Friction & Surfacesages 7–8Comparing how things move on different surfaces requires friction vocabulary

Air Resistance & Frictionages 9–10Identifying air resistance, water resistance, and friction requires these force terms

Gravity & Falling Objectsages 9–11Explaining gravity requires the force vocabulary: gravity, weight, non-contact force

solid = must come firstdashed = helps

Curriculum alignment

Candidate matches to official curriculum codes — machine-suggested, unreviewed (v0.1).

Show candidate curriculum codes · 1 ACARA · 3 VIC

Australian Curriculum v9 candidate

AC9S4U03medium confidenceYear 4 · Science understanding

identify how forces can be exerted by one object on another and investigate the effect of frictional, gravitational and magnetic forces on the motion of objects

Victorian Curriculum 2.0 codes & levels only

VC2S4U10medium confidenceScience · Levels 3 and 4 · Science Understanding strand

VC2S2U11medium confidenceScience · Foundation to Level 2 · Science Understanding strand

VC2TDE4C01medium confidenceDesign and Technologies · Levels 3 and 4 · Technologies Contexts strand

These are candidate alignments generated by semantic matching — machine-suggested and unreviewed (v0.1), not official or verified mappings. For official curriculum content see australiancurriculum.edu.au, curriculum.nsw.edu.au and f10.vcaa.vic.edu.au. Don’t rely on them for registration or compliance purposes.

Nearby on the map

Pushes & Pullsages 5–6 Testing Push & Pull Designsages 5–6 Contact & Non-Contact Forcesages 7–8 Drawing Force Diagramsages 7–12

All Forces & Motion skills →