Science · Grade 3

Active learning ideas

Gravity: The Invisible Pull

Active learning lets students feel gravity’s pull directly. When they drop objects, feel a ball’s arc, or adjust a ramp, they build intuitive understanding beyond abstract explanations. Concrete experiences with gravity’s effects help third graders move from guessing to observing and explaining its consistent pull on all objects.

• Ontario Curriculum Expectations
• 3-PS2-1

• 25–45 min
• Pairs → Whole Class
• 4 activities

Activity 01

• Experiential Learning
• 30 min · Pairs

Dropping Race: Mass vs Fall Time

Provide coins, erasers, and crumpled paper balls. Students drop pairs from shoulder height, time falls with stopwatches, and record results in tables. Discuss why light and heavy items land together, introducing air resistance.

Explain why objects fall to the ground when dropped.

Facilitation Tip

During Dropping Race, remind students to release objects at the exact same moment and keep hands at the same height to ensure fair comparisons.

What to look for

Provide students with three objects of different weights (e.g., a crumpled paper ball, a solid ball, a book). Ask them to predict which will hit the ground first when dropped from the same height. Then, have them write one sentence explaining why their prediction was correct or incorrect, referencing gravity.

• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Self-Awareness
• Self-Management
• Social Awareness

Activity 02

• Experiential Learning
• 40 min · Small Groups

Ramp Roll-Off: Angle Effects

Build cardboard ramps at 20, 40, and 60-degree angles. Roll marbles or balls down each, measure rollout distance on the floor. Groups chart data and predict outcomes for new angles.

Compare the effect of gravity on objects of different weights.

Facilitation Tip

For Ramp Roll-Off, have pairs mark angles with tape and measure distance from the ramp’s end to the landing spot to standardize data collection.

What to look for

Pose the question: 'Imagine you are on the moon, where gravity is weaker. What would happen if you dropped a feather and a hammer at the same time?' Guide students to discuss how gravity's pull, or lack thereof, would affect the objects' fall and compare it to Earth.

• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Self-Awareness
• Self-Management
• Social Awareness

Activity 03

• Experiential Learning
• 25 min · Whole Class

Toss and Trace: Ball Paths

Toss soft balls upward outside or in gym, trace paths on large paper with chalk or string. Students predict, observe rise-slow-fall, then label gravity's role on diagrams.

Predict how gravity influences the movement of a ball thrown into the air.

Facilitation Tip

In Toss and Trace, ask students to stand in a circle so everyone can see the ball’s path clearly and trace it with a single finger in the air.

What to look for

During a demonstration where you toss a ball into the air, ask students to draw the path the ball will take. Then, ask them to label the point where gravity is pulling the ball down the most strongly. Review drawings to check for understanding of trajectory.

• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Self-Awareness
• Self-Management
• Social Awareness

Activity 04

• Experiential Learning
• 45 min · Small Groups

Parachute Design Challenge

Cut plastic bags into parachutes of varying sizes, attach to small toys. Drop from balcony or stairs, time descents. Adjust designs and retest to minimize fall time.

Explain why objects fall to the ground when dropped.

Facilitation Tip

During the Parachute Design Challenge, limit materials to one sheet of paper and four strings to focus design thinking on shape and surface area.

What to look for

Provide students with three objects of different weights (e.g., a crumpled paper ball, a solid ball, a book). Ask them to predict which will hit the ground first when dropped from the same height. Then, have them write one sentence explaining why their prediction was correct or incorrect, referencing gravity.

• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Self-Awareness
• Self-Management
• Social Awareness

A few notes on teaching this unit

Teach this topic by letting students experience contradictions to their prior ideas. Avoid telling them gravity is simple; instead, guide them to notice patterns in their own data. Use guided questions to push their thinking from ‘heavy things fall fast’ to ‘all things accelerate at the same rate without air resistance.’ Research shows that when students confront their misconceptions through repeated trials, their conceptual change is more lasting.

Successful learning looks like students using evidence from hands-on trials to explain that gravity accelerates all objects equally in a vacuum, changes its effect based on motion, and pulls objects down regardless of weight. They should confidently discuss these ideas using data from their own experiments and peer explanations.

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Watch Out for These Misconceptions

• During Dropping Race, watch for students assuming the heaviest object will always hit the ground first.

  Have students drop a book and feather together, then ask them to time both with stopwatches. Ask them to explain why the feather slows down, leading them to recognize air resistance rather than weight as the cause.

• During Toss and Trace, watch for students thinking gravity only pulls objects straight down from rest.

  Ask students to trace the ball’s path in the air and mark where it starts to fall back. Guide them to describe how gravity pulls the ball downward even when it’s moving upward.

• During Ramp Roll-Off, watch for students believing gravity only acts on falling objects, not rolling ones.

  Have students measure ramp angles and object speeds, then ask them to explain how gravity’s pull changes direction as the object rolls down the ramp versus after it leaves the ramp.

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Methods used in this brief

• Experiential Learning