Explore Balanced and Unbalanced Forces Examples

Once your students understand the concept of a force as a push or a pull acting on an object, they’re ready to move to the next level of understanding: balanced and unbalanced forces!

• Balanced forces occur when forces of equal magnitude (strength) are acting on an object in opposite directions.
• Unbalanced forces occur when multiple forces are acting on an object and one force is stronger than the other.

These balanced and unbalanced forces worksheets have been designed by our experienced teacher team to familiarize your students with real-life examples of this physics concept. It consists of two cut-and-paste worksheets, each with slightly different examples. 

• Page 1 – In this worksheet, students must cut out the written statements and paste them into the correct column of the table provided.
• Page 2 – In this worksheet, students must cut out the labeled pictures and paste them into the correct column of the table provided.

Answer sheets are also provided in the download.

Some of the real-life examples of balanced and unbalanced forces included in this worksheet set are:

• A cat sitting on a windowsill
• A motionless ball on the ground
• An airplane taking off
• A ball thrown straight up
• A car turning left or right

These balanced and unbalanced forces worksheets download as an easy-print PDF or an editable Google Slides digital document, making them a versatile inclusion to any unit of work on forces and motion. 

Using These Examples of Balanced and Unbalanced Forces in Your Classroom

If you’re keen on some ideas as to how you might implement these balanced and unbalanced forces worksheets in your classroom, read on below for one experienced teacher’s suggestion:

1. Introduction (Whole Class) – Begin the lesson with a brief review of what balanced and unbalanced forces are. Provide examples or demonstrations using simple objects to illustrate each type of force.
2. Guided Practice (Small Groups) – Break the class into small groups and distribute the worksheet along with scissors and glue. Have the groups work through a couple of examples together, discussing the forces acting on each example.
3. Independent Work (Individual) – Allow students to work individually on the remaining examples. This provides an opportunity for students to demonstrate their understanding of the concept.
4. Class Discussion (Whole Class) – After completion, have a class discussion to review the correct placement of examples. Discuss any misconceptions or challenging scenarios.

Download To Explore Balanced and Unbalanced Forces

As mentioned above, these worksheets download as either an easy-print PDF or an editable Google Slides version. Use the download button to access your preferred file format. (Note: You will be prompted to make a copy of the Google Slides template on your personal drive before accessing it.)

As the download contains an answer sheet, we suggest printing one copy of the entire resource, then removing the answer sheet before making copies for your students.

This resource was created by David Steffes, a teacher in California and a Teach Starter collaborator.

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