Information for teachers
Thank you for bringing your students to the show. I hope you find this information useful.
The REAL Science of the Circus
If your students are interested in learning circus skills there are instructions about how to juggling on this site. It is a nice activity to make your own juggling balls. Excellent instruction videos for all the skills performed in the show can be found on YouTube.
Subjects covered in the show:
What fundamental forces surround us?
Gravity
Magnetism
For older children we can discuss the four fundamental forces as gravity, electromagnetism, the strong nuclear and the weak nuclear forces. These are forces that cannot be explained by any other interaction.
LINK
What is a force?
it is a push, a pull or a twist
if something changes its speed (accelerates or decelerates), its direction or its shape then a force must be acting upon it
Sir Isaac Newton explained how things move in 1687 when he published his three laws of motion.
LINK
Forces come in pairs.
According to Newton's 3rd Law (for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction) forces do not exist by themselves they come in pairs.
The reason the volunteer on the skateboard pushing on me moves away is because as s/he pushes on me, I push back. When you struggle to open a heavy door it is hard because as you pull on the door the door is pulling back.
Pairs of forces can be balanced or unbalanced.
According to Newton's 1st Law (an object will remain at rest or in constant motion unless acted upon by an unbalanced force) the cup remains steady on the tray and the water doesn't slosh out because of a balanced pair of forces.
NB: for older children you might point out that the forces in the swinging cup demo can't be truly balanced because the tray is moving in a circular motion- this can lead on to a discussion of centripetal forces.
LINK AND ACTIVITY
Balancing objects.
For an object to balance its centre of mass must remain above its base. A balance can be active where you move the base, or passive where the base remains still.
ACTIVITY
Gyroscopic stability.
Spinning objects want to remain in place. Because they are spinning they resist the force of gravity that pulls them over.
LINK
The REAL Science of the Circus
If your students are interested in learning circus skills there are instructions about how to juggling on this site. It is a nice activity to make your own juggling balls. Excellent instruction videos for all the skills performed in the show can be found on YouTube.
Subjects covered in the show:
What fundamental forces surround us?
Gravity
Magnetism
For older children we can discuss the four fundamental forces as gravity, electromagnetism, the strong nuclear and the weak nuclear forces. These are forces that cannot be explained by any other interaction.
LINK
What is a force?
it is a push, a pull or a twist
if something changes its speed (accelerates or decelerates), its direction or its shape then a force must be acting upon it
Sir Isaac Newton explained how things move in 1687 when he published his three laws of motion.
LINK
Forces come in pairs.
According to Newton's 3rd Law (for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction) forces do not exist by themselves they come in pairs.
The reason the volunteer on the skateboard pushing on me moves away is because as s/he pushes on me, I push back. When you struggle to open a heavy door it is hard because as you pull on the door the door is pulling back.
Pairs of forces can be balanced or unbalanced.
According to Newton's 1st Law (an object will remain at rest or in constant motion unless acted upon by an unbalanced force) the cup remains steady on the tray and the water doesn't slosh out because of a balanced pair of forces.
NB: for older children you might point out that the forces in the swinging cup demo can't be truly balanced because the tray is moving in a circular motion- this can lead on to a discussion of centripetal forces.
LINK AND ACTIVITY
Balancing objects.
For an object to balance its centre of mass must remain above its base. A balance can be active where you move the base, or passive where the base remains still.
ACTIVITY
Gyroscopic stability.
Spinning objects want to remain in place. Because they are spinning they resist the force of gravity that pulls them over.
LINK
