Energy Transfer & Collisions Playground
Energy never disappears - it just changes form and moves to new places. Discover how rubbing creates heat, how collisions transfer motion, and how the sun's light becomes warmth.
Energy Transfer Explorer
Tap a card to see how energy changes form.
🌡️Heat🔊Sound💡Light🏃Motion⚡Electrical
Tap any card to see how energy moves from one form to another.
🤲
rub hands
🌡️HeatTap to explore
👏
clap hands
🔊SoundTap to explore
💡
turn on light
💡LightTap to explore
⚽
push ball
🏃MotionTap to explore
☀️
sun warms skin
🌡️HeatTap to explore
🎸
guitar string plucked
🔊SoundTap to explore
🔋
phone charging
⚡ElectricalTap to explore
🔥
fire burns
🌡️HeatTap to explore
⚡
thunder heard
🔊SoundTap to explore
📡
microwave heats food
🌡️HeatTap to explore
Energy never disappears - it just changes form. This is called the Law of Conservation of Energy!
NGSS 4-PS3-2 / 4-PS3-3 | Grades 3-5
Energy Reference
Types of Energy Transfer
- Heat: energy moves from hot to cold objects
- Sound: vibrations travel through air or solids
- Light: electromagnetic waves carry energy from the sun
- Motion: moving objects transfer energy on contact
- Electrical: electrons carry energy through circuits
Collisions
When objects collide, momentum is always conserved.
- Heavier objects have more momentum at the same speed
- A fast light ball can push a slow heavy ball
- Elastic: objects bounce off (billiard balls)
- Inelastic: objects stick together (clay)
Conservation of Energy
Energy cannot be created or destroyed - only converted from one form to another.
- Rubbing hands: motion energy becomes heat
- Clapping: motion energy becomes sound
- A light bulb: electrical energy becomes light
- A ball collision: kinetic energy transfers between objects
NGSS Connections
- 4-PS3-2: make observations to show energy transferred from one object to another
- 4-PS3-3: ask questions and predict outcomes about the changes in energy in a system
- Applies to grades 3-5 physical science
- Supports hands-on investigation of heat, sound, light, and motion
Related Content
Visual Explainers
How Roller Coasters Turn Gravity Into Energy
Energy changes shape on every hill
How Bridges Stay Up When Cars Drive Across
Forces spread through strong shapes
Why GPS Knows Where You Are
Tiny time differences become a map position
Why Do Astronauts Float in Space?
Orbit is falling without hitting the ground
Related Tools
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Calculate trajectory, range, max height, and time of flight for projectile motion. Visualize the parabolic path with an interactive time slider and velocity vectors.
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Calculate voltage, current, resistance, and power with Ohm's law. Build series and parallel resistor networks with step-by-step equivalent resistance.
Lens & Mirror Calculator
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Kinematics Solver
Solve constant-acceleration problems with step-by-step solutions and motion graphs.
Related Labs
Heat Transfer Lab
Visualize conduction, convection, and radiation with a temperature heatmap. Compare materials with different thermal conductivities using Fourier's law
Waves & Secret Messages Lab
Explore wave amplitude and wavelength, discover which materials waves travel through, and decode secret flash-code messages. NGSS 4-PS4-3. Grades 3–5.
Rube Goldberg Chain Reaction Lab
Drag-place up to six machine elements (domino, ball, pulley, ramp, lever, spring) onto a chain, then click Run to watch each activate in sequence. Score is based on energy variety. Goal is to ring the bell.
Pushes & Motion Lab
Apply pushes and pulls to different objects and observe how force type, strength, and direction change motion. Collect data and discover Newton's laws in action. Grades K-2.
