Simple Machines: Levers and Ramps
Exploring how simple machines make work easier
Simple Machines: Levers and Ramps
Exploring how simple machines make work easier
Science - Grade 2-3
- 1
A ramp is placed from the ground to the back of a truck. How does the ramp help someone load a heavy box into the truck?
Think about whether pushing up a slope is easier than lifting straight up.
The ramp helps by letting the person push or pull the box up a slanted surface instead of lifting it straight up. - 2
Circle the object that is a lever: spoon used to lift a lid, ball, pencil lying flat, or cup.
The spoon used to lift a lid is a lever because it helps lift or move something by turning around a point. - 3
A seesaw is a kind of lever. What part of the seesaw is the fulcrum?
Look for the part that stays in the middle while the ends go up and down.
The fulcrum is the middle support that the seesaw balances and turns on. - 4
Write one example of a ramp that you have seen at school, at home, or in your community.
One example of a ramp is a wheelchair ramp at a school entrance. Answers may vary if the example is a slanted surface used to move from one height to another. - 5
A child uses a long board as a ramp to roll a toy car up to a shelf. Would a longer ramp or a shorter ramp usually make the push feel easier?
A gentle slope is usually easier than a steep slope.
A longer ramp usually makes the push feel easier because the climb is spread out over a greater distance. - 6
A bottle opener helps lift the cap off a bottle. Is a bottle opener more like a lever or a ramp?
A bottle opener is more like a lever because it lifts the cap by turning around a point. - 7
Fill in the blank: A ramp is also called an inclined plane because it is a flat surface that is ______________.
The word describes a surface that goes up or down at an angle.
A ramp is also called an inclined plane because it is a flat surface that is slanted. - 8
Look at a wheelbarrow. The handles help a person lift and move a load. Is a wheelbarrow using a lever, a ramp, both, or neither?
A wheelbarrow uses a lever because the handles help lift the load around the wheel area. - 9
Mia needs to move a heavy crate from the floor to a porch. Name one simple machine she could use and explain how it would help.
Choose either a lever or a ramp, then tell what job it helps with.
Mia could use a ramp. The ramp would help her push or pull the crate up to the porch instead of lifting it straight up. - 10
Which ramp would be safer for moving a wagon up to a low step: a very steep ramp or a gentle ramp? Explain your answer.
A gentle ramp would be safer because it is easier to push the wagon up and less likely to make the wagon roll back quickly. - 11
A lever has three main parts: the load, the effort, and the fulcrum. What is the load?
The load is the thing you are trying to move.
The load is the object that the lever is lifting or moving. - 12
Sam pushes down on one end of a ruler to lift a small eraser on the other end. What simple machine is Sam using?
Sam is using a lever because the ruler turns around a point to lift the eraser. - 13
A delivery worker uses a ramp to move boxes. The ramp does not make the boxes lighter. What does the ramp change to make the work easier?
The box still weighs the same, but the way it is moved changes.
The ramp changes the direction and distance of the push or pull, so the worker can move the boxes up gradually instead of lifting them straight up. - 14
Circle the two examples that use ramps: stairs, slide, door handle, loading ramp, spoon.
The slide and the loading ramp use ramps because both have slanted surfaces. - 15
Explain how a lever can help a person lift something heavy.
Use the words push, pull, fulcrum, or load in your answer.
A lever can help a person lift something heavy by turning around a fulcrum so the person can use a push or pull to move the load more easily.