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Friction: Friend or Foe?

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Friction: Friend or Foe?

Explore how friction affects movement. Read each question carefully and use your knowledge of surfaces and forces.

Understanding Friction

1.Complete the explanation: Friction is a that acts when two touch. It acts in the direction to an object's movement.

2.Which statement about friction is correct?

It only happens when a surface is wet.
It is a force between touching surfaces that resists motion.
It always makes an object move faster.
It acts only on objects that are already moving.

3.Choose the correct word: A rough surface usually creates MORE / LESS friction than a smooth surface.

MORE
LESS

4.Write HIGH or LOW to show the typical friction each surface provides: ice, coarse sandpaper, a polished tile floor and a rubber grip mat.

Friction in Everyday Life

5.Select every situation where friction is useful.

Bicycle brake pads gripping a wheel to slow it
A person’s shoes gripping the footpath while walking
A pencil making marks on paper
A moving engine part wearing down
A match being rubbed to produce heat
A toboggan slowing on rough grass

6.Describe one everyday situation where friction causes a problem. Explain what makes it difficult.

7.Why do car tyres have grooves in their tread, particularly when roads are wet?

Predicting and Reducing Friction

Imagine pushing the same book across carpet, a dry wooden tabletop and a smooth plastic tray with a little water on it.

8.Rank these surfaces from hardest to easiest to push a book across. Write 1 for hardest, 2 for the middle and 3 for easiest: carpet; dry wooden tabletop; wet plastic tray.

9.Name two materials or methods that can reduce friction between surfaces.

10.Would a world with no friction be easier to live in? Give your view and support it with one reason.