Speeding up, slowing down and turning
Grade 8 Science Worksheet - Building Confidence

Circle the best answer.
A toy car starts from rest and goes faster and faster down a ramp. Is it accelerating, Ari?
- No: it started at rest
- No: a ramp does the moving, not the car
- Yes: its speed is changing
Bo rides a bike at a steady 5 m/s along a straight, flat path. Is the bike accelerating?
- No: same speed, same direction
- Yes: it is moving
- Yes: 5 m/s is fast
Esme's toy train goes around a circular track at a steady speed. Is the train accelerating?
- Yes: its direction is changing
- No: its speed stays the same
- No: toy trains are too slow
In Jun's diagram, the velocity arrow and the net-force arrow both point right. What is the cart doing?
- Slowing down
- Turning
- Moving at a steady speed
- Speeding up
Now the cart's velocity arrow points right and its net-force arrow points left. What is the cart doing, Kira?
Force arrow diagram (top view): a box for the cart, with a velocity arrow pointing right and a net-force arrow pointing left. Force arrow diagram (top view): a box for the cart, with a velocity arrow pointing right and a net-force arrow pointing left. cart velocity net-force - Moving left, the way the force points
- Standing still
- Slowing down
- Speeding up, since a force acts
In Luz's top view, the velocity arrow points right and the net-force arrow points toward the top of the page. What is the cart doing?
Force arrow diagram (top view): a box for the cart, with a velocity arrow pointing right and a net-force arrow pointing toward the top of the page. Force arrow diagram (top view): a box for the cart, with a velocity arrow pointing right and a net-force arrow pointing toward the top of the page. top view cart velocity net-force - Slowing to a stop
- Moving straight up the page
- Speeding up, since a force acts
- Turning
Milo watches things in the gym. Which one is accelerating?
- A cart rolling at a steady 2 m/s in a straight line
- A mat lying on the floor
- A book resting on the bleachers
- A ball slowing as it rolls to a stop
Noah lists four moving things. Which one has no acceleration?
- A car going around a bend at a steady speed
- A ball dropped from a desk
- A bike braking at a red light
- A puck sliding at a steady speed in a straight line
Pia rides the Ferris wheel (snack in hand). Which of these is accelerating?
- An escalator step going up a straight slope at steady speed
- A parked bus by the gate
- A Ferris wheel seat turning at a steady speed
- An empty Ferris wheel stopped for the night
A car slows from 20 m/s to 10 m/s on a straight road. Is it accelerating, Tala?
- Yes: its velocity changed
- No: it is still moving forward
- Yes, but just at the end
- No: speeding up is the one that counts