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Motion After Collisions

Interactive passage with audio narration, comprehension questions, and printable PDF.

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Format: Interactive (Online), Printable (PDF)
Grades: 345
Subjects: scienceelareading
Standards: NGSS 4-PS3-3
Languages: English, Spanish

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What's included

Reading passage

Reading comprehension

Audio narration

With word word highlighting

Comprehension quiz

Auto-graded

Writing activity

Open-ended response

Glossary & flashcards

Vocabulary practice

Differentiated version

Adapted for varied levels

Spanish translation

Bilingual support

About this reader

Motion After Collisions is an engaging Grade 4 physical science reading passage aligned to NGSS standard 4-PS3-3 and the Disciplinary Core Idea PS3.B: Conservation of Energy and Energy Transfer. This audio-integrated passage introduces students to the concept of what happens when objects collide. Using familiar examples like toy cars and balls, students learn how collisions cause changes in motion. The passage explains how sometimes both objects move after a collision, sometimes one stops while the other continues, and sometimes they bounce apart in different directions. Students explore the relationship between speed, mass, and collision outcomes through age-appropriate language and concrete examples. The passage includes bolded vocabulary terms with immediate definitions, helping students build science literacy. Accompanying activities include multiple-choice questions testing recall and application, writing prompts requiring explanation and real-world connections, and graphic organizers for analyzing cause-and-effect relationships in collisions. This foundational lesson prepares students for hands-on investigations and deeper exploration of energy transfer concepts.

Written by Workybooks TeamPublished by Workybooks

Sample passage and quiz content

CONTENT PREVIEW

bumper car, fair, bumper, fun, nature, car wallpapers, amusement, park, car, funfair, people, ride, entertainment, leisure, carnival, girl, smiling, child, childhood, joy, play, enjoyment, recreation, young, summer, woman, bump, kid, happiness, driving, speed, pleasure, laughing, attraction, drive, enjoy — If two bumper cars with the same mass hit each other head-on, they might both bounce backward.Objects can change their **direction** after a collision too. Image credit stanvpetersen / Pixabay.

When two objects bump into each other, we call it a collision. A collision is when two or more objects hit each other. Collisions happen all around us every day. Understanding collisions helps us stay safe and predict how objects will move.

After a collision, objects can move in different ways. Sometimes both objects keep moving. Imagine two toy cars rolling toward each other. When they collide, both cars might bounce backward. The speed of each object—how fast it moves—changes during the collision. One car might move faster than the other after they hit.

Other times, one object stops completely while the other keeps going. Think about rolling a ball into a row of other balls. The first ball might stop, but it passes its energy—the ability to make things move or change—to the next ball. That ball then rolls forward.

The size and weight of objects matter too. We call this mass. When a heavy toy truck hits a light plastic ball, the ball usually flies away while the truck barely slows down. The truck has more mass, so it affects the collision differently. When a moving ball hits a wall, the ball bounces back because the wall has much more mass and doesn't move.

Scientists observe collisions carefully. They notice that motion—the act of moving from one place to another—always changes during a collision. By watching toy cars and balls collide, we can predict what will happen in other collisions. This helps engineers design safer cars and helps athletes play better sports.

What is a collision?

When objects move very fastWhen two objects hit each otherWhen an object stops movingWhen energy disappears completely

What does speed mean?

How heavy an object isHow fast something movesThe size of an objectThe color of an object

What is mass?

How fast something movesThe color of an objectHow heavy or light something isThe shape of an object

What happens when a heavy truck hits a light ball?

The truck stops and ball stays stillBoth stop moving immediatelyThe ball flies away, truck barely slowsThe truck bounces backward quickly

Why does a ball bounce back from a wall?

The wall has much more massThe ball has more energyThe wall is made of rubberThe ball is moving too slowly

How do collisions help engineers design safer cars?

By making cars move faster alwaysBy predicting how objects move after hittingBy stopping all motion completelyBy making cars lighter than balls

Motion always changes during a collision.

TrueFalse

Energy is the ability to do what?

Make things colorful and brightMake things move or changeMake things stay perfectly stillMake things disappear completely

Motion After Collisions

What's included

About this reader

Sample passage and quiz content

CONTENT PREVIEW

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