Grade 4 learners discover how speed and mass change the kinetic energy of moving objects. This worksheet compares fast bicycles to slow trucks, marbles to bowling balls, and explains why doubling speed dramatically increases energy. Students use sentence corrections, fill-ins, and short-answer prompts to reason about why heavier and faster objects carry more energy. Builds toward understanding collisions and energy transfer in NGSS 4-PS3 lessons later in the unit.
Style:
Energy: Forms and Transfer
Part A: Fix the Sentence
Each sentence has an error. Rewrite it correctly on the line.
1. Fix the sentence:
A slow truck has more kinetic energy than a fast bicycle of the same weight.
Rewrite: A fast bicycle has more kinetic energy than a slow truck of the same weight.
2. Fix the sentence:
A small marble moving fast has more kinetic energy than a heavy bowling ball moving the same speed.
Rewrite: A heavy bowling ball moving fast has more kinetic energy than a small marble moving the same speed.
3. Fix the sentence:
Two cars moving at the same speed always have exactly the same kinetic energy no matter their size.
Rewrite: Two cars moving at the same speed have different kinetic energy if their sizes are different.
Part B: Fill in the Blank
Write the missing word or number on each line.
1. When a car speeds up, its kinetic energy increases.
2. A heavy bowling ball has more kinetic energy than a light tennis ball when both move at the same speed.
3. Doubling the speed of a moving object makes its kinetic energy greater than before.
4. A still object that is not moving has zero kinetic energy.
Part C: Short Answer
Answer each question in one or two complete sentences.
1. Why does a fast soccer ball hurt more when it hits you than a slow one of the same size?
The fast soccer ball has more kinetic energy because speed makes kinetic energy bigger. When it hits you, more energy transfers to your body. The slow ball carries less energy, so it does not push as hard.
2. Compare a moving truck and a moving bicycle traveling at the same speed. Which has more kinetic energy and why?
The truck has more kinetic energy because it has much more mass than the bicycle. When two objects move at the same speed, the heavier one carries more kinetic energy. That is why a truck is harder to stop than a bike.
Energy: Forms and Transfer
★ Part A: Fix the Sentence
Each sentence has an error. Rewrite it correctly on the line.
1) Fix the sentence:
A slow truck has more kinetic energy than a fast bicycle of the same weight.
Rewrite: A fast bicycle has more kinetic energy than a slow truck of the same weight.
2) Fix the sentence:
A small marble moving fast has more kinetic energy than a heavy bowling ball moving the same speed.
Rewrite: A heavy bowling ball moving fast has more kinetic energy than a small marble moving the same speed.
3) Fix the sentence:
Two cars moving at the same speed always have exactly the same kinetic energy no matter their size.
Rewrite: Two cars moving at the same speed have different kinetic energy if their sizes are different.
★ Part B: Fill in the Blank
Write the missing word or number on each line.
1) When a car speeds up, its kinetic energy increases.
2) A heavy bowling ball has more kinetic energy than a light tennis ball when both move at the same speed.
3) Doubling the speed of a moving object makes its kinetic energy greater than before.
4) A still object that is not moving has zero kinetic energy.
★ Part C: Short Answer
Answer each question in one or two complete sentences.
1) Why does a fast soccer ball hurt more when it hits you than a slow one of the same size?
The fast soccer ball has more kinetic energy because speed makes kinetic energy bigger. When it hits you, more energy transfers to your body. The slow ball carries less energy, so it does not push as hard.
2) Compare a moving truck and a moving bicycle traveling at the same speed. Which has more kinetic energy and why?
The truck has more kinetic energy because it has much more mass than the bicycle. When two objects move at the same speed, the heavier one carries more kinetic energy. That is why a truck is harder to stop than a bike.
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