This Interactive provides students with excellent practice analysing force vectors in two dimensions. There are five levels of difficulty. Students can elect to change difficulty levels after each problem. Every problem involves the same task - balancing the given force vectors by dragging out a force vector with the appropriate magnitude and direction. The five levels of difficulty differ from one another by the number of given force vectors that are provided. In the first and easiest level, students balance one force vector. In the fifth and most difficult level, students must add a force vector to balance five given force vectors. 

All force vectors are displayed on a grid of squares with a magnitude of 1 unit along each edge. The x- and y-components of the force vector is displayed near the head of the vector. Students can analyze the components of the given force vectors to determine the required components of the equilibrant vector. Students will receive immediate feedback regarding thier answer. They will have an opportunity to try another problem with the same level of difficulty or to change levels to a higher or lower level of difficulty.

Progress for each of the levels is displayed in the form of the number of attempts and the number of correct solutions. The progress information is not saved.


 

 

 

 

There are a few resources at The Physics Classroom website that serve as very complementary supports for the Equilibrium Interactive. These include:

• Reading:
  Lesson 3 of the Forces and Motion in Two Dimensions Chapter of the Tutorial contains a page that is a perfect accompaniment to this Balance It! Interactive. It thoroughly discusses the physics of angled forces and equilibrium.
  Equilibrium and Statics


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• Concept Builders:
  Our Equilibrium Concept Builder provides a great follow-up to this Interactive. For Task Tracker users, progress is tracked after completion of each level.
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• Minds On Physics Internet Modules:
  The Minds On Physics Internet Modules include a collection of interactive questioning modules that help learners assess their understanding of physics concepts and solidify those understandings by answering questions that require higher-order thinking. Assignments from the Forces in Two Dimensions module make for a great complement to this Concept Builder. They are best used in the middle to later stages of the learning cycle. We recommend missions F2D3 and F2D4 as accompaniments to this activity. Visit the Minds On Physics Internet Modules.
  
   

• Curriculum/Practice: Several Concept Development Think Sheets at the Curriculum Corner will be very useful in assisting students in cultivating their understanding, most notably ...
  
  Using Vector Components to Analyze Equilibrium Situations
  
  Visit the Curriculum Corner - Forces in Two Dimensions.

Additional resources and ideas for incorporating the Equilibrium Interactive into an instructional unit on Newton's Laws of motion can be found at the Teacher Toolkits section of The Physics Classroom website.  Visit Teacher Toolkits.

 

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