New to this? Barriers and Script are the two to read. The rest are there when you want them. Layers
Lesson plan · teacher's copy

Why do things fall?

Objective: Explain that unsupported objects fall towards the Earth because of the force of gravity acting between the Earth and the falling object.
Year5
SubjectScience · Forces
FrameTurn
Duration55 minutes
Curriculum source: National Curriculum, Science, Year 5, Forces - "explain that unsupported objects fall towards the Earth because of the force of gravity acting between the Earth and the falling object." Quoted from the Year 5 programme of study. Prior: forces are pushes and pulls (Y3). Next: air resistance - why a feather DOES fall slower on Earth. If a child raises it today, say "yes, and that is exactly what we do next lesson."
First thing
Show them how
Build together
Quick check
Their turn
Last thing
First thing4 min

Three things you know about forces. Write them. Thirty seconds. Then: is a force always a push?

The blank space on this slide

It is for collecting what they already know, in their words.

Write up what the class gives you. Do not tidy it, do not improve it. You are looking for the pull idea to surface - if nobody says it, the question at the bottom of the slide will get you there.

What usually comes up A force is a push or a pull · forces make things speed up, slow down or change direction · you cannot see a force, you see what it does
Do it your way. This space is yours. Bullet it, mind-map it, draw it. The slide does not care how you fill it, only that you fill it with their words rather than yours.
Teacher script - words you might use
"Three things you know about forces. Whiteboards. Thirty seconds. Go."
"Right, hands down, shout them at me."
"Is a force always a push? Think. Thumbs up for yes, down for no."

Do not accept "a push" and move on. You need "pull" on the board before the next slide, because gravity is a pull and they will not accept that if push is the only word they own.

Teaching assistant
BeforeWhiteboards and pens out on every table before the class comes in.
DuringSit beside the children who freeze at a blank whiteboard. Do not supply an answer - ask them what they saw in the last forces lesson.
Watch forA child writing nothing. That is not always not knowing; it is often not daring.

You are not scribing for them. You are getting them started.

AI opportunities - and where not to
Could:Generate five more retrieval questions on Y3 forces, if this class needs a longer warm-up.
Could:Turn their three answers into a quick class word cloud for the wall.
Do not:Do not have AI answer the retrieval questions for the children. Retrieval only works if the child does the retrieving - reading an answer is worth nothing.
Barriers and routes in - what could stop any child, and what helps
What they are doingRetrieving from memory, unaided, exactly like everyone else. This is not a reduced task - it is the same task.
What might stop themA blank whiteboard is frightening if you are not sure you know anything. The barrier is usually confidence, not knowledge.
What actually helps'What did we do last time with the springs?' A cue to a memory, not a supply of an answer. You are opening a door, not walking through it for them.
What does not helpTelling them a force is a push or a pull. You have now done the retrieving, and they have done nothing.
Everyone retrieves. Nobody is given the answer.
Going further - open to anyone
On the slide"Is a force always a push?" is already the challenge, and it is asked of everyone.
If they are quick"Give me a force you cannot see." That is much harder than it sounds and it walks straight into gravity.
Never say "the stretch group". The question is asked to the room.
Barriers and routes in - by barrier, not by label
Reading or writing is the barrierWhiteboards are a written task. Take this orally. Ask them for their three things aloud, and let a partner scribe if needed. You are retrieving forces knowledge, not handwriting.
Sustained attention is the barrierThirty seconds is perfect for this child, and it is why the task is timed. Do not extend it because others are still writing. A short sharp burst is where they are strongest.
Uncertainty or ambiguity is the barrier"Three things" is precise and finite, and that is why it works. Do not change it to "as many as you can" - an open-ended task with no end point is genuinely distressing.
Holding several things at once is the barrierHave the last lesson's key words visible on the wall. Retrieval is not cheating if the child still has to choose which words matter.
Time to think is the barrierGive the question, then wait. Five seconds of silence before you take answers. It feels endless to you and it is the difference between them answering and not.
A label is not a need An autistic child may need the closed question - or may need the Going Further one, and be held back by a scaffold nobody asked them if they wanted. A child with ADHD may be the strongest thinker in the room. Read the barrier, not the label. And ask the child - they usually know.
Ask the child Your Year 5s know exactly what helps them, and they are the most under-consulted experts in the building. "What would make this easier for you?" takes ten seconds and is more accurate than anything on this page.
EAL - not a learning difficulty
This is a recall task and an EAL child may know the science and not the English word. Accept "push" in any language, accept a gesture, accept a drawing. If they can show you a push, they have retrieved it. Write the English word next to their answer, do not correct them into it.
Show them how10 min

Drop a pen. Ask why it fell. Collect the wrong answer and write it up. Almost every class gives you some version of "because it's heavy."

"Right. Let's leave that there. Now watch. I am going to drop two things."

Drop the heavy book and the light pen, same height, same moment. They land together. Let that sit.

The demonstration will go wrong. Plan for it.

Releasing two objects at exactly the same moment, one-handed, in front of thirty children, is harder than it looks. If they do not land together, you have just proved the misconception.

Practise it three times before the lesson. Hold both at the same height, palms flat, and pull both hands away sideways at once. Do not drop from your fingers.

If it goes wrong in the lesson: say so. Out loud. "That was my fault, not the science. Watch again." Then do it again, slower. A teacher who admits a failed demonstration is modelling exactly what this lesson is about. A teacher who pretends it worked has taught the class that evidence does not matter.

The backup: two identical water bottles, one full, one empty. Almost impossible to release unevenly, and the mass difference is large and obvious.

The misconception you are hunting:

"Heavy things fall faster" is one of the most robust misconceptions in all of science education. It survives demonstration, because children explain the result away ("you dropped them wrong"). You must surface it before you can move it - which is why you write it up rather than correcting it.

The Turn frame on this slide

Both boxes are empty. You fill them, live, with the class watching.

The dashed box (what we thought): put their own words in it. The ones you wrote up two minutes ago. Their thinking, honoured, not erased.

The solid box (what we think now): build this together, after the demonstration. Do not write it before they have seen the book and the pen land.

Where the class usually lands Gravity pulls everything towards the Earth · it pulls the book and it pulls the pen · it pulls you, which is why you are in your chair and not on the ceiling
If you are new to this - one teacher's version
Not the version. One. Copy it the first time, adapt it the third, ignore it by the tenth.

[Teacher writes on the left of the board]
"Right. What did we think? Heavy things fall faster. That is what we all thought."

[Draws an arrow to the right]
"Then we dropped the book and the pen. What happened? They landed together."

[Writes on the right]
"So what do we think NOW? Gravity pulls everything the same."

That is it. Three sentences and an arrow. You do not need to be clever. You need to be visible.
Say the Turn out loud. "We are changing our minds. That is a good thing. Scientists do it all the time." The frame is not decoration - naming it is what makes being wrong safe.
Teacher script - words you might use
"I am going to drop this pen. Watch. ... Why did it fall?"
"Say that again. I am writing exactly what you said."
"Good. Leave it there. Now watch. I am going to drop TWO things."
"If heavy things fall faster, what SHOULD have happened? What actually happened?"
"There is a pull between the Earth and every single object. We call it gravity. It pulls the pen. It pulls the book. It pulls YOU, which is why you are in your chair and not on the ceiling."

The line about the ceiling is doing real work. Gravity is invisible and abstract; their own body in their own chair is not.

Teaching assistant
BeforeHave the book and pen ready. Practise the drop once. They must land together, which means releasing both at exactly the same moment - not one hand each.
DuringStand at the back and watch faces during the drop. The children whose expression does not change are the ones who did not believe it and are explaining it away. Note who they are.
SayNothing during the drop. Let it be silent. The silence is what makes it land.

You are the second pair of eyes on the misconception. The teacher cannot watch thirty faces while dropping two objects.

AI opportunities - and where not to
Could:Find a short clip of the Apollo 15 hammer-and-feather drop for the hinge, if you want to show it AFTER they have voted.
Do not:Do not show a video of the demonstration instead of doing it live. A child can dismiss a video. They cannot dismiss a book landing on the floor in front of them.
Do not:Do not have AI explain gravity to the class. You are modelling the thinking. If AI does it, they watch an answer appear instead of watching a mind work.
Barriers and routes in - what could stop any child, and what helps
What they are doingWatching a demonstration and forming an explanation. The same cognitive work as everyone.
The real barrier hereNot the science. The LANGUAGE. 'Unsupported', 'force', 'attract' are abstract words attached to an invisible thing. A child with weaker language, or new to English, can understand gravity perfectly and be unable to say it.
What actually helpsPoint at the thing while you name it. Drop the pen and say 'gravity pulled it down' at the moment it lands. The word and the event, together, every time.
Do notDo not simplify the science. Simplify the sentence. 'Gravity pulls things down' is not a lesser idea than 'objects are attracted to the Earth by gravitational force'. It is the same idea in fewer syllables.
Same demonstration. Same explanation. Fewer syllables.
Going further - open to anyone
Push, in the moment"You said the book is heavier. So why did they land together?" Let them sit in that.
This is a question, not a worksheet. The stretch is the discomfort of a contradiction, and it costs nothing to offer it to the whole room.
Barriers and routes in - by barrier, not by label
Hearing you is the barrierYou are speaking while dropping objects, which means their eyes cannot be on your face. Say the sentence, then drop. Never both at once.
Seeing it is the barrierThe drop is a sound as much as a sight. Say it aloud as it lands: "They landed together. Same moment." And let them hold the book and the pen before you drop them.
Uncertainty or ambiguity is the barrierSay what is about to happen before you do it. "I am going to drop two things. They will land on the floor. It will make a noise." A sudden bang is not a surprise, it is an ambush.
Sustained attention is the barrierThis is the moment they are with you completely. Do not waste it on admin. Drop the things, then talk.
Reading or writing is the barrierYou are writing their words on the board. Read them aloud as you write. A child who cannot read the board can still hold what was said.
Holding several things at once is the barrierThe chain is: heavy idea → demonstration → new idea. That is three things. Put the Turn frame up so the chain is on the wall rather than in their head.
EAL - not a learning difficulty
This lesson turns on the word "pull", and it is not an obvious word for a force in every language. Give the word, show the action, then use it every single time. Do not simplify the science. "Gravity pulls things down" is not a lesser idea than "objects are attracted by gravitational force" - it is the same idea in fewer syllables, and an EAL child needs the idea whole.
Build it together12 min

Predict, observe, explain. Three pairs, all dropped together. No paper and no feathers in this lesson - air resistance is a second force, and it belongs to the next lesson, not this one.

Use pairs with a big, obvious mass difference. A book and a shoe. A marble and a ping-pong ball. They land together every time, and the bigger the difference, the more surprising it is.

The blank space on this slide

It is for the class's explanation, scribed by you as they build it.

You are holding the explanation together while they supply the parts. Write what they say, then sharpen it with them. The point is that the reasoning is visibly theirs.

Where they need to arrive The flat one falls slower · it is not the weight, because it is the same paper · the air is pushing back on it · that is a different force, and we meet it next lesson
Do not name air resistance yet. Let them describe it. The label comes next lesson; the idea comes today.
Teacher script - words you might use
"Predict first. Whiteboards. Which one lands first?"
"Now watch. ... Who was right?"
"Same paper. Same weight. Different result. So it is NOT the weight. What is different?"
"Something is pushing back on the flat one. What could be pushing back on it?"

Do not name air resistance. They will get to "the air" themselves, and the label belongs to next lesson. The idea belongs to today.

Teaching assistant
PrepareTwo identical sheets of paper. Screw one up while they watch, so they know it is the same paper.
DuringTake the coin-and-feather pair to the children who are still unsure and let them do it themselves, in their hands, twice.
Prompt'It is the same paper. So what changed?' Do not answer it for them.
AI opportunities - and where not to
Could:Build a quick prediction poll so every child commits before they see the result. Commitment is what makes the surprise stick.
Do not:Do not use a simulation instead of the real paper. The whole force of this moment is that it is the same physical object, in the room, in front of them.
Barriers and routes in - what could stop any child, and what helps
What they are doingPredict, observe, explain. All three. Not a reduced version of it.
The barrierHolding a prediction in mind WHILE watching WHILE forming an explanation is three things at once. That is a working-memory load, and it is where these children fall off - not at the science.
What actually helpsChunk it. Predict. Stop. Watch. Stop. Now explain. Three separate moments, never overlapping. This is the single most useful thing you can do for them in this lesson.
Also helpsLet them hold the objects. A child who has felt the screwed-up paper and the flat paper in their own two hands has an anchor that no explanation can give them.
The thinking is not reduced. The load is.
Going further - open to anyone
The real question"Why does screwing the paper up change ANYTHING? It is the same paper." Ask it to the room and let it hang.
The best stretch in this lesson is a question nobody can answer yet. It does not need a worksheet.
Barriers and routes in - by barrier, not by label
Holding several things at once is the barrierPredict + watch + explain is three simultaneous demands, and this is where these children fall off - not at the science. Chunk it absolutely. Predict. Stop. Watch. Stop. Now explain. Never overlapping.
Uncertainty or ambiguity is the barrierPredict-observe-explain is a routine, and routines are a strength here. Use the same three words every time, in the same order, and this child will lead it.
Sustained attention is the barrierGive them the objects to drop. Let them do it. A child who is doing is a child who is not fidgeting.
The motor demand is the barrierScrewing up paper and dropping two things simultaneously is a motor task. Pair them, or screw the paper up for them. The motor demand is not the objective.
Seeing it is the barrierThe flat-vs-crumpled paper is tactile and that is a gift here. Let them feel both before predicting.
EAL - not a learning difficulty
"Predict" is an abstract instruction. Say "what will happen?" instead - concrete, and it means exactly the same thing. And let them answer the prediction with a gesture or a pointed finger. The thinking is in the prediction, not in the sentence.
Quick check The hinge 4 min

On the Moon there is no air. An astronaut drops a hammer and a feather, same height, same moment. Which lands first? Vote, then write one sentence saying why.

Why this question and not another:

The Moon removes air resistance entirely, so a child cannot hide behind it. A child who still says "hammer" has not shifted - they have simply gone quiet. The sentence matters more than the vote. "Together, because gravity pulls the same on both" is the win. "Together, because there is no air" is close, but not yet there - they have understood the demonstration without understanding the force.

If the hinge fails, here is exactly what to do with the next twenty minutes.

You have been told your lesson has not worked. That is good news - you found out today rather than in three weeks. Do not panic and do not plough on.

1. Say it plainly. "Lots of us still think heavy things fall faster. Let's look again." No blame, no drama.
2. Do the drop again, bigger. The heaviest book in the room and the lightest pen. From higher. Twice.
3. Ask ONE child who got it right to explain it. A child's explanation lands differently from yours.
4. Re-ask the Moon question. Same question. Vote again.
5. Then stop. Do the independent task tomorrow. The lesson has not failed - it has taken longer, which is a different thing.

Tell SEQUENS at the confirm screen. Next lesson's starter will be built for it.

Teacher script - words you might use
"On the Moon there is no air at all. None."
"An astronaut drops a hammer and a feather. Same height. Same moment. Which lands first?"
"Vote. Now write me ONE sentence saying why."

Read the sentences, not the votes. "Together, because gravity pulls the same on both" is the win. "Together, because there is no air" is close, and it is not the same thing - they have understood the demonstration without understanding the force.

Teaching assistant
CollectRead over shoulders as they write. Tell the teacher, quietly, roughly how many said 'hammer'.
CriticalIf more than a third say hammer, the teacher needs to know BEFORE they move on. That is your job in this minute.

This is the most important sixty seconds of the lesson for you. The teacher cannot read thirty sentences at once.

AI opportunities - and where not to
Could:Show the real Apollo 15 footage - AFTER they have voted and written. Never before.
Could:Sort the written sentences into "gravity" answers and "no air" answers, so the teacher can see the split instantly.
Do not:Do not use AI to mark the hinge. The hinge is a professional judgement about whether to continue teaching. That decision is the teacher's, and it is the whole point of a hinge.
Barriers and routes in - what could stop any child, and what helps
What they are doingThe same hinge question as everyone else. Do not give them an easier one. The hinge is diagnostic, and an easier hinge diagnoses nothing.
AnsweringVoting is thumbs, not writing. A child who cannot yet write a sentence can still tell you whether they think the hammer lands first, and that is what you need to know.
The sentenceIf writing is the barrier, take it orally. Sit beside them, ask 'why?', and write down what they say. You are removing the writing, not the thinking.
CrucialDo not help them get it right. A support child who gives the wrong answer has just told you something enormously valuable, and if you have coached them into 'together', you have destroyed the only real information in the lesson.
Same question. Same difficulty. A different route to answering it.
Going further - open to anyone
After they vote"Would it be the same on Jupiter? Gravity is stronger there." (Yes - they still land together. Stronger gravity, but still the same on both.)
Offer it to the room. Anyone who wants it, takes it.
Barriers and routes in - by barrier, not by label
For every childDo not give an easier hinge. An easier hinge diagnoses nothing, and you have lost the only real information in the lesson. Same question, different route in.
Reading or writing is the barrierTake the sentence orally. Sit beside them, ask "why?", and scribe what they say. You are removing the writing, not the thinking.
Uncertainty or ambiguity is the barrier"Which lands first?" is a closed question with three options, and that is exactly right. Do not soften it into "what do you think might happen?" - vagueness is harder, not kinder.
Hearing you is the barrierThe vote is visual, so this child is not disadvantaged. Make sure the three options are written on the board, not just spoken.
Time to think is the barrierGive them the question, then genuinely wait. Do not let a quick child answer first. Once it is said aloud, the diagnostic value is gone for everyone.
EAL - not a learning difficulty
The question is a scenario and it depends on understanding "no air". Check that phrase specifically - not the science, the phrase. An EAL child may know perfectly well that a vacuum has no air resistance and not know the word "air" in this construction.
The hinge is where inclusion is easiest to get wrong. The instinct is to help a struggling child answer correctly. Resist it completely. A wrong answer from any child is the most useful thing that will happen in this lesson.
Their turn15 min

"A friend says: heavy things fall faster. Write a reply that changes their mind. Use the evidence from today."

Sentence stems are on the slide, offered to everyone, assigned to nobody. Stretch: explain why a feather DOES fall slower than a hammer on Earth, without saying gravity is weaker on the feather.

Teacher script - words you might use
"A friend says heavy things fall faster. You are going to change their mind."
"Use what we saw today. Not what you think. What we SAW."

"Use the evidence" is the whole instruction. A reply that just asserts gravity has not changed anyone's mind.

Teaching assistant
SupportSit with the children who need the stems. Read the stems aloud with them; do not write for them.
StretchThe feather question. Ask it, then walk away and let them struggle with it.
NeverDo not tell a child their reply is wrong. Ask them what evidence they used.
AI opportunities - and where not to
Could:Generate three more "a friend says..." misconception prompts for children who finish early.
Could:Read a child's reply back to them as a friend who is not yet convinced, and let them try again.
Do not:Do not let AI write the reply. The reply IS the assessment. If AI writes it, you have assessed nothing and the child has learned nothing.
Barriers and routes in - what could stop any child, and what helps
What they are doingConstructing a scientific explanation from evidence. The hardest thing in the lesson, and they are doing it.
The stemsThe stems are not a lesser task. They are the STRUCTURE of a strong scientific argument - claim, contradiction, evidence, mechanism. A child using them is practising the shape of expert reasoning, not avoiding it.
Say this out loud'These are on every table. Use one if it helps you get going.' Offered to all, assigned to nobody. A child who does not need one will not pick one up.
Where they will get stuck'The evidence is...' - because they know what they SAW but not how to say it counts as evidence. Ask: 'what happened when I dropped them?' Then: 'that IS your evidence.'
The scaffold is the shape of the right answer. That is why it is not cheating.
Going further - open to anyone
On the slide"Why DOES a feather fall slower than a hammer on Earth - without saying gravity is weaker on the feather?"
Why it is hardIt forces them to separate two forces they have been treating as one, and to explain a result using something they have not been taught yet.
This question is on the slide for everybody. It is not allocated. Some children who you did not expect will take it, and that is the point.
Barriers and routes in - by barrier, not by label
Reading or writing is the barrierThe stems are the structure of a scientific argument. Read them aloud with the child. Offer a scribe. The objective is constructing an explanation, not spelling it.
Sustained attention is the barrier"Write a reply" is open-ended and that is hard here. Give it a shape: "Four sentences. One for each starter." Finite, visible, done.
Uncertainty or ambiguity is the barrier"Change your friend's mind" is a social framing and may not motivate. Reframe it factually: "Write the correct explanation, and the evidence for it." Same task, no social demand.
Holding several things at once is the barrierThe evidence is what they saw twenty minutes ago. Put a photograph or a sketch of the book-and-pen drop on the desk. You are supporting recall, not reasoning.
The physical act of writing is the barrierVoice note, type, or scribe. Any route to the explanation counts. Handwriting is not being assessed.
EAL - not a learning difficulty
The stems are the most valuable thing in this lesson for an EAL child, and they are not a reduction. "You might think... but actually... The evidence is..." is academic English, and it is transferable to every science lesson they will ever have. Give it, teach it, expect it back.
Last thing4 min

Back to the sentence you wrote up at the very start. "Because it's heavy."

"This is what we wrote at the start. Is it right? Fix it."

The class rewrites it: "Because gravity pulls it towards the Earth." Their words at the start, their words at the end, and they can see the distance they travelled. That is the Turn, closed.

Teacher script - words you might use
"Look at what we wrote at the very start of the lesson."
"Is it right?"
"Fix it. Say it properly."

Let them rewrite it. Do not rewrite it for them. Their words at the start, their words at the end - the distance between the two is the lesson.

Teaching assistant
WatchWho is still nodding along without saying anything? Those are tomorrow's starters.
RecordNote the two or three children whose sentence still says 'heavy'. They have not turned.
AI opportunities - and where not to
Could:Capture the class's before-and-after sentences into the tracker, so next week's starter is aimed at whoever has not shifted.
Do not:Do not photograph or upload children's work with their names visible. SEQUENS never needs a child's name to do this.
Barriers and routes in - what could stop any child, and what helps
What they are doingCorrecting a scientific statement. The same as everyone.
Route inSay it to a partner before writing it. Rehearsing a sentence aloud makes writing it possible.
What to look forA child who says 'gravity' but cannot say what gravity DOES has learned a word, not an idea. Ask them: 'gravity does what?'
Everyone rewrites the sentence. Some of them say it first.
Going further - open to anyone
The last question"If gravity pulls the pen towards the Earth, does the pen pull the Earth?" (Yes. It does. It is just far too small to see.) This is genuinely astonishing to a ten-year-old and it is completely true.
Ask it as the bell goes. Let them leave with it.
Barriers and routes in - by barrier, not by label
Reading or writing is the barrierSay it to a partner before writing it. Rehearsing a sentence aloud is what makes writing it possible.
Uncertainty or ambiguity is the barrierThe lesson returns to where it began, and that closure is genuinely valuable. Name it: "We are going back to what we wrote at the start."
Holding several things at once is the barrierThe original sentence must be visible, not remembered. That is why you write it back up.
Fear of being wrong is the barrierThis is a child publicly correcting their own earlier wrong answer, and that can feel exposing. Frame it as the class's sentence, never as any one child's. "We wrote this. We are fixing it."
EAL - not a learning difficulty
Ask them to say the corrected sentence before writing it. And accept a partially-correct English sentence with a fully-correct idea. You are assessing the science.

Teacher key · never seen by children

SupportSame thinking. Chunked instruction, oral route, stems offered to all.
CoreThe reply task, unaided.
SecureGravity named as the cause, not just the word said.
Going furtherAir resistance, without misattributing it to gravity.

These four words exist on this sheet and nowhere else. Not on the slides, not on the worksheet, never spoken aloud. A child never learns which one they are.

The Going further questions are printed on the slides for everyone, because a challenge that is allocated is not a challenge - it is a label. Some children you did not expect will take them. That is the point.

On the SEND and EAL layer

SEND is not one thing. A dyslexic child, an autistic child, a child with ADHD and a child with a working-memory difficulty need genuinely different things from this lesson, and sometimes opposite things. A generic instruction to "chunk it and use visuals" helps nobody in particular. Every entry in that layer names a specific need and a specific action.

EAL is not a learning difficulty. An EAL child may be well ahead of the class in science and behind it in English. They do not need simpler science. They need the language attached to the science they already have. Conflating the two is a common error and it holds children back for years.

Honest limit. This layer is written from published evidence and general good practice. It is not a substitute for a child's EHCP, a SENDCo's advice, or a specialist assessment. Where they differ, the child's own plan wins, every time. SEQUENS is a tool in the hands of a professional who knows the child. It is not the professional.