Drawing Force Diagrams
Science · Forces & Motion · representational
Draw and interpret force diagrams showing forces as labelled arrows — where the arrow's length represents the force's magnitude and its direction shows which way the force acts; show multiple forces on one object; identify from the diagram whether forces are balanced (equal arrows in opposite directions, no resultant) or unbalanced (arrows of different sizes, producing a resultant); represent the resultant with a single arrow
What mastery looks like
- Draw a force diagram with labelled arrows showing direction and relative size for at least two forces acting on an object
- Use their diagram to explain whether forces are balanced or unbalanced and what will happen to the object
- Add a resultant force arrow to a diagram and explain how they calculated it
Check your understanding
If Drawing Force Diagrams is asked to draw a diagram of all the forces acting on a stationary book on a table, can they draw two arrows — one pointing down for gravity and one pointing up from the table — and explain why, if they're balanced, the book doesn't move?
Prerequisites
None — this is a foundational concept.