Push or Pull Sort

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Working on a forces and motion unit can be such fun! We love experimenting with different types of forces and motion, and we usually begin with pushes and pulls. We read a variety of books and do several fun, hands on experiments. Sometimes we also show what we know through writing or, in this case, a cut and paste activity. This push or pull cut and paste sort is a great way to review what pushes and pulls are, as well as some of the everyday things we do that use those forces!

This sort is quick and simple. I just made copies of the printable (below) and made sure we all had our scissors and crayons ready!

First, they cut out the strip and colored the pictures. Once they were all colored, they cut out the pictures on the dotted line and began to sort them by placing them either on the push or pull side of the paper.

Some pictures are obvious, like pulling a wagon, but others stumped us for a minute! For instance, what do we do with a pogo stick? Don’t be surprised if you have kids really thinking or even acting out some of the situations to see where they would fit!

I always encourage my kids to sort first, then glue. That way we know for sure where we want them and can avoid having to peel them off the paper if they are in the wrong spot. So, once they were sorted and kids checked with a friend, they were ready to glue them on!