Objective

By the end of this lesson, you will understand the story of Isaac Newton and the apple, and how it relates to the concept of gravity.

Materials and Prep

Materials needed: 1 apple

Prep: None

Activities

• Activity 1: The Story of Isaac Newton and the Apple

  Discuss the story of Isaac Newton and the apple. Talk about how the apple falling from the tree made him think about gravity.

• Activity 2: Observing an Apple Fall

  Take an apple outside and drop it from different heights. Observe how it falls to the ground and discuss the concept of gravity.

• Activity 3: Making a Mini-Newton

  Have the student pretend to be Isaac Newton discovering gravity. They can act out the moment the apple fell and he had his "Aha!" moment.

Second Grade Talking Points

• "Isaac Newton was a smart man who lived a long time ago. One day, he saw an apple fall from a tree, and that made him think about why things fall down."
• "He thought really hard about it and came up with a big idea called gravity. Gravity is what makes things fall to the ground."
• "When we drop the apple from different heights, we can see how gravity pulls it down. This is just like what happened to Isaac Newton when he saw the apple fall."