Force and Motion Engineering Internship Phenomena Poster Set

Help students apply their understanding of forces, motion, and engineering design to an authentic problem-solving challenge with this engaging Force and Motion Engineering Internship phenomena resource.

This six-poster collection uses visually rich science and engineering phenomena to encourage students to analyze motion, interpret force interactions, evaluate evidence, compare possible solutions, and explain how scientific principles can guide engineering decisions.

Students move from understanding how forces affect motion to applying that knowledge in a design context where criteria, constraints, testing, and revision all matter.

What’s Included

This resource includes six individual full-color portrait phenomena posters.

Each poster includes:

A high-interest science or engineering phenomenon question

A detailed visual, model, or engineering scenario

“What do you notice?” observation prompts

“What do you wonder?” discussion questions

Key science and engineering vocabulary

A “Try This Thinking” activity or challenge

A CER Starter for Claim, Evidence, and Reasoning practice

A concise science statement reinforcing the main concept

Apply Force and Motion Science to Engineering

Students use their understanding of force, motion, speed, direction, and interactions to investigate practical engineering problems.

The phenomena encourage students to consider how changes in force can affect the behavior of a system and how engineers can use that understanding to improve a design.

Students begin seeing force and motion concepts as tools for solving problems rather than ideas that exist only in a textbook.

Analyze Forces Before Designing Solutions

Strong engineering decisions are grounded in science.

Students can consider questions such as:

What forces are acting on the system?

How is the object moving?

What evidence shows that the forces are balanced or unbalanced?

What change in force might improve performance?

What criteria should a successful design meet?

What constraints must engineers consider?

How could testing help improve the design?

These questions help students connect scientific reasoning with the engineering design process.

Use Force Models to Support Decisions

Students can use force diagrams and other visual models to represent interactions that may not be directly visible.

They can compare the direction and relative strength of forces, connect those models to observed motion, and use the evidence to justify design choices.

This reinforces the idea that scientific models can guide engineering decisions.

Evaluate Possible Engineering Solutions

Students are encouraged to compare multiple possible solutions rather than assuming there is one correct design.

They can evaluate how effectively each design solves the problem, identify strengths and limitations, and use scientific evidence to determine which approach may work best.

This creates meaningful opportunities for evidence-based decision-making.

Consider Criteria, Constraints, and Trade-Offs

Real engineering solutions must satisfy specific goals while working within limitations.

Students can consider criteria for success and constraints related to materials, size, safety, efficiency, cost, or other design factors.

They can also explore trade-offs and recognize that improving one feature of a design may affect another.

Test, Revise, and Improve Designs

Engineering is an iterative process.

The phenomena encourage students to analyze test results, identify problems, propose improvements, and revise their ideas based on evidence.

Students begin understanding that an unsuccessful test is not simply a failure. It can provide useful evidence for improving the next design.

Build Observation and Questioning Skills

Each poster includes structured Notice and Wonder prompts that encourage students to examine the phenomenon before developing a solution.

Students can:

Observe motion

Identify possible forces

Analyze force diagrams

Compare design performance

Generate scientific questions

Make predictions

Evaluate evidence

Develop and revise explanations

Recommend design changes

These routines support productive engineering discussions and student-centered problem solving.

Strengthen Science and Engineering Vocabulary

Important vocabulary is embedded directly within meaningful phenomena and engineering scenarios.

Students encounter concepts related to force, motion, speed, direction, acceleration, balanced forces, unbalanced forces, criteria, constraints, design, testing, evidence, and optimization while actively using those terms.

Support CER Practice

Each poster includes a student-friendly CER Starter.

Students practice making a Claim about a force, motion, or engineering solution, identifying Evidence from the phenomenon or test results, and using Reasoning to explain why that evidence supports their conclusion.

CER practice becomes especially meaningful when students must justify a design recommendation using scientific evidence.

Connect Science and Engineering Practices

This resource provides opportunities for students to:

Observe phenomena

Ask questions

Analyze evidence

Develop and use models

Identify engineering problems

Define criteria and constraints

Apply force and motion principles

Compare possible solutions

Test ideas

Evaluate results

Revise designs

Justify recommendations

These practices help students experience science and engineering as interconnected ways of understanding and solving problems.

Great for Classroom Use

Use these posters for:

Engineering internship instruction

Phenomenon launches

Science focus walls

Whole-group discussions

Small-group engineering teams

Notice and Wonder routines

Science notebook responses

Vocabulary development

CER practice

Force modeling

Motion investigations

Engineering design challenges

Evidence analysis

Solution comparisons

Review and reinforcement

Classroom displays

Revisit the Phenomena Throughout the Internship

Introduce each phenomenon before students have developed a complete solution.

As students gather evidence and deepen their understanding of force, motion, and engineering design, return to the posters and ask them to revise their thinking.

Students can improve force models, reconsider design choices, strengthen their claims, and justify revisions using new evidence.

Turn Physics Into Real-World Problem Solving

The Force and Motion Engineering Internship gives students a meaningful opportunity to apply physical science concepts to design challenges.

These posters help students connect force interactions, observable motion, scientific models, and engineering decisions.

By combining engaging phenomena with structured questioning, modeling, evidence analysis, vocabulary development, and CER practice, this resource provides meaningful support throughout a Force and Motion Engineering Internship.

Important Disclaimer

This resource is independently created and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, sponsored by, or produced by Amplify Education. The use of “Amplify” in the product title is intended only to help educators identify the curriculum topic with which this supplemental resource may be used. Amplify Education owns its respective trademarks and curriculum materials.