Push or Pull?

Start with something students can look at or think about: a photo, a short video, a jar on the windowsill, or a question like "what do you already know about push and pull?" Then let them work through the worksheet on their own or with a partner, keeping a word bank or anchor chart in view so the vocabulary stays available. When you review, ask students how they knew, and let them point to the part of the diagram or reading that told them. These push and pull worksheets work well as a lead in before an investigation, as a way to capture what students noticed afterward, or as review before an assessment.

These push and pull worksheets for 1st grade give students a clear, visual way to work through one of the big ideas in forces and machines. Students label diagrams, sort and classify examples, read short explanations, and answer questions that ask them to say why, not just what. Each page keeps the science vocabulary front and center so students leave with the words they need to talk about push and pull accurately. Working through push and pull on paper gives 1st grade students something concrete to hold onto before, during, or after the hands on part of a lesson.

This worksheet is designed for 1st Grade students (Ages 6-7), aligned to NGSS standard K-PS2-1. That standard sits in the kindergarten band, so treat this worksheet as an early introduction rather than standards practice for this grade. Pushes and pulls are a Kindergarten standard (K-PS2-1); this Grade 1 worksheet revisits it. It can also be used as review for early students at the next grade level or as an introduction for advanced students.

Yes. This worksheet works for homeschool, classroom, and tutoring settings. Print individual pages for targeted practice, or print the full set as a packet. Works great as a morning warm-up, independent center activity, or fast-finisher task.

A push moves something away from you, a pull brings it towards you. The page uses six everyday actions, from rolling a ball to tug of war, rather than abstract arrows.

It can be either, which is why it is on the page. Doors are the example that shows the same object can involve both forces depending on which side you are standing.

This one names the force. Forces and Motion asks what the force does, whether a situation makes something move faster or slower. Name it first, then measure its effect.

First graders learn that forces are pushes and pulls that can change the way objects move: making them start, stop, speed up, slow down, or change direction. They explore how applying a stronger force produces a bigger change in motion and how the direction of the force matters.

Push and pull is typically introduced in Grade 1 during a physical science unit on forces and motion. Teachers use playground equipment, toy cars, and ramps to give students direct, physical experience with the effect of forces before introducing the vocabulary and worksheets.

On a walk or at the playground, point out examples of pushing and pulling: opening a door, pulling a wagon, kicking a ball. Ask your child whether each action is a push or a pull and what it does to the object's motion. Complete the worksheet to reinforce the vocabulary and concepts.