Sir Isaac Newton was a remarkable man. His Laws of Motion are the basis of modern physics, but he did a lot more than that in his lifetime. He was born in England on January 4, 1643. When he was 12, he went away to school, as English boys often did in those days (and some still do). His mother brought him home from school to work on the farm, but farming didn’t suit him. His uncle sent him back to school — this time to the famous college in Cambridge. He worked his way through school doing jobs like cleaning the rooms of the richer students.
Cambridge shut down in 1665 because of the bubonic plague, so Newton once again left school for home. This time, he didn’t try his hand at farming. Instead, he studied physics — or, as he thought of it, he tried to figure out how the universe worked. This is still a good description of physics. Just as people learned new skills during the COVID-19 pandemic, with many people taking up baking sourdough bread or riding bikes, Newton occupied his time during quarantine from the plague by figuring out how things like light and gravity work.
When the plague ended, he went back to school. This time he finished his degree and became a professor. He continued in his work in math and physics and was one of the most famous scientists of his day. His work continues to amaze and fascinate people around the world. However, Newton could also be a difficult person to get along with. he had some famous jealousies and feuds with fellow scientists. He never married and had no children, but a niece of his lived with him and cared for him in his old age. He died in 1727, at the age of 84.
Isaac Newton’s life
Newton lived in an interesting time and was an interesting person. Check out some books that tell about his life:
Let’s be clear on this from the start: Isaac Newton and the Mystery of the Falling Apple is not an accurate book. It is an imaginative exploration of not just the classic story of Newton and the falling apple but of the idea of the scientific method and the importance of curiosity. It’s a comfortable read for elementary age students and a fun approach to the topic. If you can stand having young Isaac’s school mate say, “You’ve got this!” as the children work on gravity and light waves, it can be a good starting point.
We think Isaac Newton’s life makes a very inspiring story, but the story most people know about Isaac Newton is that an apple fell on his head and made him think of gravity. The beautiful picture book The Gravity Tree tells the inspiring full story of that tree. It begins with the true story of Isaac Newton and how the fall of an apple started him questioning — there’s that curiosity again — and led to his brilliant ideas about force and motion. But the book goes on to tell about many more people who were inspired by the same tree, from Albert Einstein and the astronaut who released a sliver of the tree’s bark into space, to the many people who have planted seeds from that very special tree. This is an excellent read-aloud to begin a study of Isaac Newton with any age or grade.
Science and faith aren’t enemies, but sometimes they are prevented in that way. Isaac Newton is one of 28 examples in this beautiful and inspiring book, Scientists of Faith. He was a very religious man and considered his work to be about  finding out how God designed the universe to function. “All my discoveries,” he said, “have been made in answer to prayer.” This book gives a good brief biography of Newton and mentions many of his accomplishments, but doesn’t go into any detail about the science involved.
The Clockwork Universe: Isaac Newton, the Royal Society, and the Birth of the Modern World – How Tormented Geniuses Invented Science in Chaotic 17th Century England is by no means a children’s book, but it is a wonderful book about Newton and his life and times. It helps us modern people understand the completely different understanding of science in Newton’s day. We’re just including it for background.Â
Isaac Newton and Physics for Kids is our top choice. It provides a fascinating and detailed biography of Newton that will be a comfortable read for high school students or great background for teaching about his life. It also has 21 activities for kids of all ages. make ink, try out an experiment about pendulums and keep track of results as a scientist would, make a parabolic oven and use it to roast a marshmallow — these are fun and educational activities great for families or classrooms.
Whichever resources you choose in your study of Newton’s life, add the dates to your class timeline. Include as many of Newton’s accomplishments as you discover in your study. Then ask students to write down their own accomplishments. If they live to age 84, they might have as long a list as Newton!
Newton’s Laws
Isaac Newton discovered the three Laws of Motions, often called Newton’s Laws. There’s a lot more to Newton, but the laws are what most people know about Newton. These laws can be taught anywhere from 5th grade to high school, depending on which U.S. state you’re in and the individual kids you’re teaching.
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First law: Things keep doing what they’re doing unless a force changes them.
If something is still, it stays still. If something is moving, it keeps moving. This is known as inertia. -
Second law: The harder you push, the more an object speeds up.
Heavier things need more force to move the same amount. This is a statement on force. -
Third law: For every push, there is an equal push back.
If you push on something, it pushes back on you just as hard. This is a description of action and reaction.
Online resources:
- NASA’s Glenn Research Center has a more detailed discussion of the laws. Here’s an old-school video from NASA explaining the three laws:
https://youtu.be/RuS3N9WPyJY?si=K3lsmASX1njGqy6_ - PhysicsClassroom has interactive experiences.
- Classic hands-on experiments and demonstrations
There are a couple more excellent books to add to our list.
Super Simple Physics: The Ultimate Bitesize Study Guide is a terrific book to have on your shelf any time you need to think about physics. This book includes not only Newton’s Laws, but explanations of all the terms that come up when you try to talk about them. It shows the laws with real-world examples and illustrations. For example, two people riding skateboards can stand next to each other. If one pushes on the other, both the pusher and the pushee will roll away — the harder the push, the further and faster each of them will roll.Â
The Physics of Superheroes is one of my favorites. It also deals with a lot of different concepts int physics, but it starts with the three Laws of Motion, explained in terms of Superman, astronauts, and the Hulk. The book deals with things that make it hard to understand — like, for example, the fact that, while we know that a ball sitting on the ground won’t move unless someone or something pushes it, it also won’t just keep going at its original speed forever in real life. The push was the force that started it off, but friction is the force that makes it stop after a while. Except it’s explained with superheroes and fast cars in this book.
Learning about Isaac Newton is a great way to introduce the three Laws of Motion. It’s also a good choice for your Heroes Unit. Â We’d certainly include him in our list of Science Heroes. Do your students agree? That’s good wrap-up discussion for a study of Newton.
