---
title: "Gravity & Falling Objects"
description: "Explain that unsupported objects fall towards the Earth because of the force of gravity acting between the Earth and the falling object"
canonical: https://lightmysky.com/learn/science/gravity-and-falling-objects-mt_AvrQauS_zX
source: https://lightmysky.com/learn/science/gravity-and-falling-objects-mt_AvrQauS_zX.md
retrieved: 2026-10-19
---

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# Gravity & Falling Objects

Explain that unsupported objects fall towards the Earth because of the force of gravity acting between the Earth and the falling object

Subject: Science · Area: Forces & Motion · Ages 9 to 11
Page: https://lightmysky.com/learn/science/gravity-and-falling-objects-mt_AvrQauS_zX

## Ready when they can

- Define gravity as a force of attraction between the Earth and objects
- Explain that unsupported objects fall because gravity pulls them towards the Earth
- Give examples showing gravity in action (dropping objects, jumping, water flowing downhill)

## Lesson: Gravity pulls things down

You already know that a non-contact force can push or pull without touching. Gravity is a non-contact force. Earth pulls every object towards it, all the time, even when nothing is touching that object. This pull on an object is its weight. Weight is a force, so it is not the same as mass, the amount of stuff in the object.

**Example.** Leo holds a ball above the ground, then lets go. Nothing is holding the ball up anymore, so gravity pulls it straight down until it lands. This happens every single time you drop something.

*(drawing: Every drop follows the same steps. The moment nothing holds the ball up, gravity pulls it towards the Earth.)*

The same force acts when you jump. Your legs push you up for a moment, but gravity keeps pulling, so you always come back down.

**Example.** Rain lands on a hill and trickles down to the bottom. It never flows uphill on its own. The same pull that drops a ball pulls the water down.

Drop a heavy and a light ball together from the same height. Many people guess the heavy one lands first. If air barely slows either, they land together. Gravity pulls the heavy one harder, but it needs a bigger pull to get moving, so the two even out.

To spot gravity at work, ask what holds the object up. If nothing does, it falls. If a shelf, a string or the ground holds it, gravity still pulls, and the support pushes back just as hard. Take the support away and it falls straight away.

**Recap.** Gravity is the pulling force between the Earth and every object, so anything unsupported falls towards the Earth.

## Practice

28 questions on this page, each with its working shown.

## Needs first

- [Balanced & Unbalanced Forces](https://lightmysky.com/learn/science/balanced-and-unbalanced-forces-mt_3WMADSy0mA)
- [Drawing Force Diagrams](https://lightmysky.com/learn/science/drawing-force-diagrams-mt_k7GOtslF-x)
- [Contact & Non-Contact Forces](https://lightmysky.com/learn/science/contact-and-non-contact-forces-mt_lcf8lx-LkZ)

## Opens up

- [Levers, Pulleys & Gears](https://lightmysky.com/learn/science/levers-pulleys-and-gears-mt_Q2k3fSwyzQ)
- [Mass vs Weight](https://lightmysky.com/learn/science/mass-vs-weight-mt_sUVeVXzRuq)
- [Air Resistance & Friction](https://lightmysky.com/learn/science/air-resistance-and-friction-mt_Y9k86G8BBT)