Newton's First Law - AQA GCSE Physics Exam Questions

Practise 31 exam-style questions on Newton's First Law for AQA GCSE Physics. Write your answer as you would in the exam and get it marked in seconds against the mark scheme, point by point, with an AI tutor on hand if you get stuck.

31 questions
1–6 marks each
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20 questions, marked as you go

Sample questions with model answers

Here are 4 of the questions in this topic, each with a model answer, an explanation of why it earns the marks and the mark scheme an examiner would use.

Question 1

1 mark

A delivery van travels along a straight, level road at a steady speed of 22 m/s. The driving force on the van is 2600 N.

State the total resistive force acting on the van.

Model answer

2600 N

Explanation

The van moves at a steady speed in a straight line, so its velocity is constant and the resultant force must be zero. The resistive forces (air resistance and friction) therefore exactly balance the driving force. The speed of 22 m/s is not needed to answer the question.

Mark scheme

1 mark
2600 (N)

Question 2

2 marks

In a tug-of-war, two teams pull on opposite ends of a horizontal rope. Each team pulls with a force of 1500 N and the rope does not move.

One team then increases its pull to 1650 N while the other team still pulls with 1500 N.

Explain why the rope did not move at first, and describe what happens to the rope when one team increases its pull.

Model answer

At first the two 1500 N forces are equal and opposite, so the resultant force on the rope is zero and the stationary rope stays stationary. When one team pulls with 1650 N, there is a resultant force of 1650 − 1500 = 150 N towards that team, so the rope starts to move towards the stronger team.

Explanation

A stationary object stays stationary only while the resultant force on it is zero. As soon as the forces become unbalanced, the object's velocity changes in the direction of the resultant force.

Mark scheme

1 mark
at first the forces are balanced / the resultant force is zero, so the stationary rope stays stationary
1 mark
after the increase there is a resultant force of 150 N towards the stronger team, so the rope starts to move (accelerates) towards that team
allow the rope moves towards the team pulling with 1650 N

Question 3

3 marks

Explain, using the idea of inertia, why a fully loaded supermarket trolley is harder to start moving, and harder to stop once it is moving, than an empty trolley.

Model answer

The loaded trolley has a much greater mass, so it has more inertia: a greater tendency to stay at rest when it is stationary and to keep moving at the same velocity when it is moving. This means a bigger force is needed to change its velocity, whether that is starting it moving or stopping it.

Explanation

Inertia applies both to staying still and to staying in motion. The more mass an object has, the harder it is to change its velocity in either case.

Mark scheme

1 mark
the loaded trolley has a greater mass
1 mark
so it has a greater inertia / a greater tendency to stay at rest or to keep moving at the same velocity
1 mark
so a bigger force is needed to change its velocity (by the same amount in the same time)
allow it is harder to change its velocity

Question 4

4 marks

A passenger sits on a train that is moving along a straight, level track at a constant velocity of 30 m/s. She holds a ball still above the floor and then lets go of it.

The ball lands on the floor directly below the point where she released it, not behind her.

Use Newton's First Law and the idea of inertia to explain why.

Model answer

Before she lets go, the ball is moving forward with the train at 30 m/s. After she lets go, the only force on the ball is its weight, which acts downwards, so there is no horizontal force on it. Because of its inertia, the ball keeps moving forward at 30 m/s while it falls. The train and the passenger are also moving forward at 30 m/s, so the ball keeps up with them and lands directly below the point where it was released.

Explanation

Letting go of the ball does not stop its forward motion - nothing pushes it backwards, so its horizontal velocity stays the same. Only its vertical motion changes, because its weight acts downwards.

Mark scheme

1 mark
before it is released the ball is moving forward at the same velocity as the train (30 m/s)
1 mark
after it is released there is no horizontal (resultant) force on the ball
allow the air in the carriage moves with the train so there is no horizontal air resistance; ignore the weight acting downwards
1 mark
so (because of its inertia) the ball keeps moving forward at 30 m/s / the same horizontal velocity as the train
1 mark
the train and passenger also keep moving forward at 30 m/s, so the ball stays directly below the release point as it falls

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