practice

1. Draw a free body diagram of …
   1. a book lying on a level table.
   2. a person floating in still water.
   3. a wrecking ball hanging vertically from a cable.
   4. a helicopter hovering in place.
2. Draw a free body diagram of a child pushing a wagon on level ground.
   
3. Write something different.
4. Write something completely different.

conceptual

1. Draw a free body diagram for each of the following situations …
   1. a car that …
      1. accelerates forward,
      2. cruises with a constant velocity, and then
      3. brakes to a stop
   2. a passenger in an elevator that …
      1. ascends from the lobby,
      2. cruises upwards, and then
      3. slows to a stop at the 35th floor
   3. a passenger in an elevator that …
      1. descends from the 35th floor,
      2. cruises downwards, and then
      3. slows to a stop at the lobby
   4. an airplane that …
      1. climbs to cruising altitude,
      2. cruises horizontally, and then
      3. descends to a landing …
      all with a constant velocity
   5. a child pulling a sled by a rope
   6. a home owner pushing a lawn mower
   7. a stationary crate on a ramp inclined 30° to the horizontal
   8. a child pushing a wagon up a ramp inclined 30° to the horizontal
   9. a laboratory pendulum held at an angle …
      1. before and
      2. after …
      being released by a student
2. The physicist and author Dr. John Fontanella in the first chapter of his book The Physics of Basketball claims to have identified "The Final Four". It's more than just a clever reference for fans of college basketball in the US. Mr. Fontanella has identified the four forces that affect the trajectory of a basketball. Determine these four forces and draw a free body diagram for a basketball as it leaves the hands of a player throwing a free throw. Assume a launch angle of 51° with backspin -- an initial condition that Dr. Fontanella says "results in the softest shot".

worksheets

1. The Physics Teacher has published several articles containing free body diagram worksheets. They are available free to members of the American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT). Everyone else has to pay.
   1. Free-body diagrams revisited — I. James E. Court. The Physics Teacher. Vol. 37, No. 7 (October 1999): 427-433. Note: pages 428-431 are relevant to this topic.
   2. Exercises in drawing and utilizing free-body diagrams. Kurt Fisher. The Physics Teacher. Vol. 37, No. 7 (October 1999): 434-435.
   3. Free-body diagrams. James E. Court. The Physics Teacher. Vol. 31, No. 2 (February 1993): 104-108. Note: Questions 1-19 are relevant to this topic.