Contributor: Elephango Editors. Lesson ID: 11838
What do an ax, snowplow, door stop, and your front teeth have in common? They all use or are simple machines; in this case, wedges! Find and experiment with simple wedges around your learning space!
Watch this video of basketball star Steph Curry making a hole-in-one in golf.
That was so exciting!
Curry made that shot with his pitching wedge, a type of golf club. Wedges are a useful — and FUN — simple machine!
Simple machines are objects that work without electricity or technology!
From golf clubs to needles to door stops, wedges can be found everywhere.
A wedge is a simple machine used to separate two things, like a door and its frame.
Another example of a wedge is an axe that splits a piece of wood into two pieces.
Wedges are simple machines that help make a job easier. For example, wedges like shovels and snow plows are a huge help to people in places with a lot of snow.
Look at the shape of the shovel and the plow. Although they may be rounded, they still work as a wedge.
A wedge sometimes starts as a point but becomes thicker. This design is used to separate something into pieces or move something, like snow, to another location.
Look at the picture below.
If you did, then you are correct!
As a ship's bow, this wedge separates the water to make room for the ship. It is another example of a wedge that starts as a point and becomes much bigger.
Another example of a wedge is a knife. Think about cutting your meat with a knife that has no sharp edge or is dull.
That is an example of how a wedge needs to have a tapered edge or come to a point to be successful at its job.
Another example of a wedge is a needle.
When you or your parent sew something together, a needle has to be used. This needle must also have a sharp point because that is the only way it will wedge through the material.
Wedges are always used to make jobs a little easier. There are many uses for simple machines like wedges.
In the Got It? section, display your knowledge of wedges and their uses.