Question 1: The correct response to the student's action of bouncing a basketball off the gym floor is:
The gym floor pushes up on the ball as the ball pushes down on the floor with an equal amount of force.
This statement describes Newton's Third Law of Motion, which states that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.
Question 2: The correct description that identifies the action-reaction pair between the bird and the fence post is:
Action: The force of the bird on the fence post. Reaction: The force of the fence post on the bird.
This statement correctly represents the interaction as per Newton’s Third Law of Motion.
Question 3: For the scenario where a skater pushes off a wall and skates backward, the description can involve the skater's action and the wall's reaction. The skater pushes against the wall (action), and the wall pushes back with an equal and opposite force (reaction) propelling the skater backward.
If you need a multiple-choice format for question 3 or further explanations, please provide additional context!