Fast and Slow

Fast and slow describe how quickly something moves or happens. A fast object covers a given distance in less time than a slow one, while a slow object takes longer to cover the same distance. Speed tells us how much distance is covered in a certain amount of time, and it is commonly expressed in metres per second or kilometres per hour.

A bicycle moving at 20 kilometres per hour is faster than one moving at 10 kilometres per hour. The same idea can describe actions and processes: a child may run fast but tie a shoelace slowly, and a computer can perform one task faster than another. What counts as fast or slow therefore depends on what is being compared and on the chosen reference.

In nature, speed varies greatly. A cheetah can run much faster than a person for a short distance, whereas a snail moves very slowly by comparison. Animals do not all need to move quickly: their speed is linked to their bodies, habitats and ways of finding food or avoiding danger.

Plants can also show processes that are fast or slow, although they do not move from place to place like animals. For young learners, the simplest way to recognize the difference is to compare the same kind of movement or action: the one completed in less time is faster, and the one that takes more time is slower. Fast and slow are relative descriptions, not fixed labels.