I have over 30 years of experience of teaching physics and I have found that voltage is a topic that many students find very difficult to grasp. I have found that this approach works well and so have now made it into a PowerPoint. The PowerPoint consists of 13 slides. At the beginning it introduces the concept of voltage as the potential difference across two points and looks at the idea that potential difference is not used up by the conducting leads, only by a resistance. It also looks at the potential at different parts of simple circuits and then goes on to look at the potential difference across various points in the circuits. It shows that the potential difference across resistances in series add up to the supply voltage and explains why the bigger potential difference is across the bigger resistance. It also gives a numerical example of this. It shows that the potential difference across resistances in parallel is the same and explains why the bigger current flows through the branch of smaller resistance. It also gives a numerical example of this. It ends with a recap followed by a series of ‘Find the Voltage Questions’ aimed at reinforcing and checking on student learning. I have found that the more examples you do the better. This PowerPoint would be useful as an introduction, as reinforcement and for revision.

This PowerPoint consists of 9 slides. It begins by reminding students of the symbols used in the the following circuits. It shows how current flows through series and parallel circuits. When a switch is closed it shows that the current is the same in a series circuit and is reduced if the resistance is increased. This is illustrated by showing ammeter readings and bulb brightnesses. It explains that current is not ‘used up’ by a resistance. It shows current splits up in a parallel circuit with most current going through the branch of least resistance. It also shows how switches can operate different parts of a circuit. There is then a series of questions to reinforce what has been learned. The last slide is a summary, giving the rules of how current behaves in series and parallel circuits which have been made clear in the previous slides.

This has Christmas questions which are interesting, informative and fun. Adults can have fun too - you could even use it for a staff quiz! They have a range of difficulty, including some with a diagram or extra information as a hint. For flexibility it comes as a Word document AND as PowerPoint presentations. The Word document XMAS QUIZ has 4 sections. It’s Christmas. 10 questions plus a bonus question linked to the word Christmas. Christmas Anagrams. 10 two-word anagrams. Christmas General Knowledge. 54 questions plus 3 bonus questions. Christmas Dingbats. 18 questions. The quiz can be given to individuals or teams. The Word document XMAS QUIZ ANS has all the answers. The same questions are also in the form of 3 separate PowerPoints. It’s Christmas. 10 questions plus a bonus question linked to the word Christmas. Christmas Anagrams and Christmas Dingbats. 10 two-word anagrams and 18 dingbats Christmas General Knowledge. 54 questions plus 3 bonus questions. The PowerPoints have animations to liven it up and make the answers more memorable. I certainly had fun making all the diagrams! The answers are revealed by clicking on a diagram of Santa on each slide apart from the dingbats where the answers are revealed by clicking on a diagram of a Christmas Cracker. Since the cursor pointer disappears after a few seconds it is recommended that the cursor pointer is set to visible. In case you do not know how to do this I have included instructions in the Word document How to Keep Cursor Pointer Visible in PowerPoint.

In need of an emergency lesson? Stuck for something to occupy your older students at the end of term? Try this quiz. It is not just a quiz. It is also meant to be educational by providing some interesting (hopefully) information so students can increase their general knowledge without realising it and maybe make them curious to find out more. Adults can have fun with this quiz too! The PowerPoint has 30 questions. Each question gives information about a real or fictional famous person, two thirds of whom are British. You have to identify the person given increasing amounts of information. For each person there are 5 pieces of information. The more information needed to identify the person, the fewer the points awarded. For each question: If you only need the first piece of information to identify the person, you are awarded 5 points. If you need the first and second pieces of information to identify the person, you are awarded 4 points. If you need the first, second and third pieces of information to identify the person, you are awarded 3 points etc. For each question you can click on ‘Reveal Answer’ after the fifth piece of information. There is also is a Word document where you can see at a glance what the question and the answers are. The players could be individuals or small teams. For each question an individual or team could hand in their answer labelled 5 points, or 4 points or 3 points etc at the instant they know the answer. That way they cannot cheat.

This covers the practical skills needed when taking measurements, making tables and graphs and finding the gradient of straight-line graphs. It also covers how equations can be rearranged into the form y = mx + c in order to find the gradient and intercept with a test to check on understanding. The Sig Figs Word document explains what significant figures are, using many examples to aid understanding. It also has questions to check student understanding including rounding numbers to a given number of significant figures. It explains the importance of significant figures when it comes to taking measurements and how scientific notation is useful. The Sig Figs - ANS Word document has the answers to the questions. The Tables & Graphs Skills Tick List Word document is a check list for students to use in order to ensure that they have completed each of the steps needed when constructing tables and graphs, especially when doing so from experimental results. The St line graphs Word document has 10 questions where equations must be rearranged into the form y = mx + c and then used to sketch the straight-line graph and give the gradient and intercept. It also has 11 questions, which get progressively harder, where the gradient, intercept, y axis and x axis must be identified from various equations. There are then a further 2 harder questions involving more complex manipulation and 3 Extension questions involving the use of Log10. The St line graphs - ANS Word document has the answers to the questions. The St line graph TEST Word document has 14 questions on linear graphs and their equations. The last 4 question require the equations to be rearranged. The St line graph TEST - ANS Word document has the answers to the questions.

This PowerPoint shows how rays refract, step by step, through a glass prism for monochromatic light and white light. Includes normal, angle of deviation and dispersion.

This poweroint enables students to visualize the photoelectric effect. It therefore would make a good introduction to this difficult concept. This PowerPoint shows photons hitting a metal surface in a vacuum and the subsequent behaviour of the free electrons in the metal. It shows how red photons hitting a metal surface gives no photoemission even if the light intensity is increased and points out that the energy of a photon depends on its frequency. Green photons, of the threshold frequency, just cause the least tightly held electrons to reach the surface with no kinetic energy and a more intense green light causes this to happen more quickly but does not increase the energy of the photons. When blue photons are used the photoelectrons are emitted with a range of speeds and the least tightly held electrons leave with the maximum kinetic energy. It also shows that the brighter the blue light the more photoemissions per second. It defines Work Function and derives Einstein’s Photoelectric Equation.

This PowerPoint is an introduction to forces. It is easy to follow and consists of 8 slides and goes step by step through the topic. It includes force, mass, weight, reaction force, tension force and compression force. It includes g, kg, N and Earth’s gravity pulls on each kg of mass with a force of 10 N It also has simple force diagrams. The last 3 slides are a recap which requires questions to be answered.

This PowerPoint shows how light rays travel through convex and concave lenses. It also shows the formation of images with the object at different distances from each type of lens. As an illustration of the use of a convex lens it includes showing how the camera and the magnifying glass each form an image. Rays are drawn in stages to show all the steps in constructing an accurate ray diagram.

This powerpoint shows how to find the half-life of a radioisotope from a count-rate, corrected for background, versus time graph. It shows the randomness and the effect of not correcting for background. It also shows how to find the half-life from a number of undecayed nuclei versus time graph.

The first file has student notes which explain why an object moving in a circle at constant speed is accelerating towards the centre of the circle. It goes step by step through this difficult concept. It refers to Newton’s First Law, centripetal force, centripetal acceleration, the definition of velocity and the definition of acceleration. It explains why the velocity changes yet the speed does not change. It gives examples of circular motion and explains the relationship between centripetal force and the mass, speed and radius of orbit of the object. It also relates the speed to the radius of orbit and the time period. There are words to be completed by the student as the teacher explains each step. The third, and last, page has questions designed to check on the understanding of the previous two pages. There is NO reference to the equation F = mv2/r. The second file has the missing words and answers to the questions.

This Poweroint begins by showing how light rays travel through a convex lens. It also shows the formation of images with the object at different distances from the lens. As an illustration of the use of a convex lens it includes showing how the camera and the magnifying glass each form an image. It then goes on to show, step by step, how rays of light travel through an astronomical refracting telescope and shows the angle subtended by image and the angle subtended by the object. It shows, in detail, how the angular magnification can be found. It also points out that the telescope length = the sum of the objective and eyepiece focal lengths. The second PowerPoint shows how light rays travel through a Cassegrain reflecting telescope. Rays are drawn in stages to show all the steps in constructing an accurate ray diagram.

The first file covers the uniform field between N and S poles and the field around a current carrying wire. There are some parts to be completed by the students. The second file has the answers. The third file has questions based to check on knowledge and understanding of the first file. The fourth file has the answers.

The first file consists of two pages of notes which covers the whole topic. It refers to the Plum pudding model, Geiger and Marsden’s experiment their results and Rutherford’s explanation. There are some parts to be completed by the student. The second file has the answers to the parts that must be completed.

The first file is a very comprehensive set of notes describing the Life of Stars. The second file is a summary of the Life of Stars notes with missing word to be completed by the student. It requires that the student carefully reads the Life of Stars notes and can be set for homework. It also provides a useful summary. The third file has the answers to the missing words of the summary. The fourth file has questions which also require the careful reading and understanding of the Life of Stars notes and can be set for homework. The fifth file has the answers to the the questions.

The first file three pages of notes which covers the whole topic. It refers to the fission of U235 when bombarded by neutrons including the nuclear equation, how energy is released. where the energy comes from and what a chain reaction is. There are sections on a nuclear power station and nuclear waste. There are some parts to be completed by the student, including nuclear equations. At the end there is two extension questions which show how much energy is produced. The second file has the answers to the parts that must be completed.

The first file explains how g is the gravitational field strength and also the acceleration due to gravity. Students can find this confusing but this aims to make it clear why g has two different names in two different situations. The second file gives the answers to the questions.

This is a series of notes / work sheets for the teaching of direct current, voltage, resistance of metals, series circuits and parallel circuits. it has words and numbers to be filled in by the student and includes questions designed to check on understanding. There are 21 Word files of notes. This is the result of teaching this topic, which many students find difficult, for more than 30 years. The concept of voltage is particularly difficult and also students need to understand which piece of their knowledge to use first in order to solve more complicated circuit questions. There are plenty of questions to help with this. A few of the questions are aimed at the more able student. All the answers are included so there are 21 Word files of answers.

This powerpoint shows how to resolve a vector into components at right angles to each other. This is with the x and y directions horizontal and vertical as well as not horizontal and vertical. It includes two numerical examples. To aid understanding everything is done in stages so that steps can explained by the teacher or students can be asked to predict the next step.