GCSE Physics: Energy | Full Unit + Required Practical (AQA)

A no-prep, 6-lesson science unit on GCSE Physics (AQA 4.1): energy stores and systems; kinetic, gravitational potential, and elastic potential energy; changes in thermal energy; power; efficiency; energy resources and their environmental impact, written for Key Stage 4 / GCSE (ages 14-16). Phenomenon-first and three-dimensional: every lesson opens with something to wonder about and builds toward the unit’s big question. Open and teach — full teacher plans, projectable slides, three differentiated pupil worksheets per lesson, a complete printable lab pack, a knowledge organiser, and a baseline + end-of-unit assessment.

Big question: Where does energy come from, where does it go, and why can we never get it all back as useful work?

What’s included

• 6 × Teacher lesson plans (Word) on the 5E spine (Engage · Explore · Explain · Elaborate · Evaluate)
• 6 × Pupil worksheets in 3 differentiated tiers (Support / Core / Stretch — mapped to Foundation Higher)
• 6 × Projectable slide decks (PowerPoint, 16:9 widescreen)
• 1 × Full required-practical lab pack (Word) — AQA RP: specific heat capacity — method, fair-test variables, household and lab equipment lists, a real risk assessment, a blank results table, and analysis + conclusion scaffolds
• 1 × Knowledge organiser (Word, A4 landscape)
• 1 × Baseline + end-of-unit assessment with a teacher answer key — plus 6 original exam-style questions with full mark schemes and command words (describe / explain / evaluate / calculate)
• Hand-coded diagrams with clear labels for the unit’s key ideas — never AI-generated
• Original illustrations for every phenomenon hook

Lesson outline

1. Energy stores and transfers
2. Kinetic, gravitational PE and elastic PE calculations
3. Specific heat capacity (AQA Required Practical)
4. Power and efficiency with Sankey diagrams
5. Conservation of energy and reducing unwanted transfers
6. National and global energy resources