Year 12 Physics
Module 5, Advanced Mechanics, from the first projectile to satellites in orbit, then a head start on Module 6, Electromagnetism.
- Each week
- One 3-hour lesson · 30-minute break
- In person · St Leonards
- Weekly from Saturday 17 October, decide by Saturday 24 October · 10:00am or 2:00pm
- Online · live from home
- Weekly from Sunday 18 October, decide by Sunday 25 October · 10:00am or 2:00pm
- Price
- $1,000 instead of $1,500 for all 10 lessons, for the first 5 students to sign up. Try 2 lessons before you pay
The term price covers all 10 lessons, the first 2 included. Pay up front, after the first lesson or after the second; if the class is not right by then, there is nothing to pay.
The term, lesson by lesson
In person Saturday 17 October to Saturday 19 December, online Sunday 18 October to Sunday 20 December. Follows the NESA Physics Stage 6 Syllabus (2017), which the 2027 HSC examines, in the order most schools teach it.
The term at a glance
| Lesson | Topic | In person | Online |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lesson 1 | Projectile motionProjectiles: splitting the motion in two | Sat 17 Oct | Sun 18 Oct |
| Lesson 2 | Projectile motionAngled launches and the projectile equations | Sat 24 Oct | Sun 25 Oct |
| Lesson 3 | Circular motionUniform circular motion | Sat 31 Oct | Sun 1 Nov |
| Lesson 4 | Circular motionCircular motion in the real world | Sat 7 Nov | Sun 8 Nov |
| Lesson 5 | Motion in gravitational fieldsUniversal gravitation and field strength | Sat 14 Nov | Sun 15 Nov |
| Lesson 6 | Motion in gravitational fieldsOrbits and satellites | Sat 21 Nov | Sun 22 Nov |
| Lesson 7 | Motion in gravitational fieldsEnergy in gravitational fields | Sat 28 Nov | Sun 29 Nov |
| Lesson 8 | Module 5 reviewAdvanced Mechanics in review | Sat 5 Dec | Sun 6 Dec |
| Lesson 9 | Charged particles in fieldsCharged particles in electric fields | Sat 12 Dec | Sun 13 Dec |
| Lesson 10 | Term reviewConsolidation and term test | Sat 19 Dec | Sun 20 Dec |
Projectile motion
Projectiles: splitting the motion in two
- Module 5
- Projectile Motion
- Resolving a launch velocity into horizontal and vertical components
- Why the horizontal and vertical motions are independent
- Projectiles launched horizontally from a height
- The assumptions behind the model: constant g and no air resistance
Key skill: Resolving vectors and applying the equations of motion to each direction.
Angled launches and the projectile equations
- Module 5
- Projectile Motion
- Deriving time of flight, maximum height, range and final velocity
- How launch height and angle change the path, and why 45 degrees maximises range on level ground
- Practical investigation: testing the model against real launch data from video analysis
Key skill: Deriving a relationship and checking it against collected data.
Circular motion
Uniform circular motion
- Module 5
- Circular Motion
- Speed, period and angular velocity for an object moving in a circle
- Centripetal acceleration and force: a = v²/r and F = mv²/r
- Practical investigation: the whirling bung, relating force, mass, speed and radius
Key skill: Linearising data and reading a physical quantity from the gradient.
Circular motion in the real world
- Module 5
- Circular Motion
- Cars on flat and banked curves, and the design speed of a banked track
- Masses on strings and objects on rotating platforms
- Why a centripetal force does no work on the object
- Torque as the turning effect of a force: τ = rF sinθ
Key skill: Drawing free body diagrams and resolving forces to find the net force.
Motion in gravitational fields
Universal gravitation and field strength
- Module 5
- Gravitational Fields
- Newton’s law of universal gravitation
- Gravitational field strength at the surface of a planet and at altitude
- Comparing g on different planets and moons
Key skill: Ratio reasoning: predicting how a force changes when mass or distance changes.
Orbits and satellites
- Module 5
- Gravitational Fields
- Orbital velocity and period, by equating gravity with the centripetal force
- Low Earth orbits compared with geostationary orbits, and what each is used for
- Kepler’s third law and using it to find the mass of a planet or star
Key skill: Graphing r³ against T² to find a central mass from moon data.
Energy in gravitational fields
- Module 5
- Gravitational Fields
- Gravitational potential energy as U = −GMm/r, and why it is negative
- Total energy of an orbiting satellite and the energy needed to change orbit
- Escape velocity
- Kepler’s first and second laws
Key skill: Multi-step energy calculations for satellites and launches.
Module 5 review
Advanced Mechanics in review
- Module 5
- Depth study skills
- Mixed questions across projectiles, circular motion and orbits
- Planning a valid investigation for a Module 5 depth study
- Uncertainty, error analysis and judging reliability and validity
Key skill: Evaluating an experimental method and its sources of error.
Charged particles in fields
Charged particles in electric fields
- Module 6
- Charged Particles
- The uniform electric field between parallel plates: E = V/d
- Force and work on a charge: F = qE and W = qV
- Charges accelerated through a potential difference
- Curved paths through a field, compared with projectile motion
Key skill: Using work and energy to find the speed of an accelerated charge.
Term review
Consolidation and term test
- Module 5
- Module 6
- HSC-style multiple choice and extended response on projectile and circular motion, gravitation and the start of electromagnetism
- A short test under exam conditions, marked with written feedback
- A plan for the summer holidays, built around the Module 6 work that opens Term 1
Key skill: Exam technique: showing working and reading what a question is really asking.
How every lesson runs
3 hours of teaching with a 30-minute break, following the same pattern every week.
Check in
A short quiz on last week’s content, and the homework questions that caused trouble worked through on the board before anything new is taught.
Teach
The new content taught at the whiteboard, with worked examples that build from the first idea up to the standard of an HSC question.
Practise
Questions at four levels: Assimilate, Consolidate, Integrate and Extend. Everyone starts together and moves up as they are ready, with written work checked as they go.
Exam practice
Past HSC questions on the week’s topic, answered under time and marked against the NESA marking guidelines, so students learn what earns the marks.
Take home
Session notes and homework set at each student’s level, so the week’s work is secure before the next lesson builds on it.
What your child receives
Every student in the class gets all of this, week by week and across the term.
- Every week
A check-in quiz
A short quiz on last week’s content opens every lesson, so a gap is found and fixed before new work is built on top of it.
- Every week
Session notes
Notes on what the lesson covered, to revise from at home. They are sent even when a lesson is missed.
- Every week
Homework at their level
Questions set at one of four levels, Assimilate, Consolidate, Integrate or Extend, so the work stretches each student without losing them.
- Every week
Marked HSC questions
Past HSC questions on the week’s topic, answered under time and marked against the NESA marking guidelines.
- End of term
A term test with written feedback
A short test under exam conditions in the final lesson, marked and returned with written feedback on where the marks were won and lost.
- End of term
A holiday plan
A plan for the holidays that follow, built around the work that opens the next term.
The rest of Year 12
Where the course goes next, in the order schools teach it.
- Term 1, 2027
The rest of Module 6, Electromagnetism: the motor effect, electromagnetic induction, motors, generators and transformers. Module 7, The Nature of Light, usually begins late in the term.
- Term 2, 2027
Module 7: the electromagnetic spectrum, wave and quantum models of light, and special relativity. Module 8, From the Universe to the Atom, begins.
- Term 3, 2027
Module 8 is completed: the origins of the elements, atomic and nuclear physics, and particle physics. Then trial exams and revision for the HSC.
Questions about this class
Which syllabus does the Physics class follow?
The class follows the NESA Physics Stage 6 Syllabus (2017), which the 2027 HSC examines, in the order most schools teach it.
What if my school teaches Physics in a different order?
The class follows the plan on this page, which uses the order most schools teach Physics in. Where your school takes a topic earlier or later, that week’s lesson is either revision of work already done or a head start on what is coming. You keep the session notes from every lesson, so they are on hand when school reaches the topic.
Can I join partway through the term?
Yes. Classes run every week through the term, so you can start whenever suits and still have two lessons to decide before you pay. Tell us which course you are in and we will let you know what the class has covered so far.
What if I miss a week?
Tell us as early as you can. Where there is room, you can sit that week with the other day’s group. The Saturday and Sunday classes cover the same material and we will send the session notes either way.
Do I pay for the first two lessons?
Only if you stay. The term price covers every lesson, the first two included. Pay up front, after the first lesson or after the second. If the class is not right after two lessons, you pay nothing.
Sitting more than one?
Every course runs as its own class, each with its own plan.
Join the Physics class
Try 2 lessons before you pay. Tell us whether Saturdays in person or Sundays online suit, and we will confirm your session.