Circuit Builder
Build and test series and parallel circuits using cells, switches, lamps, resistors, ammeters and wires. Explore complete circuits, current flow, voltage, resistance and…
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Interactive resources
Physics interactives
56 physics simulations, guided investigations and challenges, mapped to the WA and Australian curricula, US standards and GCSE.
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Electricity & Magnetism
Circuit Builder Guided Investigation
Complete a guided circuit investigation by building working circuits, testing open switches, comparing one and two cells, reversing cells, measuring current with an…
Electrical Energy Systems Explorer
Explore how electrical devices transfer energy into light, heat, movement, sound and stored chemical energy. Classify useful and other outputs, then complete…
Electromagnetic Induction Challenge
A randomised challenge covering Faraday's Law and Lenz's Law: calculating induced voltage, magnet speed, magnet strength and coil turns, plus reasoning about why a…
Electromagnetic Induction Explorer
An explorer for induced voltage, coils, magnets, and changing magnetic fields — move a magnet through a coil and watch the galvanometer, field lines and electron flow…
Electromagnetic Induction Guided Investigation
A guided investigation that builds up electromagnetic induction step by step: no motion means no voltage, motion induces voltage, and reversing direction reverses the…
Magnetic Field Challenge
A randomised challenge where students identify magnetic field direction, compare field strength, interpret compass arrows and apply the right-hand rule.
Magnetic Field Explorer
Explore magnetic field direction and strength around bar magnets and current-carrying wires using compass arrows whose direction and length show the local field.
Magnetic Field Investigation
A step-by-step investigation into magnetic fields, guiding students to observe field direction, field strength, compass behaviour and right-hand-rule patterns.
Resistor Network Challenge
Solve randomised resistor network problems by designing circuits that achieve target resistances and currents using series, parallel and mixed arrangements.
Resistor Network Explorer
Explore series, parallel and mixed resistor networks by adjusting resistor values and observing how equivalent resistance and current change.
Resistor Network Investigation
A step-by-step investigation into equivalent resistance in series, parallel and mixed resistor networks, guiding students to discover how circuit arrangement affects…
Energy
Conservation of Energy Challenge
A randomised challenge involving Sankey diagrams, efficiency calculations and interpretation of energy transfers in real-world devices.
Conservation of Energy Investigation
A step-by-step investigation into energy transfers, efficiency and Sankey diagrams, showing that energy is transformed rather than lost.
Energy System Design Lab
Use real regional electricity, weather and generation data to design a lower-emissions energy system. Students interpret evidence such as wind-speed distributions and…
Grid & Renewables Data Investigation Lab
Investigate real electricity-grid data to explore renewable generation, demand, emissions, price and energy mix.
The Long Transition: 60 Years of Electricity
Use 60 years of real annual data to investigate how the UK, US, Australia and other countries' electricity mix has changed over time, and whether emissions have…
Forces & Motion
Acceleration Challenge
A randomised challenge covering acceleration, deceleration, initial velocity, final velocity, elapsed time and the difference between speed and acceleration.
Acceleration Explorer
Students investigate how changes in velocity over time produce acceleration, deceleration and constant-velocity motion.
Acceleration Investigation
A guided ramp investigation in which students compare repeated trials and calculate acceleration for different slopes.
Area Under a Velocity–Time Graph Explorer
Students calculate distance and displacement from rectangular, triangular, trapezoidal and signed areas beneath velocity–time graphs.
Average Speed Explorer
An open average-speed explorer in which students adjust distance and travel time, run an animated car and observe the relationship between distance, time and average…
Average Speed Investigation
A guided investigation in which students measure a moving car using manual stopwatch trials, calculate mean time and average speed, identify anomalous results and…
Collision Momentum: Real-World Collisions
Explore momentum and collisions through Space, NASCAR and Baseball contexts, then investigate mass, velocity, elasticity, impulse, momentum vectors and kinetic energy in…
Hooke's Law: Guided Investigation
A step-by-step version of the classic spring-extension practical. Students calculate extensions from ruler readings, plot a graph, identify the limit of proportionality…
Hooke's Law: Spring Explorer
Drag a load slider to stretch a spring, a copper wire or a rubber band, and watch the force–extension graph plot live — including the limit of proportionality, the…
Momentum & Collisions Challenge
A randomised challenge where students solve momentum and collision problems involving different masses and speeds, predict collision outcomes and apply conservation of…
Momentum & Collisions Investigation
A step-by-step investigation into how mass and velocity affect momentum and collisions. Students predict outcomes, test ideas with light and heavy objects, and connect…
Newton's First Law Explorer
A canvas-based explorer where students investigate inertia, balanced and unbalanced forces, friction, initial velocity and constant motion.
Newton's Laws Challenge
A mixed canvas-based challenge covering law classification, balanced forces, F = ma calculations and third-law force-pair identification.
Newton's Second Law Explorer
A canvas-based explorer where students vary force and mass and observe acceleration, motion, force vectors, worked calculations and a velocity-time graph.
Newton's Third Law Explorer
A canvas-based explorer showing equal and opposite force pairs across pushes, collisions, swimming and rocket motion.
Projectile Motion Simulator
Launch a projectile at any speed, angle and height, then watch how gravity shapes its path. Compare range and maximum height as the launch conditions change, and see…
Projectile Motion: Guided Calculations
Work step-by-step through the maths behind a randomly generated launch. Calculate horizontal and vertical velocity components, time of flight, maximum height, range and…
Projectile Motion: Guided Journey
A guided, step-by-step walkthrough of projectile motion set against a real launch — golf, NFL punting, cricket, or a fireworks shell — exploring the launch, rise, apex…
Projectile Targeting Challenge
Calculate the launch angle, speed, or landing point needed to hit a target — then fire to find out if you got it right. Five escalating rounds cover solving for angle,…
Speed, Velocity & Displacement Challenge
A randomised challenge covering distance, displacement, average speed, average velocity, direction and return journeys.
Speed, Velocity & Displacement Explorer
Students compare distance with displacement and speed with velocity across direct, return and multi-stage journeys.
Spring & Elastic Materials Challenge
A randomised challenge covering Hooke's law calculations — extension, force and spring constant — plus questions on permanent deformation once a material is stretched…
Terminal Velocity & Air Resistance Explorer
A falling skydiver accelerates under gravity while air resistance grows with speed. Watch weight and drag balance at terminal velocity, then open the parachute to see…
Uniform Acceleration Equations Challenge
A guided calculation challenge in which students identify known values, select an equation, rearrange it and solve uniformly accelerated motion problems.
Vector or Scalar?
Students classify fourteen everyday quantities — force, velocity, mass, temperature, and more — as vectors or scalars, with immediate feedback and a short explanation…
Vehicle Safety & Newton's Laws Challenge
Become a vehicle safety engineer and use Newton's Laws, momentum and stopping distance calculations to design safer cars. Investigate collisions, evaluate safety…
Velocity–Time Graph Explorer
Students connect animated motion with velocity–time graphs and investigate constant velocity, acceleration, deceleration and reversal of direction.
Velocity–Time Graph Explorer: Guided Journey
A guided, step-by-step walkthrough of velocity–time graphs set against a real current event (motorsport, athletics, cycling or a rocket launch). Students work through…
Weight Across Worlds: Gravity Explorer
Set an object's mass, then compare its weight on Earth, the Moon, Mars and Jupiter using W = m × g. Watch a jump animation scale with each world's gravity, compare all…
What Force Is That?
Twelve everyday scenes — a tug pulling a tanker, a compass near a magnet, a parachutist descending — where students identify which type of force is acting, with…
Heat & Thermodynamics
Gas Laws Challenge
A randomised challenge involving Boyle's Law and Charles's Law calculations, graph interpretation and reasoning about how particle motion and piston movement affect…
Gas Laws Investigation
A step-by-step investigation into Boyle's Law and Charles's Law, showing how particle motion and piston movement explain the relationships between pressure, volume and…
Light & Optics
Optical Lightbench
A 2D/3D optical lightbench for mirrors, lenses, refraction, total internal reflection, and real vs virtual images.
Waves & Sound
Canon Wave Explorer
Built around the Thousand-Hand Guanyin: a line of dancers raising their arms in canon. A guided sequence moves from the audience view (unison shows one pair of arms;…
Ripple Tank Explorer
Explore straight and circular water waves in a ripple tank. Adjust frequency, amplitude, water depth and gap width, track a floating cork, use a stroboscope and observe…
Sound Wave Challenge
A randomised challenge covering the properties of sound waves, including frequency, amplitude, wavelength, pitch, loudness and the behaviour of sound in different media.
Sound Wave Explorer
Explore sound as a longitudinal wave by manipulating frequency, amplitude and medium. Visualise particle motion, wave representations and how sound properties affect…
Sound Wave Investigation
A step-by-step investigation into sound as a longitudinal wave. Students identify compressions and rarefactions, explore the effects of changing frequency and amplitude,…
Tacoma Narrows — Why Did the Bridge Collapse?
Investigate the 1940 Tacoma Narrows Bridge collapse through historical evidence, a controllable qualitative aeroelastic model and engineering reasoning.