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Active Science

Average Rating3.94
(based on 10 reviews)

A specialist science shop featuring hands-on and minds-on activities all designed to promote both thinking and learning. I'm a very experienced teacher with advanced skills teacher (AST) and specialist leader of education (SLE) accreditation under my belt.

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A specialist science shop featuring hands-on and minds-on activities all designed to promote both thinking and learning. I'm a very experienced teacher with advanced skills teacher (AST) and specialist leader of education (SLE) accreditation under my belt.
Electrical Power
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Electrical Power

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There are enough resources here to fill two lessons on the topic of electrical power. The activities include a student practical finding the power of various kettles; the student sheet has instructions and guides students through the calculations required. There is also a demonstration using an electricity meter to compare the power of various electrical items. They are backed up with three different worksheets helping students to understand and use the equation power = potential difference x current.
Calculations using equations for AQA GCSE physics
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Calculations using equations for AQA GCSE physics

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These are great exam practise for higher students once they are familiar with how to use the equations in the specification. Each question required a multi-step calculation and often more than one equation is needed. There are two booklets; one using the equations needed in paper one and the other those in paper two. Fully worked answers are also provided which can be projected on to a board for use by the whole class.
Calculation practise using equations for AQA GCSE physics
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Calculation practise using equations for AQA GCSE physics

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Here you will find two booklets that give students practise at carrying out calculations using each of the equations that feature in the AQA GCSE physics specification(first examined 2018). Based on questions in the exam papers, students are asked to recall particular equations and then re-arrange them and use them. To make them more helpful for revision purposes there is a booklet for the equations required for paper one and a separate booklet for paper two. Answers are also provided.
Equations for AQA GCSE physics
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Equations for AQA GCSE physics

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This set of resources provides teachers and students with helpful summaries of the equations they will need to learn and use when sitting the AQA GCSE physics exams. Helpfully, the equations are separated by the exam paper in which they will feature. The simplified sheet is less wordy and more suitable for foundation students. The equation cue cards are designed for student use and will help them not only learn the equations but also how to re-arrange them. There are some student instructions on the final card. The sheets will also be of use to those sitting the double science exams as they can be easily edited to remove the few equations not needed by these students.
carbon dioxide emissions and energy resources
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carbon dioxide emissions and energy resources

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There are two resources here. Resource One: two data analysis worksheets based on global carbon dioxide emissions. They are accompanied by a powerpoint with infographics showing similar information and a pdf that can be enlarged for easier viewing. Resource Two: an activity where groups of students have to decide between fossil and nuclear fuels. It's based upon Edward de Bono's thinking hats and helps students to communicate verbally and in writing.
Power Stations and Electricity
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Power Stations and Electricity

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A big bundle of resources to introduce the important ideas about generating and using electricity: - a starter card sort game that gets students to think through how much they depend on electricity - a hands on activity where students use cardboard boxes to build and then label a model power station - a connection card game that uses key vocabulary to help students to make connections and express their ideas verbally. - a mini colouring worksheet examining the advantages and disadvantages of domestic electricity - a worksheet classifying sources of power - a worksheet that consolidates the key components of power stations and their functions. They make a good introduction to the topic for GCSE students but would also be useful at keystage three.
The Greenhouse Effect
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The Greenhouse Effect

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This lesson is run as a competition between small groups of students. The lesson encourages students to use a series of challenges and clues to work out for themselves the key ideas about the greenhouse effect. The lesson is structured with a starter, a session gathering the main ideas and then time for students to put together their own explanation. It is aimed at less academic GCSE students but would also work well for keystage 3 students and more able GCSE students who could complete it more quickly.
The Solar System and Beyond
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The Solar System and Beyond

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This is a bundle based around helping students get to grips with the vastness of space and the key vocabulary that goes with it. To get students thinking, there's a starter where students give their opinions by placing themselves on an imaginary line . Their position on the line indicates how much they agree or disagree with a series of statements. The sizing activity quite literally paces out the solar system to scale and brings home the true distance between the Earth and Moon. There are then three worksheets designed to promote thinking and consolidate what students have learnt
Introduction to Waves and the Wave Equation
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Introduction to Waves and the Wave Equation

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Two practical, hands-on activities, one takes place outdoors, to help students develop their understanding of some key waves vocabulary. There is also a sheet for students to record their findings and a worksheet with straight forward calculations based on the wave equation. The activities are useful for foundation GCSE students or form a good introduction to keystage 3 students.
Earthquakes and Seismic waves
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Earthquakes and Seismic waves

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Here is a suite of resources based around earthquakes: The demonstration makes very clear how s and p waves are produced and the follow up worksheet is designed to consolidate understanding. The Plotting activity requires students to interpret eye witness accounts to determine the strength of an earthquake felt at different locations. These strengths are then plotted on a map to find the epicentre. It's based on an activity from the old Salters' GCSE. There is also a data handling exercise.
Cause and Correlation
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Cause and Correlation

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A lesson on the important difference between cause and correlation. The teacher notes give details of examples where there is a strong correlation but no causal link, examples which can be hard to think of on the spot! The presentation is based around air pollution and helps students to understand the key ideas. It can be followed up with the worksheet which includes many examples. For each example students sort the three options given into correlation, cause or no link
Understanding Electrical relationships
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Understanding Electrical relationships

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This will really help students understand the relationships between the different electrical quantities. Most students will need some teacher support to complete the double sided sheet and it's a great stretch and challenge activity for more able students. It would serve as a good introduction to circuit electricity at A level, allowing students to identify and correct their own misconceptions. Those teaching outside their area of specialism are likely to find it very helpful to clarify their own understanding of electricity.
Electricity calculations
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Electricity calculations

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A highly structured and scaffolded suite of questions which guide students through the process of answering calculation questions using an equation. The smart use of a grid allows students to pick out the information they need and enables them to succeed. The questions get harder as the students progress through the pack. There’s also a worksheet (explaining electrical relationships) designed to help students think through what the mathematical relationships mean. This resources covers all the equations on the topic of electricity needed for AQA GCSE phyiscs (2016 spec)
Transformers simulation and calculations
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Transformers simulation and calculations

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Use this simulation, written in excel, to help your students to get to grips with calculations involving transformers. Use the sliders to adjust the input voltage or the number of turns in the primary and secondary coils to investigate what happens to the output voltage. This can be used by students working individually but it is probably best used for whole class teaching. When opening the spreadsheet, don't forget to click "enable content". The simulation is accompanied by a worksheet where students work through a series of calculations. Answers are also provided.
electrical components and circuits
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electrical components and circuits

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This lovely simulation, developed in excel, allows students to investigate the effect on current and voltage of different circuit components. Click on the tabs at the bottom of the page to choose your component then use the sliders to adjust the supply voltage/resistance etc. There are accompanying worksheet to go with each component. This activity is great current vs voltage graphs and works well either as a preliminary to practical work or to reinforce practical work. Don't forget to click on "enable" when you open up the spreadsheet
Modelling a CCD
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Modelling a CCD

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This model was developed to teach the AQA astrophyics option at A level. The teacher sheet gives instructions for how to build a "working" model of a CCD in a couple of minutes from simple equipment you will already have. There is a follow up cut and stick worksheet for students to complete which consolidates the key ideas
Stopping Distance Calculator
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Stopping Distance Calculator

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A great simulation to find thinking distance, breaking distance and stopping distance when you change the road conditions or the state of the driver. Use the sliders on the spreadsheet to change , for example the amount of alcohol that has been drunk or the degree of wear on the tyres. The activity can be run by students working individually or led by the teacher with the whole class. There is a worksheet for students to complete to help them develop their thinking. The simulation is also provided on an older version of excel (19917)
Temperature and Heat Transfer
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Temperature and Heat Transfer

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There are two activities here. The first introduces the idea of temperature by encouraging students to compare the temperatures of different objects in the universe. The follow up experiment investigates where the energy from a hot object goes and helps students to think through ideas about energy transfer.
Thermal Equilibrium Circus
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Thermal Equilibrium Circus

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The circus of experiments that students carry out is accompanied by a worksheet for them to record their thinking. The activity is designed to help students think more critically about ideas of heat and energy transfer.
Graphing Sunspots
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Graphing Sunspots

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This activity is designed to allow the whole class to work together to produce one enormous graph. It provides an interesting space context for students to hone their graphical skills. Also included is a set of domino cards about the universe which complement to activity and can be completed by early finishers.