Is physical science the same as physics?

It overlaps heavily but is broader and less mathematical. A 9th or 10th grade physical science course covers the core physics topics — motion, forces, energy, waves, electricity — alongside the physical properties of matter, and it usually stops short of trigonometry-based vector work or formal kinematics derivations.

My child understands the concepts but loses marks on calculations. What helps?

Most lost marks come from three habits: not writing down knowns with units before starting, rearranging the equation after substituting numbers rather than before, and rounding mid-calculation. Sessions target these directly by having the learner narrate each step so the slip is caught as it happens rather than at the end.

Does this cover the chemistry parts of a physical science course?

Sessions here focus on the physics side plus the physical behaviour of matter — density, heat, and phase changes. Atomic structure, bonding, chemical equations, and reactions are handled under the separate Chemistry topic.

How do you teach graphs and diagrams over voice?

The learner describes what is in front of them — a graph in their textbook, a diagram they have sketched — and Evelyn questions the interpretation. For new material, situations are described in words and the learner is asked to draw the free-body diagram or circuit themselves, then explain what they drew.

Physical Science

High School (9-10) · Science

Physical science in grades 9-10 is the first course where students have to describe the physical world with equations rather than words alone. The work centres on motion, forces, energy, waves, and electricity, plus the physical behaviour of matter — density, phase change, and heat transfer. Most of the difficulty is not the arithmetic; it is deciding which relationship applies, keeping units consistent, and reasoning about direction and sign. Sessions are spoken conversations in which the learner explains a situation, sets up the relationship, and works through it while being questioned about each step.

Start a session on Physical Science

What this covers

Reading and building motion graphs: distance-time versus velocity-time, what the slope and the area under each line represent, and translating a graph back into a description of what an object is doing
Applying Newton's three laws with free-body diagrams — identifying every force acting, finding the net force, and using F = ma to solve for the unknown quantity
Energy transfer and conservation: calculating kinetic and gravitational potential energy, tracking energy through a pendulum or roller coaster, and distinguishing work from power
Wave behaviour and the wave equation (v = f\u03bb), including reflection, refraction, the electromagnetic spectrum, and how frequency relates to pitch and colour
Simple circuits and Ohm's law: current, voltage, and resistance in series versus parallel arrangements, and predicting what happens when a component is added or removed
Physical properties of matter — density calculations, heat versus temperature, specific heat, and interpreting heating and phase-change curves
Measurement discipline: significant figures, metric conversions, scientific notation, and checking that an answer's units make sense

Where learners get stuck

Believing a moving object must have a force pushing it forward: Everyday experience always involves friction, so motion appears to stop unless something keeps pushing. Students then draw a forward force on a coasting car or a ball in mid-air. The fix is repeatedly separating 'what force started this' from 'what forces act right now', which needs to be practised out loud on many scenarios.
Confusing a horizontal line on a velocity-time graph with an object at rest: Students memorise 'flat line means stopped' from distance-time graphs and carry it over without rechecking the vertical axis label. Because both graph types look similar, the error persists until the learner is forced to state what the y-axis measures before interpreting any curve.
Treating heat and temperature as the same thing: In ordinary speech 'heat' means 'how hot something is'. So students cannot explain why a bathtub of warm water contains more thermal energy than a spark at a much higher temperature, or why substances at the same temperature feel different to touch.
Assuming current is 'used up' as it travels round a circuit: The word 'consume' from electricity bills suggests charge disappears in a bulb. Learners then predict less current after a component than before, which breaks every series-circuit calculation they attempt.

What a session looks like

A session runs as spoken back-and-forth. Evelyn usually opens with a physical situation — a cart on a ramp, two bulbs in series, a wave on a rope — and asks the learner to describe what is happening before any numbers appear. The learner states which quantities are known, chooses a relationship, and talks through the substitution step by step; Evelyn interrupts where a unit is dropped, a direction is ignored, or a formula is chosen by pattern-matching rather than reasoning. Graphs and diagrams are described verbally, so learners are asked to say what a slope or an area means rather than just read a value. Work the learner has attempted at school can be brought in and reworked line by line.

Helpful to know first

Comfort rearranging simple algebraic equations to solve for any variable, for example turning v = f\u03bb into \u03bb = v/f
Multiplying and dividing decimals and working with powers of ten in scientific notation
Reading values off a line graph and understanding slope as rise over run
Familiarity with metric units and prefixes (milli-, centi-, kilo-)

Questions

Is physical science the same as physics?: It overlaps heavily but is broader and less mathematical. A 9th or 10th grade physical science course covers the core physics topics — motion, forces, energy, waves, electricity — alongside the physical properties of matter, and it usually stops short of trigonometry-based vector work or formal kinematics derivations.
My child understands the concepts but loses marks on calculations. What helps?: Most lost marks come from three habits: not writing down knowns with units before starting, rearranging the equation after substituting numbers rather than before, and rounding mid-calculation. Sessions target these directly by having the learner narrate each step so the slip is caught as it happens rather than at the end.
Does this cover the chemistry parts of a physical science course?: Sessions here focus on the physics side plus the physical behaviour of matter — density, heat, and phase changes. Atomic structure, bonding, chemical equations, and reactions are handled under the separate Chemistry topic.
How do you teach graphs and diagrams over voice?: The learner describes what is in front of them — a graph in their textbook, a diagram they have sketched — and Evelyn questions the interpretation. For new material, situations are described in words and the learner is asked to draw the free-body diagram or circuit themselves, then explain what they drew.