Homeschool Physics for High School

Homeschool Physics doesn't have to be intimidating or complicated. Here are resources for a high school Physics unit that is engaging and easy-to-do at home. This unit focuses on:

• Conceptual Physics video lectures + problems

• Engaging videos to illustrate physics concepts

• Simple hands-on physics experiments and demonstrations that can be done at home

We use a 4-year science rotation in our homeschool, so we have completed two Physics units, first when my kids were 11yo and 14yo and again when my kids were 15yo and 18yo.

In this post, I will detail all of the resources and books we used for the second iteration, to make it easy for you to have your own high school physics unit study, too! If your kids are younger, you can see resources for middle school physics here: https://www.nourishedandnurturedlife.com/post/homeschool-physics-for-middle-schoolers

At the end of this post, there is a week-by-week chart showing how you can pull all of these resources together.

Exploration, NOT Perfect Mastery

When embarking on any particular subject with your kids, it's important to think about your overall objectives first. I believe that instilling a love of learning is more important than pushing to the point that my kids will hate the subject. So, for our science studies, perfect mastery is not the goal. I'm not trying to make science seem really technical or hard or arduous. That's not the point.

Instead, I aim to give the kids a chance to fall in love with science by awakening their curiosity and getting their brains moving in a scientific direction. I focus on fostering exploration and delight.

If you feel the same, then if there is any particular topic that is not sparking your kids' interest, just let go and move on. There is no need to force or require or cajole. Some physics topics are complex and hard to understand. When we'd bump against one of these, if the kids were stressing out, I would emphasize that we're stretching our brains and it's okay if we don't understand everything perfectly right now.

Mom + Kids Learning Side-by-Side

Whenever we're studying history or science, rather than assigning it to my kids, we all learn together. This allows me to:

• show my kids the importance of lifelong learning,

• actively discuss the concepts with my kids, which greatly increases their learning and allows me to help them through any trouble spots,

• easily track how well my kids are engaging with the material in case course corrections are needed, and

• increase my own understanding of the subject.

It's been a minute 😜 since I took Physics myself, so I got to refresh my own Physics knowledge by working through this unit with my kids.

Conceptual Physics Video Lectures + Problems

I'm not gonna lie: we crashed and burned with several Physics curriculums before we finally found Conceptual Physics.

Some of the things I love that about Conceptual Physics are:

• It focuses more on the big ideas of physics, as opposed to just the equations and problems.

• It is light on the math, only using a little algebra and no calculus. This is exactly what we needed to lay the groundwork of physics, knowing that we may loop back around to a more-technical version of physics for my son as he gets further into high school and ready for more complexity.

The video lectures we used for Conceptual Physics are free on youtube and were originally created for a Physics 100 class for a community college in Hawaii. There are 24 video lectures, most of which end with the professor working a few simple physics problems.

Along with the video lectures, we also used the Conceptual Physics textbook for problems. The 12th edition of this book is the one that corresponds to the video lectures. You can download a free PDF of the textbook here:

joe-mccullough.com/physics/10_textbook.pdf

If you're having trouble getting that link to work, here is another version:

Conceptual Physics, 12th Edition (2015).pdf

Download PDF • 51.40MB

Or you can purchase a printed version of the textbook here.

We watched 1-2 video lectures weekly and then worked a few problems from the Conceptual Physics textbook. We used the PDF of the textbook and I printed out the problem pages for each chapter. There are numerous problems and demonstrations at the end of each chapter and we did NOT work them all. Instead, I chose a few problems and demonstrations for us all to work on side-by-side after each video lecture.

NOTE: If your kids are ready for higher-level math and greater complexity, you may want to try the Physics 1 course from the Math and Science youtube channel. We weren't ready for that one yet, but may loop back around to it later.

Engaging Physics Videos

Alongside the video lectures and problems, you can use engaging science demonstration videos to further demonstrate the concepts. We used demonstration videos after our physics lectures+problems, generally on another day.

• Smarter Every Day Channel

• Homemade Science with Bruce Yeany Channel

There is a chart with potential video options to complement each Conceptual Physics video lecture at the end of this post.

Hands-on Experiments and Demonstrations

Physics experiments and demonstrations serve as a great hands-on addition to the physics videos and problems. Not having a full physics lab at home, I've chosen to keep our experiments a bit less intensive.

There is a chart with potential demonstration/experiment options to complement each Conceptual Physics video lecture at the end of this post. When you reach the lectures on electricity and magnetism, the Eudax Electricity and Magnetism Kit is a fun add-on to experiment with.

A Physics Book for *You*

One of the best ways to get excited about Physics (or any other subject that your kids are studying) is to read your own book about it! There are amazing, engaging, thought-provoking books about all sorts of seemingly-dry subjects. And, when you read your own Physics book, it'll give you more to share with your kids.

The two books I read on my own for Physics were:

• For the Love of Physics: From the End of the Rainbow to the Edge of Time by Walter Lewin

• Six Easy Pieces: Essentials of Physics Explained by Its Most Brilliant Teacher by Richard Feynman

I didn't fully complete either of these books 😜, but nonetheless I found them both to be engaging and thought-provoking.

Everyone is different, so if those books don't work for you, some others to try are Isaac Asimov On Physics and Seven Brief Lessons on Physics by Carlo Rovelli. Find what works for you.

Bringing It All Together

This physics unit study will take about 4-7 months, depending on how quickly you move through the lectures. Relax and take as long as you need to complete the unit study.

Remember that it's also totally okay if you don't use all of the materials or fully complete the unit! The most important thing is to keep it light and fun, rather than turning it into an "assignment" for the kids.

Here is an example of how you can use all of these physics resources to have your own unit study:

• Watch a video lecture and work a few problems 1-2 times/week.

• Follow the video lecture with engaging video(s) for the topic you learned about.

• Do a physics experiment/demonstration 1-2 times/week. Leave plenty of time for self-directed exploration afterwards.

• Meanwhile, read your own book about physics. Share your insights with your family.

FREE PREVIEW: Week-by-Week Chart of Recommended Resources

Below is a chart showing the first four video lectures, along with recommended videos and demonstrations.

If you want a unit study listing resources for all 24 video lectures with recommended videos and demonstrations, it is available in my store here for only $5.99.

High School Physics Unit Study

Conceptual Physics Chapter Video Lecture	Engaging Videos	Demonstrations and Experiments
Chapter 1: 22min – Thinking Scientifically	11 min – Astronomy Garage - I Measured the Sun from My Driveway (watch this AFTER doing the cardboard+sun demonstration)	Cardboard and sun demonstration from Conceptual Physics Chapter 1 Think and Do
Chapter 2: 33 min – Newton’s First Law	4 min – Homemade Science – Inertia Ball Demonstration 3 min – Homemade Science – Newton’s Stick – Inertia Apple 8 min - Walter Lewin with Mother of all Pendulums (watch AFTER pendulum experiment)	Roll balls on slopes (such as using cardboard and stacks of books). Vary friction by using different surfaces, angles, etc. Pendulum: make simple pendulum; Vary weight, angle, and length. Predict time using T = 2π√(L/g) and then measure to see law in action (L is length in meters, g is 9.81 m/s2).
Chapter 3: 30 min – Linear Motion and Kinematics	5 min – Smarter Every Day – A Baffling Balloon Behavior	Roll coins on the floor, on various surfaces (wood, tile, carpet) to observe the effect of friction, bumps, etc. Make Lego vehicle(s) and then predict whether vehicle will travel faster over carpet vs tile vs. wood/tile floor. Then, use a tape measure and stop watch to see if prediction was correct, performing three tests per surface. Discuss why the results turned out as they did.
Chapter 4: 30 min – Newton’s Second Law	6 min - Smarter Every Day - Slow Motion Cat Flipping Physics	Demonstrate inertia with cardboard and coins. Potentially try with other objects to see how the same principles apply.

I hope this post serves as a jumping off point for you to find what works best for you and your kids. Have fun learning about physics together!

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