Homeschool Physics for Middle Schoolers

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

• Exploring the World of Physics book

• Engaging videos and books for physics concepts

• Simple hands-on physics experiments and demonstrations

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 first iteration, to make it easy for you to have your own middle grades physics unit study, too! I will detail resources for high school physics in another post soon. ☺️

At the end of this post, I've included 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.

Physics "Spine" Book for Middle Schoolers

We enjoyed using Exploring the World of Physics, by John Tiner. This is a "living book" that discusses Physics through the context of stories about the lives and discoveries of great scientists. This book will work best if it is used as a read-aloud book, so there is plenty of opportunity for discussion.

There are 14 chapters in this book. Each chapter ends with a quiz, which my kids enjoyed doing out loud with no pressure or stress. We read one chapter of this book weekly alongside watching fun videos and doing some simple demonstrations/experiments for exploration.

Note that this book is written from a Christian worldview, so it includes a few short Christian notes throughout the text. You can easily skip over those parts if desired.

Physics Videos

Alongside the text, science demonstration videos allow you to show the concepts without having a full lab setup at home. We used videos after our physics read-aloud, to further explore the specific concepts we learned about in our reading.

• Smarter Every Day Channel

• Homemade Science with Bruce Yeany Channel

I've included potential video options to complement each chapter of Exploring the World of Physics at the end of this post.

Books for Further Exploration

Some weeks, you can use Exploring the World of Physics as a jumping off point to learn more about the lives of scientists. Reading aloud picture book biographies or listening to audio book chapters is an excellent way to get up-close and personal with the people who have furthered humanity's understanding of physics.

Great Astronomers by Robert Ball is a free Librivox audiobook that includes chapters about some of the greatest physicists. It does a good job of explaining the discoveries of each scientist. The science in this book is challenging, even for me, but nonetheless my kids and I enjoyed listening to this audiobook, such as while driving in the car.

See the chart at the end of this post for potential book/audiobook options to complement each chapter of Exploring the World of Physics.

Hands-on Experiments and Demonstrations

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

Physics Experiments for Children, by Muriel Mandell, is a book of simple physics experiments that you can use for exploration alongside Exploring the World of Physics.

There are many dozens of experiments. Don't feel the need to do *every* lesson or to complete the full series of experiments. Keep it fun and be okay with stopping whenever your kids reach the end of their interest.

When you reach the chapters 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 a semester. Relax and take as long as you need to complete the unit study. Allow your kids to participate as much or as little as they choose, and focus on building your own enthusiasm which you can share with your kids.

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:

• Read aloud from Exploring the World of Physics once a week.

• Follow the read-aloud with engaging video(s) for the topic you read about.

• Read aloud picture books about scientists who furthered humanity's understanding of the physics concepts in Exploring the World of Physics.

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

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

Week-by-Week Chart of Recommended Resources

Here is a free downloadable resource for you with recommended videos, books, and experiments to complement each chapter of the Exploring the World of Physics book.

Middle Grades PHYSICS Unit Study Resources.pdf

Download PDF • 223KB

Exploring the World of Physics Chapter	Engaging Videos	Books and Audiobooks for Further Exploration	Demonstrations and Experiments
Chapter 1: Motion	9 min - Homemade Science – Freefall and physics of elevators	Galileo's Journal 1609-1610 by Jeanne Pettenati I, Galileo by Bonnie Christensen Starry Messenger by Peter Sis Great Astronomers by Robert Ball, Chapter 4 “Galileo”	“Falling Objects” demo in Chapter 1 Experiment with rolling balls on a slope, spraying water from a hose, etc.
Chapter 2: Laws of Motion	6 min – Smarter Every Day – Slow Motion Cat Flipping Physics		“Demonstrate Inertia” demo in Chapter 2 Roll coins on various surfaces to see how much impact friction makes Blow up and release balloons to demonstrate Newton’s 3rd Law
Chapter 3: Gravity	7 min – Smarter Every Day – Turning Gravity Into Light 7 min – Smarter Every Day – Strapped Into a Falling Helicopter	Great Astronomers by Robert Ball, Chapter 5 “Kepler” Great Astronomers by Robert Ball, Chapter 6 “Isaac Newton”	Experiment with finding center of gravity of different objects, such as a ruler, fork, marker, banana, etc. Physics Experiments for Children, “Mechanical Energy and Machines” initial experiments about gravity
Chapter 4: Simple Machines	6 min – Homemade Science –  Single and Compound Pulleys – Lifting Our Principal 16 min - Smarter Every Day - Why Snatch Blocks are AWESOME (How Pulleys Work)	Archimedes and the Door of Science by Jeanne Bendick (this book is long and may require a few weeks to get through)	Experiment with simple tools such as pliers, shovels, etc. to see how mechanical advantage works Physics Experiments for Children, “Mechanical Energy and Machines”
Chapter 5: Energy	4 min – Homemade Science – Galileo’s Inertia Track 6 min – How to Start a Fire with a Bow Drill		Experiment with a hammering a nail into wood to feel the heat Blow up and release balloons to demonstrate potential and kinetic energy Cotton Ball Launcher
Chapter 6: Heat	3 min – Homemade Science - Thermal Conductivity Investigation Board		Physics Experiments for Children, “Heat”
Chapter 7: States of Matter	2 min - Homemade Science - Balloon in a Bottle	My Brothers’ Flying Machine by Jane Yolen To Fly: The Story of the Wright Brothers by Wendie Old	Experiment with elasticity using rubber bands, bouncy balls, golf balls, metal balls, etc. Physics Experiments for Children, “Matter: Air” and “Matter: Water” NASA Bernoulli Experiments Applying Hooke’s Law: Make Your Own Spring Scale
Chapter 8: Wave Motion	8 min – Homemade Science – Slow Moving Waves in Giant Hanging Loops 11 min – Smarter Every Day – How Does a Whip Break the Sound Barrier? 11 min – Homemade Science –Sound Visualizer & Chladni Patterns		Experiment with making waves with a rope or thick yarn, such as by tying one end to a chair or doorknob Make a wave machine Physics Experiments for Children, “Sound”
Chapter 9: Light	3 min – Homemade Science –Colored Light Shadows	Newton's Rainbow by Kathryn Lasky	Experiment with prisms, window and magnifying glass, flashlight and colored fabrics, flashlight and magnifying glass Physics Experiments for Children, “Light”
Chapter 10: Electricity	4 min – Homemade Science –A Light Bulb Mystery – Electric Resistance 4 min –Homemade Science – Seeing AC vs DC Light 5 min – Homemade Science –Homemade Light Bulb in Various Containers 11 min – Homemade Science –Static Electricity Demos Part 1 Induction 12 min – Homemade Science –Static Electricity Demos Part 2 Conduction-Induction	Now & Ben: The Modern Inventions of Benjamin Franklin by Gene Barretta How Ben Franklin Stole the Lightning by Rosalyn Schanzer Thomas Edison: Inventor, Scientist, Genius by Lori Mortensen Electrical Wizard: How Nikola Tesla Lit Up the World by Elizabeth Rusch	Science Tricks Using Static Electricity  Physics Experiments for Children, “Magnetism and Electricity” Explore with Eudax Electricity and Magnetism Kit
Chapter 11: Magnetism	10 min – Smarter Every Day –Mind-Blowing Magnets 8 min – Smarter Every Day –Mystery of Magnetic Worms		Create a magnetic screwdriver  Physics Experiments for Children, “Magnetism and Electricity” Explore with Eudax Electricity and Magnetism Kit
Chapter 12: Electromagnetism	2 min – Homemade Science –No Magnet Motor 5 min – Homemade Science –Tangent Galvanometer Experiment	On a Beam of Light: A Story of Albert Einstein by Jennifer Berne Odd Boy Out: Young Albert Einstein by Don Brown	Explore with Eudax Electricity and Magnetism Kit
Chapter 13: Nuclear Energy	43 min – Smarter Every Day –I Explored the World’s First Nuclear Power Plant (and How it Works)
Chapter 14: Future Physics	42 min – Smarter Every Day – I Went into a Nuclear Plant and It Changed How I Think About Radiation

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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