| Programme of Study |
QCA Units |
Click on Character |
1. electricity
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| Simple circuits |
| a) to construct circuits, incorporating a battery or power supply and a range of switches, to make electrical devices work [for example, buzzers, motors] |
Unit 4F: Circuits and conductors link Unit 6G: Changing circuits link |
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| b) how changing the number or type of components [for example, batteries, bulbs, wires] in a series circuit can make bulbs brighter or dimmer |
Unit 4F: Circuits and conductors link Unit 6G: Changing circuits link |
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| c) how to represent series circuits by drawings and conventional symbols, and how to construct series circuits on the basis of drawings and diagrams using conventional symbols. |
Unit 4F: Circuits and conductors link Unit 6G: Changing circuits link |
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2. forces and motion
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| Types of force |
| a) about the forces of attraction and repulsion between magnets, and about the forces of attraction between magnets and magnetic materials |
Unit 3E: Magnets and springs link |
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| b) that objects are pulled downwards because of the gravitational attraction between them and the Earth |
Unit 6E: Forces in action link |
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| c) about friction, including air resistance, as a force that slows moving objects and may prevent objects from starting to move |
Unit 4E: Friction link Unit 6E: Forces in action link |
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| d) that when objects [for example, a spring, a table] are pushed or pulled, an opposing pull or push can be felt |
Unit 3E: Magnets and springs link Unit 6E: Forces in action link |
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| e) how to measure forces and identify the direction in which they act. |
Unit 3E: Magnets and springs link Unit 4E: Friction link Unit 6E: Forces in action link |
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3. light and sound
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| Light and dark |
| Everyday effects of light |
| a) that light travels from a source |
Unit 3F: Light and shadows link Unit 6F: How we see things link |
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| b) that light cannot pass through some materials, and how this leads to the formation of shadows |
Unit 3F: Light and shadows link Unit 5E: Earth, Sun and Moon link Unit 6F: How we see things link |
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| c) that light is reflected from surfaces [for example, mirrors, polished metals] |
Unit 6F: How we see things link |
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| Seeing |
| d) that we see things only when light from them enters our eyes |
Unit 6F: How we see things link |
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| Vibration and sound |
| e) that sounds are made when objects [for example, strings on musical instruments] vibrate but that vibrations are not always directly visible |
Unit 5F: Changing sounds link |
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| f) how to change the pitch and loudness of sounds produced by some vibrating objects [for example, a drum skin, a plucked string] |
Unit 5F: Changing sounds link |
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| g) that vibrations from sound sources require a medium [for example, metal, wood, glass, air] through which to travel to the ear. |
Unit 5F: Changing sounds link |
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4. the Earth and beyond
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| The Sun, Earth and Moon |
| a) that the Sun, Earth and Moon are approximately spherical |
Unit 5E: Earth, Sun and Moon link |
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| b) how the position of the Sun appears to change during the day, and how shadows change as this happens |
Unit 5E: Earth, Sun and Moon link |
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| c) how day and night are related to the spin of the Earth on its own axis |
Unit 5E: Earth, Sun and Moon link |
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| d) that the Earth orbits the Sun once each year, and that the Moon takes approximately 28 days to orbit the Earth. |
Unit 5E: Earth, Sun and Moon link |
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