It’s been an electrifying term in Year 12 Physics – literally. With Unit 3 content now wrapped up, students are swapping textbooks for toolkits as they dive headfirst into their Extended Practical Investigations (EPIs), an exciting and hands-on culmination of their studies in motion, fields and electricity generation.
So, what exactly are they exploring? Everything from the crackle of electromagnetism to the gentle arc of flight! With brains buzzing and circuit boards lighting up, our budding physicists are designing experiments that reflect their personal interests and then turning their findings into detailed scientific reports that wouldn’t be out of place in a university lab.
Among the hot topics this year:
Electromagnetism: Students are generating EMF, building their own DC motors, and experimenting with magnetic propulsion.
Motion & Collisions: Think bouncing balls, momentum transfers, and a few carefully controlled crashes.
Energy Transformations: Investigations into how wind speed links to kinetic energy – think sustainable energy meets solid science.
Flight & Fluid Dynamics: Some are putting Bernoulli’s theorem to the test with wings, curves and airflow experiments.
It’s not just about experiments though. With trial exams looming, revision is in full swing. Students are revisiting core concepts and preparing for the challenges ahead in Term 3, where they’ll encounter the mind-bending duality of light and matter. Particle or wave? Stay tuned…
But what do the students themselves think about all this physics magic? Here’s what they had to say:
- Alex Stefanakos: “I’ve enjoyed taking my understanding of how and why things around us interact with each other in the real world to the next level.”
- Anita Weber: “Learning about fields and energy transmission made me realise how deeply physics is embedded in the technology we rely on every day.”
- Linda He: “Physics breeds new questions as much as it answers them—it’s really enriched my curiosity about how the world works.”
- Ahmed Tawfik: “The hands-on experiments helped me understand the theory on a much deeper level. It made the subject feel more alive and meaningful.”
- Eashan Dureja: “Physics has challenged the way I think and reshaped how I see the world—especially through learning about motion and gravitational fields.”
- Andrew Zhang: “It’s fascinating how ingrained physics is in everything, especially our power grid.”
- Justin Ji: “I’ve appreciated learning about the design process behind everyday items.”
Whether it’s a flying object, a moving charge or a collapsing waveform – there’s no doubt about it: Physics is alive and kicking in our classrooms. We’re excited to see where student curiosity will take them next!
