About Course

MYP Physics 4–5 takes a student through the last two years of the Middle Years Programme in Physics and into the on-screen eAssessment — taught the way a good physics teacher teaches: a puzzle first, an experiment you run yourself, the explanation with worked examples, the story of how scientists worked it out, where it is used today and where it is heading, and questions whose answers you reveal only after you have tried.

What is in every lesson

You met this before — the Year 1–3 ideas the lesson needs, recapped, with a link to the full earlier lesson.
A virtual experiment in StadiraLab, run as a full investigation: research question, hypothesis, variables, three trials, a graph, a conclusion and an evaluation.
Study smart — what to learn by heart, what to practise, the mistakes examiners report every session, and a real past-paper question on the same content.
Check yourself questions inside the notes, eight exam-style questions with marks and model answers, including two stretch questions harder than the real exam.

Assessment

Each lesson has a short quiz, and every unit ends with a 2-hour exam in the eAssessment format: Criterion A (25 marks), an investigation for Criteria B and C (50 marks) and a real-world Criterion D task (25 marks), with a full mark scheme, level grids and notes on what examiners look for.

Units

Matter, density and pressure
Mechanics
Light and waves
Thermal physics
Environmental physics
Physics in action
Magnetism and electricity
Nuclear physics
Dynamics
Astrophysics
eAssessment bridge: papers, markschemes and timing

All 11 units now live — each with 3D animated diagrams, virtual experiments and a 2-hour exam.

Course Content

Unit 1 · Matter, density and pressure
Measurement and uncertainty; density; pressure in solids; pressure in fluids and hydraulics; floating, sinking and upthrust. Ends with a 2-hour eAssessment-style exam.

Start here: your plan, diagnostic and Daily 10
1.1 Measuring well: SI units, uncertainty, significant figures and the two kinds of error
1.1 Check yourself — Measuring well
1.2 Density: mass per unit volume, the particle picture, why ice floats and what the Earth is made of
1.2 Check yourself — Density
1.3 Pressure in solids: force spread over area, from snowshoes and stiletto heels to the hydraulic press
1.3 Check yourself — Pressure in solids
1.4 Pressure in fluids: p = ρgh, the weight of the atmosphere, barometers, manometers and dams
1.4 Check yourself — Pressure in fluids
1.5 Floating and flying: upthrust, Archimedes, ships, balloons, submarines and the hulls that reach the deep ocean
1.5 Check yourself — Floating and flying
Unit 1 Exam — 2 hours (eAssessment style)

Unit 2 · Mechanics
Motion graphs; the equations of motion; Newton laws; stopping distances; momentum, impulse and safety. Ends with a 2-hour eAssessment-style exam.

Unit 3 · Light and waves
What a wave is; The wave equation and sound; Reflection; Refraction; Lenses, the electromagnetic spectrum and imaging. Ends with a 2-hour eAssessment-style exam.

Unit 4 · Thermal physics
Kinetic theory and internal energy; The gas laws from the physics side; Specific latent heat; Conduction, convection and radiation; Thermal physics at work. Ends with a 2-hour eAssessment-style exam.

Unit 5 · Environmental physics
Energy transfers, efficiency and power; Weather, climate and the greenhouse effect; Deforestation, biofuels and biogas; Solar and wind power; Hydroelectric and tidal power, and choosing an energy mix. Ends with a 2-hour eAssessment-style exam.

Unit 6 · Physics in action
The human engine; Levers and moments; Torque, gears and stability; Momentum in action; Electromagnetic waves and digital technology. Ends with a 2-hour eAssessment-style exam.

Unit 7 · Magnetism and electricity
Magnetic fields; resistance and circuit rules; electromagnets; motors and generators; transformers, the grid and the environmental cost of electricity. Ends with a 2-hour eAssessment-style exam.

Unit 8 · Nuclear physics
Inside the atom; Unstable nuclei; Detecting radiation and its effects; Decay equations and half-life; Fission, fusion and the nuclear power station. Ends with a 2-hour eAssessment-style exam.

Unit 9 · Dynamics
Vectors and Newton laws as a system; Conservation of momentum; Turning forces and circular motion; Work and energy; Power and efficiency. Ends with a 2-hour eAssessment-style exam.

Unit 10 · Astrophysics
The Universe by size; Gravitation; The moving Earth; The lives of stars and the planets around them; The expanding Universe. Ends with a 2-hour eAssessment-style exam.

Unit 11 · eAssessment bridge
Inside the on-screen Physics exam; Criterion A across the course; Criteria B and C; Criterion D; The final weeks. Ends with a full 2-hour mock eAssessment.

11.1 Inside the on-screen Physics exam: tasks, tools, timing and command terms
11.1 Check yourself — Inside the on-screen Physics exam
11.2 Criterion A across the course: every topic, one retrieval question each
11.2 Check yourself — Criterion A across the course
11.3 Criteria B and C: designing investigations and processing data to full marks
11.3 Check yourself — Criteria B and C
11.4 Criterion D: discuss and evaluate, built step by step
11.4 Check yourself — Criterion D
11.5 The final weeks: revision plan, past papers, exam day and finding the gap
11.5 Check yourself — The final weeks
Unit 11 Full mock eAssessment — 2 hours
Unit 11 Full mock 2 — eAssessment style, 2 hours
Unit 11 Full mock 3 — eAssessment style, 2 hours
Unit 11 Full mock 4 — eAssessment style, 2 hours
Unit 11 Full mock 5 — eAssessment style, 2 hours
Unit 11 Full mock 6 — eAssessment style, 2 hours
Criterion D practice 1 — on screen, 40 minutes
Criterion D practice 2 — on screen, 40 minutes
Criterion D practice 3 — on screen, 40 minutes
IB past paper May 2021 — on screen, 2 hours
IB past paper May 2023 — on screen, 2 hours
IB past paper May 2024 — on screen, 2 hours
IB past paper May 2025 — on screen, 2 hours
IB past paper November 2021 — on screen, 2 hours
IB past paper November 2022 — on screen, 2 hours
IB past paper November 2023 — on screen, 2 hours
IB past paper November 2024 — on screen, 2 hours
IB Integrated Sciences past paper May 2021 — on screen, 2 hours
IB Integrated Sciences past paper May 2022 — on screen, 2 hours
IB Integrated Sciences past paper May 2023 — on screen, 2 hours
IB Integrated Sciences past paper May 2024 — on screen, 2 hours
IB Integrated Sciences past paper May 2025 — on screen, 2 hours
IB Integrated Sciences past paper November 2021 — on screen, 2 hours
IB Integrated Sciences past paper November 2022 — on screen, 2 hours
IB Integrated Sciences past paper November 2024 — on screen, 2 hours

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MYP Physics 4–5

About Course

What is in every lesson

Assessment

Units

Course Content

Unit 1 · Matter, density and pressure Measurement and uncertainty; density; pressure in solids; pressure in fluids and hydraulics; floating, sinking and upthrust. Ends with a 2-hour eAssessment-style exam.

1.1 Check yourself — Measuring well

1.2 Density: mass per unit volume, the particle picture, why ice floats and what the Earth is made of

1.2 Check yourself — Density

1.3 Pressure in solids: force spread over area, from snowshoes and stiletto heels to the hydraulic press

1.3 Check yourself — Pressure in solids

1.4 Pressure in fluids: p = ρgh, the weight of the atmosphere, barometers, manometers and dams

1.4 Check yourself — Pressure in fluids

1.5 Floating and flying: upthrust, Archimedes, ships, balloons, submarines and the hulls that reach the deep ocean

1.5 Check yourself — Floating and flying

Unit 1 Exam — 2 hours (eAssessment style)

Unit 2 · Mechanics Motion graphs; the equations of motion; Newton laws; stopping distances; momentum, impulse and safety. Ends with a 2-hour eAssessment-style exam.

2.1 Check yourself — Describing motion

2.2 The equations of motion: four equations, one story, and free fall at 9.8 metres per second squared

2.2 Check yourself — The equations of motion

2.3 Newton laws of motion: resultant force, F = ma, force pairs and the skydiver who stops speeding up

2.3 Check yourself — Newton laws

2.4 Stopping distances: thinking, braking, and why 60 km/h in a residential street is not a little faster than 40

2.4 Check yourself — Stopping distances

2.5 Impulse and safety: momentum, the time a crash takes, and every device that makes it take longer

2.5 Check yourself — Impulse and safety

Unit 2 Exam — 2 hours (eAssessment style)

Unit 3 · Light and waves What a wave is; The wave equation and sound; Reflection; Refraction; Lenses, the electromagnetic spectrum and imaging. Ends with a 2-hour eAssessment-style exam.

3.1 Check yourself — What a wave is

3.2 The wave equation and sound: v = f λ, the speed of sound, and the timing of echoes

3.2 Check yourself — The wave equation and sound

3.3 Reflection: plane and curved mirrors, ray diagrams through the focus, and real and virtual images

3.3 Check yourself — Reflection and mirrors

3.4 Refraction: refractive index, Snell law, the critical angle and the optical fibre

3.4 Check yourself — Refraction and fibres

3.5 Lenses, the electromagnetic spectrum and imaging: from the eye to fibre networks, LiDAR and medical scans

3.5 Check yourself — Lenses and the spectrum

Unit 3 Exam — 2 hours (eAssessment style)

Unit 4 · Thermal physics Kinetic theory and internal energy; The gas laws from the physics side; Specific latent heat; Conduction, convection and radiation; Thermal physics at work. Ends with a 2-hour eAssessment-style exam.

4.1 Check yourself — Kinetic theory and internal energy

4.2 The gas laws from the physics side: pressure from molecular collisions, Boyle and Charles laws, and the road to absolute zero

4.2 Check yourself — The gas laws from the physics side

4.3 Specific latent heat: melting, boiling and the energy that changes state without changing temperature

4.3 Check yourself — Specific latent heat

4.4 Conduction, convection and radiation: heat transfer explained particle by particle

4.4 Check yourself — Conduction, convection and radiation

4.5 Thermal physics at work: white walls, kettles, cooling towers, evaporative coolers and heat pumps

4.5 Check yourself — Thermal physics at work

Unit 4 Exam — 2 hours (eAssessment style)

Unit 5 · Environmental physics Energy transfers, efficiency and power; Weather, climate and the greenhouse effect; Deforestation, biofuels and biogas; Solar and wind power; Hydroelectric and tidal power, and choosing an energy mix. Ends with a 2-hour eAssessment-style exam.

5.1 Check yourself — Energy transfers, efficiency and power

5.2 Weather, climate and the greenhouse effect: the energy balance of the Earth and the role of carbon dioxide

5.2 Check yourself — Weather, climate and the greenhouse effect

5.3 Deforestation, biofuels and biogas: energy from plants and waste, and when it is really carbon neutral

5.3 Check yourself — Deforestation, biofuels and biogas

5.4 Solar and wind power: how panels and turbines are made, what they cost and how much energy they really deliver

5.4 Check yourself — Solar and wind power

5.5 Hydroelectric and tidal power, and choosing an energy mix: falling water, the pull of the Moon and the whole picture

5.5 Check yourself — Hydroelectric and tidal power, and the energy mix

Unit 5 Exam — 2 hours (eAssessment style)

Year 4 exam — on screen, 2 hours

Unit 6 · Physics in action The human engine; Levers and moments; Torque, gears and stability; Momentum in action; Electromagnetic waves and digital technology. Ends with a 2-hour eAssessment-style exam.

6.1 Check yourself — The human engine and simple machines

6.2 Levers and moments: the principle of moments, three classes of lever and the levers inside your own body

6.2 Check yourself — Levers and moments

6.3 Torque, gears and stability: bicycle cranks, gear ratios, the centre of mass and why things topple

6.3 Check yourself — Torque, gears and stability

6.4 Momentum in action: Newton second law as rate of change of momentum, air resistance, collisions, explosions and flight

6.4 Check yourself — Momentum, air resistance, collisions and explosions

6.5 Electromagnetic waves and digital technology: analogue and digital signals, noise, and how a mobile phone call travels

6.5 Check yourself — Electromagnetic waves and digital technology

Unit 6 Exam — 2 hours (eAssessment style)

Unit 7 · Magnetism and electricity Magnetic fields; resistance and circuit rules; electromagnets; motors and generators; transformers, the grid and the environmental cost of electricity. Ends with a 2-hour eAssessment-style exam.

7.1 Check yourself — Magnets and magnetic fields

7.2 Resistance and circuit rules: V = IR, series and parallel, and why a lamp bends the graph

7.2 Check yourself — Resistance and circuit rules

7.3 Electromagnetism: the field around a wire and a coil, and what really makes an electromagnet strong

7.3 Check yourself — Electromagnetism

7.4 Motors and generators: the motor effect, Fleming left-hand rule, the commutator and the discovery that a moving magnet makes electricity