United States · Common Core State Standards
9th Grade Physics
This course investigates the fundamental principles governing the physical world through hands-on inquiry and mathematical modeling. Students explore the interactions of matter and energy to solve complex engineering problems and explain natural phenomena.
01Kinematics and Linear Motion
Students develop mathematical and graphical models to describe how objects move in one and two dimensions.
Mastering the SI system, significant figures, and dimensional analysis for physical quantities.
Differentiating between scalar and vector quantities and their representation.
Distinguishing between position, displacement, and distance traveled in one dimension.
Defining and calculating average and instantaneous speed and velocity.
Understanding acceleration as the rate of change of velocity and its implications for uniform motion.
Analyzing the slopes and areas of position-time, velocity-time, and acceleration-time graphs.
Applying mathematical equations to solve problems involving constant acceleration.
Investigating the motion of objects acting solely under the influence of Earth's gravity.
Using graphical methods (head-to-tail) to combine and break down vectors.
Using trigonometry and Pythagorean theorem to combine and break down force and motion vectors.
Analyzing two-dimensional motion by separating horizontal and vertical components for horizontally launched projectiles.
Analyzing two-dimensional motion by separating horizontal and vertical components for projectiles launched at an angle.
Understanding how motion is perceived differently from various frames of reference.
02Dynamics and Forces
Explaining why objects move by investigating Newton's Laws and the fundamental forces of nature.
Identifying different types of forces and representing them using free-body diagrams.
Exploring the tendency of objects to resist changes in their state of motion.
Quantifying the relationship between net force, mass, and acceleration.
Identifying interaction force pairs and their effects on different masses.
Analyzing the resistive forces that oppose motion between surfaces and through fluids.
Analyzing contact forces in strings, cables, and support surfaces.
Exploring the invisible force that governs the motion of celestial bodies.
Investigating the forces required to keep an object moving in a curved path.
Solving problems where the net force and net torque on a system are zero.
Understanding torque as the rotational equivalent of force and conditions for rotational equilibrium.
Solving complex problems involving multiple forces and systems using Newton's Laws.
Exploring basic principles of fluid pressure, buoyancy, and flow.
Investigating pressure in liquids and gases and the principle of buoyancy.
03Work, Energy, and Power
Analyzing the transfer and transformation of energy within mechanical systems.
Defining work as the product of force and displacement in the direction of the force.
Defining kinetic energy and relating work done to changes in kinetic energy.
Defining gravitational potential energy and its dependence on height and mass.
Understanding how energy is stored in elastic materials like springs and rubber bands.
Mathematical modeling of energy transformation in frictionless systems.
Accounting for energy losses due to friction and air resistance in real-world systems.
Measuring the rate of work and the ratio of useful energy output to input.
Investigating how levers and pulleys provide mechanical advantage.
Investigating how inclined planes and wedges provide mechanical advantage.
Investigating how wheels, axles, and screws provide mechanical advantage.
Evaluating the physics behind renewable and non-renewable energy sources.
Understanding the concepts of thermal energy, temperature, and methods of heat transfer.
Exploring the laws governing energy and entropy in physical systems.
04Momentum and Collisions
Studying the conservation of momentum and its applications in safety engineering.
Connecting forces acting over time to changes in an object's motion.
Analyzing systems where internal forces do not change the total momentum.
Distinguishing between collisions that conserve kinetic energy and those that do not in one dimension.
Applying momentum conservation to glancing collisions using vector components.
Locating the point that represents the average position of the matter in a system.
Exploring the physics of systems that lose mass to gain velocity.
05Electricity and Magnetism
Investigating the fundamental properties of charge, electric circuits, and magnetic fields.
Understanding the force between stationary electric charges.
Modeling the invisible influence of charges on the space around them.
Analyzing the flow of charge through conductors and resistors.
Building and calculating properties of series circuit configurations.
Building and calculating properties of parallel circuit configurations.
Analyzing and solving problems involving circuits with both series and parallel components.
Calculating power dissipation and energy consumption in electrical circuits.
Exploring the relationship between moving charges and magnetism.
Investigating how changing magnetic fields generate electric current.
Applying electromagnetism to the design of industrial and household technology.
Introduction to the nature of electromagnetic waves and their properties.
A brief look at the physics of diodes and transistors in modern computing.
Exploring real-world applications of electromagnetic principles in technology and daily life.
06Waves and Sound
Understanding the physics of vibrations and the transmission of energy through wave motion.
Analyzing periodic motion in pendulums and mass-spring systems.
Defining wavelength, frequency, amplitude, and wave speed.
Investigating how waves interact with boundaries and obstacles.
Investigating what happens when two or more waves overlap.
Exploring pitch, loudness, and the speed of sound in different media.
Analyzing how objects vibrate at their natural frequencies.
Applications of high-frequency sound waves in medicine and navigation.
07Electromagnetic Radiation and Optics
Studying the nature of light and its behavior in mirrors, lenses, and optical systems.
Exploring the full range of EM waves from radio to gamma rays.
Analyzing how light bounces off flat surfaces and forms images.
Analyzing image formation in spherical concave and convex mirrors.
Investigating how light bends when passing between different materials.
Applications of total internal reflection in modern data transmission.
Using ray diagrams to understand image formation in converging and diverging lenses.
Understanding how white light is composed of different wavelengths.
Exploring light behaviors that confirm its wave-like nature.
08Modern and Nuclear Physics
Exploring the subatomic world, relativity, and the energy of the nucleus.
Investigating the experiment that proved the particle nature of light.
Connecting electron transitions to the emission of specific light colors.
Modeling the spontaneous decay of unstable atomic nuclei.
Comparing the processes of splitting and joining atoms for energy.
A conceptual introduction to time dilation and length contraction.
An overview of quarks, leptons, and the fundamental forces.
Applying physics principles to the origin and evolution of the universe.
Exploring emerging fields like quantum computing and nanotechnology.
Discussing the responsibility of scientists in weaponry and environmental impact.
A culminating project where students apply physics to a real-world problem.