Curriculum Mapping for Mechanics

This is the curriculum mapping page for A-level mechanics topics. Please select a link to take you to a suggested set of NRICH activities for each area of mechanics.

If you are searching for enrichment material, you might wish to look for material in modules outside those of primary interest.

Furthermore, you might also be interested to see the scientific mathematics problems on the main stemNRICH pages and the physics and engineering nodes, with their obvious connections to mechanics. These are particularly great areas to point keen students to interested in science and applied mathematics.

AREA	TOPICS COVERED
MECHANICS M1	Mathematical models in mechanics; vectors in mechanics; kinematics of a particle moving in a straight line; dynamics of a particle moving in a straight line or plane; statics of a particle; moments.
MECHANICS M2	Kinematics of a particle moving in a straight line or plane; centres of mass; work and energy; collisions; statics of rigid bodies.
MECHANICS M3	Further kinematics; elastic strings and springs; further dynamics; motion in a circle; statics of rigid bodies.
MECHANICS M4	Relative motion; elastic collisions in two dimensions; further motion of particles in one dimension; stability.
MECHANICS M5	Applications of vectors in mechanics; variable mass; moments of inertia of a rigid body; rotation of a rigid body about a fixed smooth axis.
StemNRICH	Advanced Scientific Mathematics and mathematical contexts in Physics, Engineering, Chemistry and Biology.

NOTE: These NRICH problems often draw together strands from mechanics as a whole, and any one activity may have several possible lesson foci. For example, some problems will work well either as introduction to a topic to raise the underlying issues in mechanics or as an end of module consolidation in which students' problem solving and understanding is drawn together. Others are suitable for classroom discussion and others for individual problem solvings.


The topics are grouped according to a summary of the Edexcel schemes, but should be generally of use. Please note that this material is under development. New problems will arrive on a regular basis and it is intended that detailed teachers' notes will eventually accompany all of the problems. If you have any comments please do get in touch.