Pearson Edexcel International GCSE in Physics · 4PH1 · Free · no account needed

Hooke's Law and Elasticity — exam questions

12 original Incandio exam-style questions on Hooke's Law and Elasticity, 29 marks, about 29 minutes of writing. Each one carries the command word, the tariff and the specification statement it assesses, exactly as a paper presents them. This is an original Incandio practice question, written to reflect the structure and demands of the qualification. It is not an official Pearson Edexcel past-paper question.

This is the practice set for Hooke's Law and Elasticity — the lesson that teaches it. Read the lesson first if the idea is new; come here when you want to find out whether you can turn it into marks. Completely free, no account needed to read.

What these questions ask of you

10 command words run through this set, and on Pearson Edexcel International GCSE Physics each one means something precise. Answering the wrong command is the commonest way a candidate who understands the lesson still loses the mark.

Which (1 mark)
one option chosen from the set given
State what is meant by (1–2 marks)
the definition
Describe (2–4 marks)
developed, linked statements of what happens — including a named direction where one exists
Calculate (1–5 marks)
select the equation, substitute, evaluate — and state the unit Misread as: giving a bare number with no equation and no unit
Explain (2–4 marks)
the physics that causes it, set out as a line of reasoning Misread as: describing the change without giving the physical reason for it
Suggest (1–3 marks)
a plausible answer applying taught physics to an unfamiliar arrangement
Complete (1–4 marks)
the missing entries in a table, circuit or diagram
Identify (1–2 marks)
the correct item selected from what is shown
Determine (1–4 marks)
a value obtained by combining a reading or gradient with a relationship
Design (4–6 marks)
a workable method: variables, control, measurement, repeats

Assessed on Paper 1 (4PH1/1P) and Paper 2 (4PH1/2P), against AO1, AO2, AO3.

Where these sit in the specification

Pearson Edexcel International GCSE Physics (4PH1) — statements 1.23 · 1.24 · 1.22. Incandio is aligned to this specification; it is not published by, endorsed by or affiliated with Pearson, and it reproduces none of Pearson's wording.

The 12 questions

Answer them on paper, then open the lesson's exam practice to have them marked. The mark scheme, the accepted and rejected answers and the annotated model answer are in Incandio and are not printed here — an answer beside its question is not practice.

  1. A student hung masses from a spring and measured its length each time. The spring was 40 mm long before any mass was added.

    Table 1 — the student's results
    Force / NLength / mmExtension / mm
    0400
    1.06222
    2.08444
    3.010666
    4.0128to be found
    5.0162122

    (a)

    (1)Complete

    Complete Table 1 by giving the extension at 4.0 N.

    A student hung masses from a spring and measured its length each time. The spring was 40 mm long before any mass was added.

    Table 1 — the student's results
    Force / NLength / mmExtension / mm
    0400
    1.06222
    2.08444
    3.010666
    4.0128to be found
    5.0162122

    ............................ mm

    Specification 1.22 · AO2 · about 1 min

    (b)

    (2)Identify

    Identify the reading in Table 1 at which the spring stops obeying Hooke's law, and give a reason.

    A student hung masses from a spring and measured its length each time. The spring was 40 mm long before any mass was added.

    Table 1 — the student's results
    Force / NLength / mmExtension / mm
    0400
    1.06222
    2.08444
    3.010666
    4.0128to be found
    5.0162122

    Specification 1.23 · AO3 · about 2 min

    (c)

    (3)Determine

    Determine the extension the spring would have had at 5.0 N if it had continued to obey Hooke's law.

    A student hung masses from a spring and measured its length each time. The spring was 40 mm long before any mass was added.

    Table 1 — the student's results
    Force / NLength / mmExtension / mm
    0400
    1.06222
    2.08444
    3.010666
    4.0128to be found
    5.0162122

    ............................ mm

    Specification 1.23 · AO2 · about 3 min

    (d)

    (3)Suggest

    Suggest two changes the student could make to obtain more reliable results from this experiment.

    A student hung masses from a spring and measured its length each time. The spring was 40 mm long before any mass was added.

    Table 1 — the student's results
    Force / NLength / mmExtension / mm
    0400
    1.06222
    2.08444
    3.010666
    4.0128to be found
    5.0162122

    Specification 1.22, 1.24 · AO3 · about 3 min

    (Total for Question 1 = 9 marks)

  2. (1)Which

    Which shape does a force–extension graph have while Hooke's law holds?

    Shape
    Aa straight line through the origin
    Ba straight line with a positive intercept
    Ca curve that flattens off
    Da horizontal line

    Specification 1.23 · AO1 · about 1 min

    (Total for Question 2 = 1 mark)

  3. (1)State what is meant by

    State what is meant by the extension of a spring.

    Specification 1.23 · AO1 · about 1 min

    (Total for Question 3 = 1 mark)

  4. (1)State what is meant by

    State what is meant by elastic behaviour.

    Specification 1.24 · AO1 · about 1 min

    (Total for Question 4 = 1 mark)

  5. (3)Describe

    Describe how to investigate the way the extension of a spring varies with the force applied.

    Specification 1.22 · AO1 + AO2 · about 3 min

    (Total for Question 5 = 3 marks)

  6. (3)Calculate

    A spring obeying Hooke's law extends by 30 mm when a force of 2.4 N is applied. Calculate the extension produced by a force of 4.0 N.

    ............................ mm

    Specification 1.23 · AO2 · about 3 min

    (Total for Question 6 = 3 marks)

  7. (2)Explain

    Explain what has happened to a spring when its force–extension graph stops being a straight line.

    Specification 1.23 · AO2 · about 2 min

    (Total for Question 7 = 2 marks)

  8. (3)Suggest

    A student loads a spring heavily, then removes all the masses and finds it is now 5 mm longer than it was at the start. Suggest what this shows.

    Specification 1.24 · AO2 + AO3 · about 3 min

    (Total for Question 8 = 3 marks)

  9. (6)Design

    Design an experiment to find the limit of proportionality of a spring.

    Specification 1.22, 1.23, 1.24 · AO1 + AO2 + AO3 · about 6 min

    (Total for Question 9 = 6 marks)

Have them marked, then defend the answer

Practice tells you the mark; teaching it back tells you whether you understand it. On Incandio a topic counts as mastered only once you have taught it and defended it.

  1. Mark these questions — 12 questions, marked on Incandio against the authored scheme, with the mistake you actually made named.
  2. Teach it — explain Hooke's Law and Elasticity to Ember, an AI pupil who does not have it yet and asks the awkward question.
  3. Defend it — argue it against Robert Hooke over three rounds, marked against descriptors you can read first.

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