Complete GCSE Physics lesson on Series & Parallel Circuits for AQA, Edexcel & OCR – 42 editable slides + differentiated worksheets with full answers. Why do all old fairy lights go out when one bulb breaks – but your house lights don’t?

Lesson 4 of the P2 Electricity unit. Suitable for Combined Science (Trilogy) and Triple Physics, Foundation and Higher tiers. Just open and teach – every slide, worksheet and answer is done for you. Covers the required practical: resistors in series and parallel.

What’s included

• 42-slide editable PowerPoint – every word at least 28 pt, so it reads clearly from the back of the room (great for SEN, dyslexia and visual impairment)
• Do Now retrieval starter with answers, a picture hook, I do / we do / you do worked examples, equation cards and clear original diagrams
• Mini-whiteboard quiz, an illustrated hinge question with explained answers, and click-by-click answer reveals
• Exam-style question with mark scheme and sentence starters, 3-2-1 exit ticket, homework and glossary
• Clickable countdown timers and full teacher notes (spec match, 60-minute lesson plan, common misconceptions)
• 6-page differentiated worksheet pack (Word + PDF) – Bronze, Silver and Gold tasks, a stretch challenge, exam question, exit ticket and full answers and mark schemes

Learning objectives

• Bronze: State the current and pd rules for series and parallel. Calculate total resistance in series.
• Silver: Calculate currents and pds in series circuits. Use the parallel rules for currents.
• Gold: Explain why adding resistors in parallel lowers the total resistance. Solve mixed series–parallel problems.

Specification

• AQA GCSE Physics 8463 / Combined Science Trilogy 8464 – 4.2.2
• Edexcel GCSE Physics 1PH0 / Combined Science 1SC0 – matching topic content
• OCR Gateway Physics A J249 / Combined Science A J250 – matching topic content

Key words: series, parallel, branch, junction, total resistance, equivalent resistance, shared, sum

Save money: look for the discounted P2 Electricity complete unit bundle in my shop.

Ideal for KS4 / Year 9, Year 10 and Year 11 GCSE Physics teaching, non-specialist and cover lessons, intervention and revision of series & parallel circuits.

Keywords: GCSE physics series & parallel circuits, AQA physics P2 electricity, electric circuits, current, potential difference, resistance, series and parallel, mains electricity, combined science trilogy physics, KS4 physics lesson, physics worksheet with answers, PowerPoint