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Florida Physics 6–12 Practice Test

Florida Physics 6–12 practice addresses the principles used to describe motion, forces, energy, waves, electricity, thermal behavior, and radioactive decay. The available questions include calculations involving velocity, Newtonian forces, collisions, pendulums, circuits, linear expansion, wave speed, and half-life. These problems call for selecting a physical relationship, tracking units, and interpreting what a numerical result means.

Exam overview

Exam providerFlorida Department of Education
Exam codeNot listed
CategoryTeacher Certification

About the Florida Physics 6–12 Exam

Physics problems often require translating a situation into a model before calculating. For motion and mechanics, identify displacement, velocity, acceleration, net force, and momentum; distinguish conserved quantities from forces that alter motion. Wave questions connect speed with tension and linear mass density, while pendulum calculations relate period, length, and gravitational acceleration. Circuit problems use resistance and current relationships, including equivalent resistance for parallel components. Thermal expansion links dimensional change to temperature change, and nuclear-decay problems apply repeated half-lives to estimate remaining material. Practice these skills alongside unit conversions, proportional reasoning, algebraic rearrangement, and checks for sign and magnitude. For teaching-related application, explain the assumptions behind a model—for example, negligible external forces in a collision—and distinguish an observation, such as daughter products in a sample, from the conclusion it supports.

Sample Practice Questions

Review a selection from this exam's published US Practice Tests practice bank.

Question 1

A cart travels 18 meters east in 3 seconds at a constant velocity. What is its velocity?

  1. A6 m/s east
  2. B6 m/s west
  3. C15 m/s east
  4. D54 m/s east
Show answerCorrect answer: A

Velocity is displacement divided by elapsed time, including direction. 18 m east ÷ 3 s = 6 m/s east.

Question 2

A radioactive isotope has a half-life of 6 hours. What fraction of its original undecayed nuclei remains after 18 hours?

  1. A1/2
  2. B1/4
  3. C1/8
  4. D1/16
Show answerCorrect answer: C

Eighteen hours is three half-lives. The remaining fraction is (1/2)³ = 1/8.

Question 3

A 2.0 m-long metal rod expands by 1.2 mm when its temperature increases by 50°C. What is the rod's average linear expansion coefficient?

  1. A1.2 × 10⁻⁵ °C⁻¹
  2. B2.4 × 10⁻⁵ °C⁻¹
  3. C6.0 × 10⁻⁴ °C⁻¹
  4. D2.4 × 10⁻² °C⁻¹
Show answerCorrect answer: A

For linear expansion, ΔL = αLΔT. Convert 1.2 mm to 0.0012 m, then α = 0.0012/(2.0 × 50) = 1.2 × 10⁻⁵ °C⁻¹.

Question 4

A 12 V battery is connected to two 6 Ω resistors in parallel. What is the total current supplied by the battery?

  1. A1 A
  2. B2 A
  3. C4 A
  4. D12 A
Show answerCorrect answer: C

Two equal 6 Ω resistors in parallel have equivalent resistance 3 Ω. The total current is V/R = 12/3 = 4 A.

Question 5

A geologist observes that a mineral sample contains a parent isotope and its stable daughter product. Which conclusion is most directly supported by the presence of the daughter product?

  1. ASome parent nuclei have undergone radioactive decay.
  2. BEvery parent nucleus decayed at the same instant.
  3. CThe sample’s mass must have increased since it formed.
  4. DThe daughter product must be radioactive.
Show answerCorrect answer: A

Radioactive decay transforms parent nuclei into daughter products. Finding daughter material supports that decay has occurred, but it does not imply simultaneous decay of all nuclei or that the daughter is radioactive.

Question 6

A 2 kg object rests on a horizontal floor. Using g = 9.8 m/s², what is the magnitude of the normal force from the floor, assuming no other vertical forces act?

  1. A0 N
  2. B4.9 N
  3. C19.6 N
  4. D39.2 N
Show answerCorrect answer: C

The object has no vertical acceleration, so the upward normal force balances its weight. Its weight is mg = (2 kg)(9.8 m/s²) = 19.6 N.

Question 7

A radioactive sample has a half-life of 8 days. If it begins with 80 g, how much remains after 24 days?

  1. A5 g
  2. B10 g
  3. C20 g
  4. D40 g
Show answerCorrect answer: B

Twenty-four days is three half-lives. The amount halves three times: 80 g → 40 g → 20 g → 10 g.

How to use this practice test

The free US Practice Tests bank contains 50 published questions; a practice session presents up to 20 questions selected at random. Work through each problem with units and a written equation, then use the displayed results to identify which physics concepts or calculation steps need another pass.

Preparation tips

  • For motion and force problems, sketch the direction of travel and label displacement, velocity, mass, and forces before choosing an equation.
  • Practice momentum conservation in sticking collisions, stating why external forces can be neglected and checking the final velocity’s direction and magnitude.
  • Rearrange the pendulum and string-wave equations to solve for an unknown, and track how changing length, tension, or linear mass density affects the result.
  • For circuits and thermal expansion, convert quantities to consistent units before calculating equivalent resistance, current, or the expansion coefficient.
  • Solve half-life questions by counting elapsed half-lives, and distinguish the remaining fraction of parent nuclei from the amount that has decayed.
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