Is Secondary 5 physics compulsory in Quebec?

No, it is an optional Secondary 5 course. But it is a prerequisite for the Sciences de la nature program at CEGEP and for almost every engineering program at university. A student who does not take it closes those paths, or will have to take a bridging course at CEGEP. The decision is in fact made at the end of Secondary 3, when the science option is chosen.

What are the prerequisites for Secondary 5 physics?

The student must have passed one of the Secondary 4 science options: Science et technologie de l'environnement (STE) or Science et environnement (SE). Those are the official prerequisites for Secondary 5 physics and chemistry. A solid mathematics base matters just as much in practice, because Secondary 5 physics is the most mathematical science course of the secondary curriculum.

Why does Secondary 5 physics demand so much mathematics?

Because nearly every problem is an exercise in setting up equations. Optics needs trigonometry for refraction angles, kinematics needs quadratic equations for projectiles, dynamics needs resolving vectors into components, and energy needs algebraic manipulation. A student who is strong in physics but shaky in mathematics almost always fails on the mathematics, not the physics. That is why I often work on both together.

Montreal, Quebec curriculum, Secondary 5

Secondary 5 Physics Tutor in Montreal

Tutor in Secondary 5 physics in Montreal, with more than 10 years of experience. Secondary 5 physics is an optional course, but it is a prerequisite for the Sciences de la nature program at CEGEP and for almost every engineering program. It is also the most mathematical science course of the secondary curriculum, and that is very often where the real difficulty lies. Sessions in English or in French.

Physics, Secondary 5 Prerequisite for Sciences de la nature Geometric optics Mechanics & energy 130 corrected exercise sets ★ 5.0 · 11 Google reviews

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The optional course that is not really optional

Quebec labels Secondary 5 physics an option, which reads to most parents as an extra. It is not. Physics, chemistry and SN mathematics from Secondary 5 are the three prerequisites for Sciences de la nature at CEGEP, which is in turn the gateway to engineering, medicine and pure science.

Worse, the real decision is taken a year earlier and quietly. To enrol in Secondary 5 physics, the student must first have passed one of the Secondary 4 science options, STE or SE, and that choice is made at the end of Secondary 3, usually before a fourteen year old has any view on their future. If nobody in the family knows this, the door closes without anybody noticing.

An optional course, and a decisive prerequisite

Secondary 5 physics is not compulsory: the student chooses to take it. That optional status regularly misleads families, because it suggests a side course. It is in fact one of the most structural of the whole path: it is among the prerequisites for Sciences de la nature at CEGEP, alongside Secondary 5 chemistry and mathematics, and it then governs access to almost every engineering program.

To enrol, the student must have passed one of the two Secondary 4 science options, Science et technologie de l'environnement (STE) or Science et environnement (SE). That choice is made at the end of Secondary 3, often before the student has any idea of their direction, and it is what decides in practice whether Secondary 5 physics is even available.

Unlike Secondary 4 mathematics, physics has no Ministry examination: assessment belongs entirely to the school. The grade therefore comes from the year's work, and it is the one CEGEPs will read at admission.

The Secondary 5 physics syllabus

1. Geometric optics

Reflection and the laws of reflection
Plane, concave and convex mirrors
Refraction and Snell's law
Total internal reflection and optical fibre
Converging and diverging lenses
The thin lens equation and magnification

2. Kinematics

Reference frames and vector quantities
Uniform rectilinear motion
Uniformly accelerated rectilinear motion
Position, velocity and acceleration graphs
Projectile motion
Resolution into components

3. Dynamics

Gravitational acceleration
The different types of force
Newton's three laws
Free body diagrams
Forces at an angle and equilibrium
Inclined planes, friction and pulleys

4. Energy transformation

Mechanical work and power
Kinetic and potential energy
Conservation of mechanical energy
Hooke's law and elastic energy
Energy efficiency
Pendulums and inclined planes

Coverage varies slightly from school to school. We adjust to the course plan and textbook your child's teacher is using.

In French

Free corrected exercises for Secondary 5 physics

Twelve exercise sets covering the whole syllabus, in the format of an evaluation: 10 questions marked out of 100, a first part on the fundamentals and a second at exam level, with a full worked solution for every question. Optics takes five sets, with ray diagrams drawn to scale, mechanics four, energy two, and a mock exam brings mechanics and optics together. Nine revision sheets name, one by one, the gestures that lose marks: an angle measured from the surface instead of the normal, a negative acceleration read as reversing, the length of a slope taken for its height, a centrifugal force added to a diagram where it does not belong. Free, no sign-up, written in French.

Corrected exercise sets → Revision sheets → English exercises →

The real obstacle is usually the mathematics

This is the observation that comes up most often in sessions, and it surprises parents: the student understands the physics and still fails. The reason is nearly always the same. Secondary 5 physics is the most mathematical science course of the secondary curriculum, and each unit calls on a different tool.

Optics demands trigonometry

A refraction problem is rarely solved by applying Snell's law once. First the angles have to be chased around the figure: an angle measured from the surface instead of the normal, the angle sum of a triangle inside a prism, alternate angles in a parallel-sided slab. That is Secondary 4 geometry, and that is where the marks go.

Projectiles demand the quadratic

Finding when a projectile lands means solving a quadratic and knowing to reject the negative root because it precedes the launch. Finding the range means chaining two equations coupled by time. A student uncomfortable with the quadratic formula is stuck, however well they understand the motion.

Dynamics demands vectors

A correct free body diagram is worthless if the student cannot project each force onto two well chosen axes. On an inclined plane the trick is to tilt the axes rather than the forces, and then to know which component takes the sine and which the cosine. That single question separates a class.

This is why I often work on physics and Secondary 5 SN mathematics together: shoring up the mathematical tool unblocks the physics far faster than going over the physics again.

From Secondary 5 physics to CEGEP mechanics (203-SN1-RE)

Secondary 5 physics opens the door to Sciences de la nature, where the student meets mechanics (203-SN1-RE, formerly 203-NYA) in the first term, then electricity and magnetism (203-SN2-RE), then waves and modern physics (203-SN3-RE). CEGEP mechanics revisits exactly the kinematics and dynamics of secondary school, but adds differential calculus on top.

Concretely, what secondary school handles with ready-made formulas, CEGEP rederives from the derivative: velocity becomes the derivative of position, acceleration the derivative of velocity. A student who understood the meaning of those quantities in Secondary 5, and not only the formulas, makes that transition without difficulty. One who learned by heart starts over.

I teach both levels, which lets me insist, from Secondary 5 onward, on what will actually be needed the following year.

See the CEGEP tutoring page (203-SN1-RE, SN2-RE, SN3-RE) →

Frequently asked questions

Is Secondary 5 physics compulsory?

No, it is optional. But it is a prerequisite for Sciences de la nature at CEGEP and for almost every engineering program at university. A student who skips it closes those paths or takes a bridging course later. The decision is really made at the end of Secondary 3, when the science option is chosen.

What are the prerequisites?

Passing one of the Secondary 4 science options, STE or SE. A solid mathematics base matters just as much in practice, because this is the most mathematical science course of the secondary curriculum.

Is there a Ministry examination in physics?

No. The Ministry produces no province-wide paper in physics or chemistry. The course is assessed entirely by the school, usually through term examinations and a common year-end paper. The grade is the one CEGEPs read at admission.

Why does it demand so much mathematics?

Because nearly every problem is an exercise in setting up equations: trigonometry for refraction angles, quadratics for projectiles, vector components for dynamics, algebraic manipulation for energy. A student strong in physics but shaky in mathematics almost always fails on the mathematics.