You probably know the SUVAT equations.
You probably know how to substitute into them.
But in an A level exam, with those long, messy mechanics questions, it’s very easy to sit there thinking:
“Which SUVAT equation do I use here?”
And then the guessing starts.
You’re not bad at maths. There is a simple way to deal with it.
The mistake most students make
Most students look at the list of equations and think:
“Which one looks right? – Vibes it…”
You don’t start with equations.
You start with the information the question gives you.
The method that actually works
First, write out the letters:
S (Displacement)
U (Initial Velocity)
V (Final Velocity)
A (Acceleration)
T (Time)
Now go through the question and write down which letters you know the value for.
For example:
- if it says “starts from rest”, then u = 0
- if it takes 5 seconds, then t is known
- if it is accelerating, then a is known
List the letters you have.
Finally, don’t forget the letter you are looking for. For example, if we are looking for the final velocity, we also list v.
The Five SUVAT Equations
- v = u + at
- s = ut + ½at²
- s = vt − ½at²
- v² = u² + 2as
- s = (u + v) / 2 × t
We can now look at which equation contains all 4 letters we listed.
v = u + at
The first equation contains all our letters, so we pick this one!
That’s it
That’s the whole method.
Write the letters.
List what you know.
Include what you’re finding.
Pick the equation that contains all four.
Once you do it this way, SUVAT stops feeling random and starts feeling controlled.
And that’s exactly what you want in an exam.
Cleerelearn 