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What a 14-year-old learns

138 topics open up at age 14, across 13 subjects. They are listed in the order they build on each other, not by importance: each one needs the ones above it.

age 13age 15
What should a 14-year-old be learning?

At age 14, 138 topics open up across Science, Mathematics, Computing, English, Civics & Economics, Geography, Arts & Music, Design & Technology, Languages, History, Personal & Social Development, Learning to Learn, Life Skills. Each one has prerequisites that come first, so the order matters more than the list: Osmosis in Plant and Animal Cells is a typical starting point.

How do I know what a 14-year-old already knows?

LightMySky starts by assuming everything below the learner’s level is already known, then checks the assumption as they practise. What holds up stays lit; what does not comes back for review.

Science

  1. Osmosis in Plant and Animal CellsOrganisms & Life Processes
  2. Active Transport Against the GradientOrganisms & Life Processes
  3. Prokaryotic and Eukaryotic CellsOrganisms & Life Processes
  4. Magnification and Scale CalculationsOrganisms & Life Processes
  5. Surface Area to Volume Ratio and Exchange SurfacesOrganisms & Life Processes
  6. The Cell Cycle and MitosisOrganisms & Life Processes
  7. Current-Voltage Graphs for ComponentsEnergy
  8. Resistance in Series and ParallelEnergy
  9. Electrical Power and the Cost of Running AppliancesEnergy
  10. Newton's Second Law with NumbersForces & Motion
  11. Terminal VelocityForces & Motion
  12. Momentum and Its ConservationForces & Motion
  13. Vectors, Scalars and Free-Body DiagramsForces & Motion
  14. Acceleration from Velocity-Time GraphsForces & Motion
  15. The Uniform Acceleration EquationsForces & Motion
  16. Inside the Atom: Protons, Neutrons and ElectronsMatter & Materials
  17. Isotopes and Relative Atomic MassMatter & Materials
  18. Electron Shells and the Shape of the Periodic TableMatter & Materials
  19. Group 1, Group 7 and Group 0: Trends You Can PredictMatter & Materials
  20. Ionic Bonding: Electron Transfer and Charged LatticesMatter & Materials
  21. Covalent Bonding: Shared Pairs and Simple MoleculesMatter & Materials
  22. Dot-and-Cross Diagrams and Lone PairsMatter & Materials
  23. Naming Ionic and Simple Molecular CompoundsMatter & Materials
  24. Redox: Oxidation and Reduction as Electron TransferMatter & Materials
  25. Extracting Metals: Reduction with Carbon and Choosing a MethodMatter & Materials
  26. Strong and Weak Acids and the pH ScaleMatter & Materials
  27. Weathering, Erosion and How Soil FormsEarth's Systems
  28. Communities: Interdependence, Competition and Abiotic FactorsOrganisms & Life Processes
  29. Paper Chromatography and the Rf ValueMatter & Materials
  30. Mains Electricity: a.c., Earthing and FusesEnergy
  31. Transformers and the National GridEnergy
  32. Static Charge and Electric FieldsEnergy
  33. Plate Tectonics: the Evidence and the EngineEarth's Systems
  34. Minerals and the Three Rock FamiliesEarth's Systems
  35. Enzyme Action and the Active SiteOrganisms & Life Processes
  36. The Digestive System and Testing Food for NutrientsOrganisms & Life Processes
  37. Differentiation and Stem CellsOrganisms & Life Processes
  38. The Reflex Arc and SynapsesThe Human Body
  39. Hormones and Negative FeedbackThe Human Body
  40. Blood Glucose Control and DiabetesThe Human Body
  41. Hormones in the Menstrual Cycle and FertilityThe Human Body
  42. Meiosis and Why Gametes Are HaploidGenetics & Evolution

Mathematics

  1. Recurring Decimals as Exact FractionsNumber Representation & Place Value
  2. Populations, Samples and BiasData & Statistics
  3. Volume and Surface Area of Prisms and CylindersGeometry
  4. Zero and Negative IndicesNumber Representation & Place Value
  5. Bearings and Scale DrawingsGeometry
  6. Congruent Triangles and the Congruence ConditionsGeometry
  7. Similar Triangles and Proving SimilarityGeometry
  8. Similar Shapes: Area and Volume Scale FactorsGeometry
  9. Stratified SamplingData & Statistics
  10. Averages from frequency tablesData & Statistics
  11. Estimating the mean from grouped dataData & Statistics
  12. Compound Interest and Repeated Percentage ChangeRatio & Proportion
  13. Choosing a Model and Naming What It IgnoresMathematical Thinking
  14. Ratio Problems: Sharing, Changing and CombiningRatio & Proportion
  15. Direct Proportion as a FormulaRatio & Proportion
  16. Inverse ProportionRatio & Proportion
  17. Factorising Quadratics into Two BracketsAlgebra
  18. Difference of Two Squares and Perfect Square TrinomialsAlgebra
  19. Factorising quadratics with a leading coefficientAlgebra
  20. Solving quadratic equations by factorisingAlgebra
  21. Simplifying Algebraic FractionsAlgebra
  22. Who Was Asked: Samples and the People Left OutData & Statistics

Computing

  1. Weighted Models: Learned Parameters and Written CodeArtificial Intelligence
  2. Training Data: Where It Came From and What It Leaves OutArtificial Intelligence
  3. Writing a Prompt That Says What You Actually WantArtificial Intelligence
  4. Variables and Assignment in Text CodeProgramming
  5. Input, Output and Type ConversionProgramming
  6. Arithmetic in Code: Integer Division and RemainderProgramming
  7. Boolean Expressions and Comparison OperatorsProgramming
  8. Selection with if, elif and elseProgramming
  9. Count-Controlled LoopsProgramming
  10. Binary Numbers and Place ValueComputer Systems
  11. Adding Binary Numbers and OverflowComputer Systems
  12. Hexadecimal as Binary ShorthandComputer Systems
  13. Character Sets: Storing Text as NumbersComputer Systems
  14. Bitmap Images: Pixels, Resolution and Colour DepthComputer Systems
  15. Sampling Sound into NumbersComputer Systems

English

  1. Proofreading Under Time PressureSpelling & Word Study
  2. Effect-Led Analysis of a Writer's ChoicesReading Comprehension
  3. How a News Story Is FramedReading Comprehension
  4. Checking a Claim Before You Repeat ItReading Comprehension
  5. Inference and Implication in Close ReadingReading Comprehension
  6. Analysing Tone and Its ShiftsReading Comprehension
  7. Patterns of Language and Semantic FieldsVocabulary
  8. Analysing Structural Choices in Whole TextsReading Comprehension
  9. Building an Analytical ParagraphReading Comprehension
  10. Sentence Craft for Rhythm and EmphasisGrammar & Punctuation
  11. Precision and EconomyWriting Composition
  12. Paragraph Shape and Deliberate BreaksWriting Composition
  13. Register Control for a Named ReaderWriting Composition
  14. Descriptive Writing: Selected DetailWriting Composition
  15. Weighing a Spoken Argument as You Hear ItSpeaking & Listening

Civics & Economics

  1. Scarcity, Opportunity Cost and the Production FrontierEconomics
  2. Demand and Supply as CurvesEconomics
  3. Market Equilibrium, Shortage and SurplusEconomics
  4. Shifts in Demand and SupplyEconomics
  5. How a Law Actually Gets MadeGovernment
  6. Courts, Judges and a Fair TrialGovernment
  7. Rights and Their LimitsGovernment
  8. Who Gets to Vote, and How Votes Become SeatsGovernment
  9. Campaigns, Money and the MediaGovernment

Geography

  1. Population Growth and Age StructurePeople & Environments
  2. Migration at World ScalePeople & Environments
  3. Urbanisation and the Growth of CitiesPeople & Environments
  4. Drainage Basins and Why Rivers FloodPhysical Geography
  5. Choosing How to Defend a CoastPhysical Geography
  6. Fieldwork That Answers a QuestionPeople & Environments
  7. Turning Field Data Into an ArgumentPeople & Environments

Arts & Music

  1. Four Eras of Western Classical MusicMusic
  2. From Work Songs to Hip HopMusic
  3. Listening to a Whole Piece and Saying What HappensMusic
  4. Movements: Why Painting Kept ChangingVisual Art
  5. Art Traditions Beyond EuropeVisual Art
  6. Theatre Traditions Around the WorldPerforming Arts

Design & Technology

  1. CAD and Making by MachineDesigning & Making
  2. Designing for the People Who Use ItDesigning & Making
  3. Making One, Making ThousandsDesigning & Making
  4. Cooking Methods That Carry Across RecipesFood & Cooking
  5. Feeding Yourself on a BudgetFood & Cooking

Languages

  1. Joining Ideas: Clauses in Another LanguageGrammar Across Languages
  2. How Languages Cut Up TimeGrammar Across Languages
  3. Growing Vocabulary by the ThousandLanguage Learning
  4. Sound Systems, Stress and AccentSounds & Conversation
  5. Speaking at Length With ReasonsSounds & Conversation

History

  1. The Industrial RevolutionThe Modern World
  2. Weighing a source's reliabilityHistorical Thinking
  3. Empire and Its CostsThe Modern World
  4. The First World WarThe Modern World

Personal & Social Development

  1. CPR and the Recovery PositionResponsible Decision-Making
  2. Naming and ranking your own valuesSelf-Awareness
  3. Setting a Boundary and Holding ItFriendship & Cooperation
  4. Vaping, smoking and the decision in the momentResponsible Decision-Making

Learning to Learn

  1. Retrieval Practice Instead of RereadingLearning to Learn
  2. Spacing Revision Across WeeksLearning to Learn
  3. Mixing Topics Instead of Blocking ThemLearning to Learn

Life Skills

  1. A Budget That Survives a Real MonthMoney & Finance
What a 14-year-old learns · LightMySky