How to Use Propello’s Online Required Practical Simulations to Supercharge Your Science Lessons

Delivering all 28 AQA required practicals can be challenging — especially when lab time, resources, or equipment are limited. Between setting up apparatus, managing groups, and ensuring every student collects reliable data, even the best-planned lessons can feel rushed.

That’s where Propello’s online Required Practical Simulations come in. Designed to complement in-class experiments — not replace them — these interactive tools help teachers make practical science more accessible, efficient, and effective.

Here’s how to blend them seamlessly with your lessons.

🧪 1. Pre-lab Preparation: Build Confidence Before the Experiment

Before students step into the lab, time spent on pre-lab familiarisation pays off.

Use the Propello Required Practical Simulations (like Photosynthesis or Enzymes) to help students visualise:

• The apparatus setup
  
  
• Dependent, independent and control variables
  
  
• How data will be collected and recorded

Try this:
Start your lesson with the Propello Lesson Pack presentation. These include ready-to-use PowerPoint slides that highlight the AQA specification link, working scientifically skills, and apparatus techniques.
Then, project the simulation on-screen and walk through each stage interactively.

“By previewing the simulation first, students knew exactly what to do when they entered the lab — it halved setup time.”
— GCSE Biology Teacher, Nottinghamshire

Benefits:

• Reduces cognitive load during the practical
  
  
• Ensures all students understand the purpose
  
  
• Frees more lesson time for discussion and analysis

⚗️ 2. During the Lab: Reinforce Methods and Support Accessibility

In many schools, not every student can handle the equipment simultaneously. Some groups may need to observe, share apparatus, or catch up later.

Using Propello’s lab worksheets and simulations in tandem helps bridge those gaps.

Here’s how:

• Distribute Propello’s lab worksheets (with method, diagrams, and data tables).
  
  
• Run the simulation alongside the live experiment — on a projector, screen, or individual devices.
  
  
• Encourage students to cross-check their real observations with the virtual output.

This not only supports students with additional needs but also allows everyone to see ideal data trends — perfect when results vary due to timing or temperature issues.

Top tip:
If equipment runs short (e.g. insufficient light sensors for photosynthesis), use the simulation to model variable changes and complete missing data points.

💡 3. Post-lab Consolidation: Turn Data into Understanding

Once the practical is complete, students often struggle most with making sense of their results.

Propello’s student question and answer sheets — included in every Required Practical Lesson Pack — are built to tackle that. They include:

• Data interpretation and analysis questions
  
  
• Graphing tasks
  
  
• Higher-demand “explain” and “evaluate” items
  
  
• Complete teacher answer sheets

You can also set the simulation as homework or revision, allowing students to rerun the experiment and reflect on:

• What went well in the lab
  
  
• What they’d do differently
  
  
• How variable control affects reliability and accuracy

Outcome:
Every student can revisit, retry, and re-learn — even if the original lab didn’t go perfectly.

🧬 4. Revision and Intervention: Perfect for Catch-up and Exam Prep

In the run-up to exams, or for students who missed lessons, simulations become invaluable.

Create a revision pathway like this:

1. Assign the relevant Propello simulation (e.g. Reaction Time or Electrolysis) through your learning platform.
   
   
2. Provide the corresponding worksheet and question pack to guide reflection.
   
   
3. Use Propello’s Lesson Pack slides for small-group revision or flipped classroom review.

Because each simulation mirrors the AQA practical method, it reinforces procedural and conceptual understanding — key for the Required Practical questions on the exam paper.

🌍 5. Make Science Accessible, Engaging, and Inclusive

Propello’s approach helps level the playing field:

• Students with limited lab access (due to absence, mobility, or resource shortages) can still experience every practical.
  
  
• Trainee or non-specialist teachers gain instant visual tools for demonstration.
  
  
• Low-stakes repetition builds scientific literacy and reduces practical anxiety.

When combined with real lab work, these simulations ensure every student can plan, observe, analyse, and evaluate — the four pillars of the required practicals.

🧩 The Complete Toolkit for Teachers

🚀 Ready to Start?

Explore all 28 AQA-aligned Required Practical Simulations — free for teachers.
Each one includes ready-made slides, worksheets, and answer keys so you can focus on teaching, not tech setup.

👉 Access the full practicals pack here

Make every student’s practical science experience meaningful — whether in the lab, at home, or online.