Free for teachers
Science simulations
Ask Sparky for a Punnett square calculator, a natural selection or gravity simulator, a food web game or a states of matter model, and get a simulation students can change and run.
Used by 250,000+ teachers, and built to FERPA, COPPA and GDPR standards.
How Sparky builds a science simulation
Name the science and the grade
Type one line, such as "a Punnett square simulator for my 7th grade genetics unit". Add the variable you want students to change if you have one in mind.
Get a simulation students can run
Sparky builds it beside the chat with controls, a run or reset button where it needs one, and results worked out from what students choose.
Check it and ask for a change
Read it as you would any model. Ask for real units, other traits or another control, and Sparky updates the same simulation.
Simulations Sparky can build
Punnett square calculator
Pick a trait and each parent's alleles, and the square fills in with genotype and phenotype ratios. Ask for a dihybrid cross and it grows to 16 boxes with a 9 : 3 : 3 : 1 ratio.
Natural selection
Bugs on a forest, desert, snow or rock background. Each generation the best-hidden survive and pass on their color, and a graph shows the population blending in.
Food web game
Students drag meadow organisms onto a board, draw arrows from food to eater, and press Check My Web to see which links are right.
Photosynthesis
Sliders for light and carbon dioxide change the rate, and whichever is lower holds it back, so students find the limiting factor.
States of matter
Heat or cool a box of particles and watch them vibrate in place, flow, or fly apart. Ask for water and it melts at 0 °C and boils at 100 °C.
Gravity simulator
Sliders for two masses and the distance between them, starting at the Earth and the Moon. The force comes from Newton's law, so doubling the distance quarters it.
Solar system simulator
All eight planets orbit at their real relative speeds, with a speed slider and Pause. Sizes and distances are not to scale, and it says so.
Density: sink or float
Drop wood, ice, a steel ball or a rock into a tank. Each floats as deep as its density says, so ice at 0.92 g/cm³ sits mostly underwater.
What every simulation has
Controls students change
Sliders, menus and buttons for the variables that matter, such as mass, distance or the alleles each parent carries.
Results worked out, not guessed
The numbers come from the science's own rules in the simulation's code, so a Punnett square always counts its four boxes the same way.
Notes on what's simplified
Most simulations say what they leave out, such as orbits not to scale or a dihybrid cross assuming the genes sort independently.
Changes made to the same simulation
Ask Sparky for a change and it updates the simulation in place. The arrows above it go back to earlier versions.
Data privacy
Safe to use with student work
What happens to the files you upload and what your students write in Flint.
Not used to train AI
Student data in Flint is never used to train AI models.
Not shared
Flint does not share student data, or any other user data, with third parties.
Kept separate
Each school's data is kept apart from every other school's, and the AI providers Flint runs on can't reach it.
Signed agreements, on request
Flint signs a data processing agreement with any school that needs one, written to US state law and EU GDPR.
What teachers say about Flint
"Flint promotes inquiry-based learning, fosters independent scientific thinking, and [leads] to deeper student engagement and more meaningful reflections in scientific inquiry."
Aldo Hutagalung
MYP Science and DP Physics at Changchun American International School
"[Flint] is very useful for differentiating instruction in the classroom. Each student has their own needs and can progress at their own pace, which adapts to the level of each learner."
Marina López Gémez
MYP Science Teacher at Changchun American International School
"I started using Flint last year. I created quizzes for middle school science and math and later made IB-style questions. I learnt that if I add some resources and provide as many details as possible, Flint can create better and better tasks."
Sanjeev Sharma
MYP and DP Science and Math Teacher at Changchun American International School
Frequently asked questions
Are these science simulations free?
Yes, they're free for teachers.
How do you use a Punnett square calculator?
Pick the trait, then each parent's two alleles, such as Rr and rr. The square fills in every equally likely offspring, and the ratios underneath give the genotypes (2 Rr : 2 rr) and the traits you'd see (2 round : 2 wrinkled).
What does a 3 : 1 phenotypic ratio mean?
Crossing two parents that each carry one dominant and one recessive allele, such as Rr and Rr, gives offspring that show the dominant trait three times out of four, on average. It is a chance across many offspring, not a promise for any one.
How accurate are the simulations?
Sparky works the results out from the rules of the science, such as Newton's law for gravity and real orbital periods for the planets. Each simulation simplifies, and most say how. Check one as you would any model before class, and ask Sparky to fix what you'd teach differently.
Can students run a simulation on their own?
Yes. Press Share and open the simulation to one of your classes, or to anyone with the link. Students change the controls and run it themselves.
Can I change a simulation after Sparky makes it?
Yes. Ask for different traits, real units or another control, and Sparky updates the same simulation. The arrows above it go back to earlier versions.
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