Cavic Physics

A world of teaching Physics and Astronomy

Page 2 of 6

High School Astronomy Ideas – Less Lecture, More Engagement!

April 29, 2020 /

I’ve talked in previous posts about my hatred of lecturing. I end up doing all the work, while students sit passively. Sure, there are ways to make lectures more engaging. However, I discovered with a particularly challenging Astronomy class last year that lectures simply weren’t working. I stopped lecturing. I stopped pretty much all teacher-led instruction. What did I do instead? I created student-led, student-centered activities. I posted about student-centered instruction before, but now I want to share how I did it in my Astronomy class. Here are five high school Astronomy ideas, along with example lessons you can use in your Astronomy class.

Gallery Walks

Astronomy is definitely a very visually important subject. Looking at photographs is a major part of my class. However, instead of looking at pictures as a class and discussing them, break the discussions into smaller groups with a gallery walk. I call these Astronomy Art Galleries. They are one of my favorite and most engaging high school Astronomy ideas. I have done them virtually with Google Slides/PowerPoint and with physical pictures around the classroom.

Here is my Galaxy Gallery assignment I used this school year. Click here for my full lesson plan. This activity was done with laptops (one laptop per group of 3-4 students)

Here are some easy topics to create your own Astronomy Art Gallery:

Station Rotations

Station rotations are not only engaging but a great way to cover a lot of content in a short amount of time. I tend to do four stations in a 50 minute class period (~7-8 minutes per station). There are eight total groups in my classroom, so I do mirrored stations.

I usually have at least one station where students are using a laptop or phone. Some types of stations you can include are:

  • Watching a short video
  • Playing a Quizlet game
  • Coloring/labeling a diagram
  • Using question dice
  • Reviewing work with the teacher
  • Reading a news article
  • Completing practice questions/problems
One of my favorite high school Astronomy ideas is to incorporate station rotations - get those kids moving!
Here is a brief station overview of an activity I did on the terrestrial planets. Click here for the more in-depth station directions.

I like to have one station with new information, one with review information, one with a video, and one with a group discussion. That’s not a perfect, works-in-every-lesson formula, but it is my skeleton I start with!

Questioning and Research

Students tend to be interested in Astronomy, even if they aren’t always engaged with every lesson. I like to give them the opportunity to ask questions. Then, we structure a research activity based on their research.

For this lesson on black holes, I asked students to write something they want to know about black holes. I used the Nearpod Collaborate tool so I could see who wrote what, but it was anonymous to other students. The next day, I brought out every book I own that mentions black holes, along with laptops. Students were tasked with trying to answer some of the questions they asked. The culminating assignment was to write a news article about black holes.

Sample student work of a news article about black holes
One of the news articles my students produced. I encouraged them to think of a creative, “click bait” title and I love this one!

Simulations and Virtual Labs

Labs in Astronomy can be difficult, but there are many you can do. However, I often use simulations and virtual labs to do what we can’t in class. I’ve talked about PhET simulations many, many times, but a lot of teachers don’t know that they have a lot more than just Physics!

This PhET simulation on blackbody radiation is a great way to introduce stars!
I use this simulation from PhET to introduce the H-R Diagram and different types of stars. Here is a sample worksheet to go along with it.

Some of the more Astronomy appropriate simulations PhET has are:

In addition to PhET, I have also used simulations from UNL, eduMedia, Stellarium, and Celestia.

News Articles

I feel like every single day I find a news article about something we are learning about in Astronomy. There is always new information and celestial events going on! I use news articles all the time in my classroom. This is another one of the most engaging high school Astronomy ideas!

For example, I found a news article about Mars One, and another describing why it won’t work. Students read those two articles and debated whether we should go to Mars. Here is the lesson plan for that activity.

Some other topics you could use news articles with are:

  • Comparing types of supernovae
  • Exoplanets
  • Meteor showers and what causes them
  • Types of eclipses
  • Discoveries from probes such as Juno and New Horizons

I hope these ideas have inspired you to rethink your classroom!

Taking the AP Physics Exam at Home: Top 5 Tips

April 28, 2020 /

We are all facing challenges and new territory this year. For the first time, students will be taking a shortened AP exam from the comfort of their homes. Whether you are student preparing to take the AP Physics exam or a teacher guiding students, it is important that we think about how we can be ready.

I previously posted tips for the AP Physics 1 and 2 FRQs, but this post will be more targeted to the unique challenge of taking the exam at home.

Many college exams are open book / open note, so these tips may help you even if you aren’t taking the AP Physics exam this year!

1. Use Student-Created Notes

This will be the very first time that the AP Physics exam is open note! While some students may think this means the exam will be easy and they will be able to find the answers online, that is not the case. You can be sure that College Board will give scenarios that are still challenging and require critical thinking.

Remember that students can still use the AP equation sheet, but they can also use other materials. Class notes and student-created fact sheets will be much more beneficial than internet searches. Students should make sure that they are familiar with the notes they are using, so notes they have taken themselves is the best way to go.

2. Prepare Your Resources

Having a notebook full of class notes might be helpful, but it also might be time consuming to flip through a ton of material. Think smarter when preparing resources to help you.

Remember that resources are there to jog your memory or reinforce what you already know, not give the exact answer. Don’t waste time searching for answers. Here are a few things students can do to help prepare their resources:

  • Use tabs to mark sections / concepts in a notebook
  • Rewrite the equation sheet in a more user-friendly manner or how the equations were learned in class
  • Create one page concept “Cliff Notes” sheets
  • Create a FRQ checklist of top tips
My sample kinematics review sheet to help students prepare for the AP Physics exam
Here is a sample 1D kinematics “Cliff Notes” I created to help students. Top pitfalls or reminders is a great way to remember those common errors!

3. Have an Exam Day Plan

Students will have the option of typing responses or working on paper and submitting a photo. I recommend for AP Physics that students work on paper – this is more in line with what we have been practicing all year. Make sure your cell phone is charged and the camera works if you are using it to photograph your answers. Practice making sure your images come out clear.

College Board has indicated that they will have a tutorial video before the exam day on how the upload process works. Make sure to watch that and know exactly what you are doing.

4. Familiarize Yourself with the AP Physics Exam Format

College Board has all up to date exam information published here.

The 2020 AP Physics 1 and 2 exams will have two free response questions: one qualitative-quantitative translation and one paragraph length response. Students will have 25 minutes to respond to question 1 and 5 minutes to upload their response. Then, they will have 15 minutes for question 2 and 5 minutes of upload time.

AP Physics C will have the same timing, but slightly different question format. Question 1 will be the long-form question with an increased emphasis on analysis and explanations. Question 2 will be a shortened experimental design question.

Remember that not all of the content taught will be on the exam. Don’t focus on the wrong topics. For example, AP Physics 2 will not have any optics or modern physics.

5. Practice AP Physics Exam Day Conditions

At this point, students have reviewed and reviewed and hopefully have main idea down. Now, we need practice. However, not just any practice will suffice. Students need to practice in a timed setting where they cannot just look up the answer when they are stuck.

A sample of the resources available for the AP Physics exam on College Board's website
The AP Exam pages have previously released exam questions, along with scoring guides and sample responses. The sample responses and chief reader report always have great insight into what makes a good free response!

Here are some tips for practicing smarter:

  • Use previously released AP Physics exam questions
  • Set a timer when working on the problem
  • Do NOT look up the answer if you are stuck. Keep working and try writing something.
  • Use the scoring guide or a video, such as the ones College Board is producing, to score the FRQ.
  • Score yourself realistically – no “kinda” points

A review of Albert.io

July 15, 2019 /

I discovered the site Learnerator several years ago while looking for good AP style questions for my students. I was blown away by the attention to detail in the questions, and how closely they modeled the questions on the AP exam. But then, it went away. Learnerator became Albert.io, and the site moved to a paid model.

After a few years of begging my school to buy the license, we decided to purchase Albert.io for every AP class offered at our school. Many teachers didn’t really use it this past school year, but I found it one of the most beneficial tools for my students.

My students either loved or hated it. I think the hate stemmed from the difficulty of the questions, which, hello, is the point. The ones that embraced it really got a lot out of the platform.

Implementation

One of the frustrations students had with Albert.io this school year was its implementation. Many teachers assigned 100+ questions at a time. Albert’s questions are in depth, challenging, and require students to go back and review their reasoning for the answers. This simply does not work if students are assigned 150 questions to do in one week.

I implement Albert in two ways.

Albert.io as homework

First, I do use it as homework. When I assign Albert as homework in AP Physics, I usually assign 20 questions to do over a few days. We go over some of the top missed questions in class before the assignment is due. When I grade the assignment, I either grade it for completion or half completion, half correction.

Sample assignment data from albert.io in my AP Physics course
Here is an assignment summary from a homework assignment. I like being able to see the performance breakdown of each question.

Albert.io as extra practice

Second, I use it as supplementary problems. I create optional assignments, or students can work through at their own pace. Sometimes these count as extra credit, sometimes they are purely additional practice.

albert.io snapshot of student data
Here is a snapshot of my dashboard. I removed students’ names. I can see at a glance how each student is doing. This snapshot was taken during a week when I did not assign anything (just optional practice).

A student’s perspective

What really sets Albert.io apart is the results. They have results and testimonials on their website, but I want to share some personal data from my AP exam review period.

I’ve discussed my AP exam review style a little bit here. I like to give students choices in how they prepare for the National Exam. About two months before the AP Physics exam, I surveyed my students to help inform how to best conduct review. First, I asked them about how they prefer to review.

Student feedback on AP review
Actual results from my AP Physics students.

42.1% of students said they get the most out of review when they do practice problems with a group, and another 31.6% said when they take practice multiple choice (and free response) and make corrections on their answers. Both of these are possible with Albert.io, which is why I think this happened:

Student feedback on how albert.io is the most beneficial review tool we have used

Students overwhelmingly selected Albert.io as the most beneficial tool for review we used. Even though they complain about it at times, it really is the best review tool we have at our disposal. The style of questions for AP Physics 1 and 2 are the closest I have seen to the rigor of the AP exam.

If you or your school is able to purchase Albert.io, I highly recommend it. However, don’t overuse it and give students choices on how much they need to do. While I don’t have my pass rate data to share yet, I am excited to see if it made a real difference in exam results. If I am going off of what student’s said, they thought the exam was cake compared to the rigor they were used to on Albert. And that’s the best I can hope for.

The Experimental Design FRQ: Rethinking Labs

July 8, 2019 /

I previously discussed my tips of the AP Physics 1 and 2 FRQS, but I realize I didn’t really touch on the experimental design FRQ. I will write out some tips for that beast, but I want to discuss how I prepare my students for this throughout the school year.

The experimental design FRQ is probably the most daunting to students and teachers. The first time I had my students do one in class, it was truly abysmal. How can teachers prepare students for the experimental design FRQ?

I think the number one answer to this question is by flipping the way we do labs. So many of us are used to traditional labs with instructions that tell the students exactly what to do.

Sample student response from the 2017 experimental design FRQ
Check out the amount of writing required on these FRQs! Here is the full sample from 2017.

Labs are the ultimate exercise in inquiry for science classes. Many teachers struggle with having the time for inquiry, but inquiry labs don’t have to take any longer than traditional “cookbook” labs. Let’s look at the four levels on inquiry, with an example lab in AP Physics 1. If my explanations aren’t enough, here is some more detail on the four levels of inquiry from Inquiry in Education.

Level 1: Limited

Limited tends to require the least amount of critical thinking. Students prove something using a prescribed procedure. For instance, students prove the acceleration of gravity by dropped a picket fence through a photogate for 10 trials, average them, and find a percent error. Bad? No. Does this prepare students for the experimental design FRQ? Also no.

Sample lab setup using a Vernier photogate and picket fence
Image courtesy of Vernier. How could you kick a lab like this up to the next level?

Level 2: Structured

Most of the labs I did in high school and college were structured. This is where our more traditional labs lie. The teacher provides the question and the procedure, and the students work through it. Higher order thinking may come in during the analysis portion of a structured inquiry lab, but the actual lab is fairly straight forward.

An example of this would be investigating the relationship between force, mass, and acceleration. Students are instructed to vary the force pushing a cart and a the mass of the cart, and derive Newton’s 2nd Law.

Level 3: Guided

Guided inquiry is really the sweet spot for preparing students for the experimental design FRQ. In guided inquiry, the teacher provides the problem and the students must come up with the procedure, data, and analysis to answer the problem.

Oriental Trading popper toys used for an energy lab
I bought these poppers from Oriental Trading for a guided inquiry lab on energy!

This format most closely matches the types of questions students see on the experimental design FRQ. Through doing guided inquiry labs, students become used to figuring out their own procedure. Of course, every lab can’t be guided inquiry. However, this is a great tool to use during each unit. I will share some of my own examples below.

Level 4: Open

Open inquiry takes the student generated process a bit further. Students come up with the question, in addition to the procedure. I think that open inquiry is a great end-of-year review tool, but I don’t really use open inquiry for labs during the school year.

5 guided inquiry labs you can do next school year to prepare for the experimental design FRQ

So, now that you know a little bit about the types of labs, let’s look at how you can use structured inquiry labs to prepare students for the experimental design FRQ.

  • Projectile motion
    • Where will the marble land? A marble is shot out of a marble launcher, and students must place a cup so that the marble lands in it on the first try. Students can use whatever tools needed to figure this out, but they can not launch the marble during the procedure phase. I combat “cheating” by launching the marble early by not giving them the angle the final trial will take place at until the end.
  • Coefficient of friction
    • Does the coefficient of friction depend on the mass of an object? Students are given force sensors, various masses, rulers, and are able to gather additional materials if necessary.
  • Energy conversions
    • What is the spring constant of a popper toy? Students can use any lab materials available to them to determine the spring constant. The stipulation is that they must do it using energy, not Hooke’s Law. Most students choose to use video analysis using their phone, which I why I like not giving them set materials.
  • Rotational kinetic energy
    • An object rolls down a ramp. Does its percentage of translational versus rotational kinetic energy depend on its shape? Students are given a ramp, meter stick, and various objects (hoop, sphere, cylinder). They determine how much of each object’s initial gravitational potential energy is rotational kinetic energy at the end of the ramp.
  • Pendulum
    • What factor determine the period of a pendulum? Students must test at least four factors and derive an equation for the period of a pendulum.

Final thoughts

Of course, the goal of all labs is not just to prepare students for one FRQ on the National Exam. However, giving students genuine experiences in experimental design will prepare them and push their critical thinking skills. A good lab course uses a mix of different types and styles of labs, with guided inquiry being one part.

Also, don’t think you have to reinvent the wheel to push your students. How can you kick labs you already do up a level?

EdTech Tools for Physics: Top 5 Free Tools

July 1, 2019 /

Educational technology, or EdTech, is changing the way classrooms are structured. Classes are becoming more student-centered and collaborative through the use of technology, but many tools are too costly to implement. Here are five free EdTech tools for Physics that I have used with success. These tools are not necessarily just for Physics, but have worked well for my Physics classroom!

1. Nearpod

I like to think about how technology can enrich an experience, rather than how it can replace something. It’s easy to add tech – it takes practice and reflection to make it enrich the curriculum. Nearpod is one of those tools that can truly enrich an otherwise lackluster lesson.

Nearpod is nearly limitless in its classroom possibilities. I discussed it a bit already in my 5 Ways to Make Instruction More Student Driven. It truly is the most powerful tool I use in the classroom. It can transform a lesson from static an uninspiring to whole class participation and collaboration.

Sample Draw It featuring student-drawn motion graphs in Nearpod
Here is a real sample of some student drawings using the Draw It feature. The teacher receives all the drawings and can share them out to the class. We spent several minutes in this class going through each drawing and discussing what type of motion it showed.

Some of my favorite features within Nearpod are:

  • Collaboration boards
  • Importing existing PowerPoints and adding activities easily
  • Integration with PhET
  • 3D models and virtual field trips
  • Adding a slideshow for structured browsing time
Sample Collaborate Tool in Nearpod - one of my favorite edtech tools for physics!
Possibly my favorite feature of Nearpod in action! These collaboration boards are a great way to have students ask questions, share thoughts, and gauge prior knowledge. I love giving students the opportunity to put things into their own words for each other.

2. PhET

I would bet that if you are reading this website about Physics, you are already familiar with PhET Interactive Simulations. It is one of the most popular and widely used EdTech tools for Physics. Thousands of science teachers use these simulations for virtual lab experiences.

Using the PhET spring simulation as a virtual lab
One of the guided inquiry labs I do using PhET is finding out the mystery mass for this oscillating spring.

One of the reasons I love PhET is the flexibility in the style of investigations you can do. Even if you currently use PhET, I challenge you to kick your activities to the next level by including guided inquiry opportunities. These simulations are perfect for inquiry you can’t physically do in the classroom.

If you are a teacher, PhET does have some teacher created lessons you can access and use. I find that many teachers don’t know about this feature! You sign up for an account using your school email address, and the tools are located under each simulation.

Resources available to teachers for every PhET simulation
Example of some of the teacher resources available. These were all created by other teachers. If you like PhET, maybe submit some of your own resources to share with others!

PhET is also slowly making its simulations HTML5. If you don’t use it because of compatibility issues, check if your favorites sims are updated!

3. Quizizz

I am a newer user of Quizizz, but this school year I began incorporating it frequently in my classroom.

I like Kahoot. Students love Kahoot. Kahoot just doesn’t work for me. I find that students like it TOO much, which can lead to chaos and students not really reading the questions carefully. I also find that it just doesn’t have the flexibility and customization tools I want.

Enter Quizizz. You can utilize Quizizz in many different ways. I tend to use it as a class warm up, or “bell work,” activity. I like the ability to turn off the question timer, add the memes for a good laugh, and assign it as in class or at home. You have the flexibility to make Quizizz as fast-paced or relaxed as you want. There are dozens of Quizizz made by other teachers, and it is super easy to add your own questions.

Quizizz also has really in depth item analysis tools, which I review with my students after each game.

Sample student data from Quizizz
One of the item analysis tools is this student performance matrix (I cut off the students’ names on the left). I like being able to see a snapshot of each question’s score, plus each student’s performance. My students struggled with these questions a lot, so we did some reinforcement after this!

4. Tes Teach

Tes Teach with Blendspace is a platform to make choice boards online. You can make the tiles a wide variety of activities, which makes giving students choices super user-friendly.

Example tic-tac-toe board using Tes Teach - another one of the best edtech tools for physics
Here is a board I made for AP Physics 1. Students had to make tic-tac-toe that went through the middle, ensuring each student completed the exit ticket.

These boards don’t always look super pretty, but they are an effective way to give student’s choices in their learning. It is important to strategically place activities so that all students are working at the same level of rigor. I wouldn’t want one student watching three videos while other does three higher level free response questions.

Setting up your tic-tac-toe board to maximize student learning
I found this super helpful graphic from @wterral on Twitter, using tips from @ShakeUpLearning

5. GoSoapBox

GoSoapBox is a new tool I am testing out. It is a diverse and promising tool. I really think this might be one of the most beneficial EdTech tools for Physics out there right now.

GoSoapBox has a plethora of features. The most intriguing one is a clicker-type interface that can act as a “back channel” for your class. While clickers aren’t anything new, they are expensive and not realistic for many schools. GoSoapBox works on practically any device and does so much more than the clickers I used in college.

Here is the teacher dashboard for a sample lesson I created. GoSoapBox calls their lessons “events.”

On the teacher dashboard, you can create quizzes, polls, and discussions for students to respond to using their device. The Social Q&A feature is my favorite, however. Students can write in questions during a lecture discussion, and other students can see those questions. Students can also “like” other questions to indicate they were thinking the same thing.

Some edtech tools for physics are available within GoSoapBox, such as this live confusion barometer to use during lecture style classes
This is what the students see on their device. There are currently no active quizzes or polls, but students can still ask questions and use the barometer.

The confusion barometer is another feature that could really benefit Physics classes. Sometimes I feel like I completely lose my class mid-discussion, and the confusion barometer can help me be aware of that. At any time, students can toggle the barometer to “I am confused” and the teacher will see how many students are lost.

There are hundreds of EdTech tools out there, and I discussed just five of them today. Do you know of any other EdTech tools for Physics classes? What are you doing to disrupt education in your classroom?

« Older posts Newer posts »

Dina Cavicchia, creator of Cavic Physics, is a Physics teacher from Orlando, Florida. She has taught Physics for ten years. Her teaching experience includes AP Physics 1, AP Physics 2, Honors and Standard level Physics, and Honors Astronomy. Her passions include all things space, science advocacy, and teaching science through collaborative learning. Connect with Dina on Twitter. Check out Dina’s Physics and Astronomy resources available on Teachers Pay Teachers.

© 2024 Cavic Physics

Theme by Anders Noren — Up ↑