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Flipping Physics: My Favorite AP Physics 1 Resource

May 19, 2017 / dinacav

Good quality AP Physics resources can be hard to find. I searched for review materials and videos but was overall disappointed by the quality of the content I found. Enter Flipping Physics.

So, I’m not actually a big proponent of flipped classrooms. I don’t believe any teaching strategy should be used all the time. However, the flipped model is an excellent one when used in addition to other strategies. These would fit perfectly in a blended learning classroom (I even used one in a personalized learned menu, shown as an example in this post).

When I was looking for great review videos, I stumbled across Mr. Palmer by accident. I don’t know how I didn’t find him sooner – he was exactly what I was looking for. His mission is to “Make the world a better place through real, fun, and free physics education,” which is exactly what his videos do. The humorous, lecture-discussion style of video is a great addition to a blended learning classroom.

Students sometimes find the videos cheesy, but I find using these to reinforce ideas has been a great tool. Some of my students re-watched every video before the National Exam and said it tremendously helped them remember concepts! They also loved the lecture notes associated with the videos. Additionally, he has slowly been adding more videos to cover every topic in Physics.

If you are looking for an excellent video resource, Flipping Physics is the best out there. He even has videos explaining some of the released FRQs. My only complaint is that he doesn’t have Physics 2!

http://www.flippingphysics.com

Here is one of my favorite videos to show right before the National Exam, his reflections on the 2015 exam. It has some excellent tips to remember. I show this every year before the National Exam.

5 Tips for tackling the AP Physics FRQs

May 16, 2017 / dinacav

The free-response questions on the AP Physics 1 and 2 exams can be daunting. Students tend to not be used to writing in science classes, and the AP Physics B exam had a lot more calculations and a lot fewer explanations. These FRQs require careful thought and deep knowledge of physics concepts. Here are my top tips for tackling the AP Physics FRQs.

1. Support your answer.

This is my biggest pet peeve with student responses. If a question says to refer to a graph or has to analyze a student’s statement or uses any sort of source, directly refer back to that source.

For example, question #2 on the 2016 AP Physics 1 exam was an experimental design question that referenced a student’s hypothesis. The experiment outlined should directly address this, not just generally discuss the overarching concept.

Make sure that explanations are not generally statements, but directly refer back to the question at hand.

2. Do not just write equations into words.

The qualitative/quantitative translation question will frequently include parts that say “explain without the use of equations.” This does not mean to write out “Well, force equals mass times acceleration…” Be sure to explain, and make reference to the law or principle you are explaining. The AP Physics FRQs are looking for students’ mastery of the content – not reciting equations.

2017 AP Physics 1 question #3 is a great example of qualitative/quantitative translation AP Physics FRQs. — 2017 AP Physics 1 FRQ #1 demonstrates how students need to be able to explain without using equations.

3. Know when to explain and when to not.

Sometimes, a question says things like “State…” or “Determine…” These types of questions are looking for an answer, not a long winded explanation. Read the first word of the question to clue in to what type of answer is needed. Take a look at this document to help with what different exam words mean.

4. Use the given symbols.

If a problem has you solve something symbolically, use the given symbols. For example, a question might read, “Solve for the acceleration in terms of m, θ, and physical constants.” This means your answer should not have tension, friction, normal force, or any other variables in it.

5. Be clear and concise.

Most answers are designed that a simple sentence or two can explain what you need, except of course the paragraph-length response. Even for the paragraph, however, it is important to get to the point. Writing a diatribe about an unrelated concept shows that you do not truly know the principle at hand. For example, I posted about the 2017 AP Physics 1 paragraph-length question here.

5 Tips for Blended Learning in a Science Class

May 13, 2017 / dinacav

Blended learning is one of the new trends in education, but this trend isn’t all talk. However, blended learning in science classrooms can be a little tricky. Here are five things I have learned in my blending learning endeavors that have greatly impacted student achievement.

1. Immediate feedback assessments

The biggest pitfall of assessments is the lack of feedback. Students take a test and wait days, weeks, or even months with state assessments for their results. This model does not support the learning process.

Enter online assessments. These can be done through your learning management system and provide instantaneous feedback. I have given pre-tests to my students through Canvas and used that data to drive how to break students into groups and where to go with instruction. It is amazing to have this data the moment they are finished with the assessment.

With most LMSes now, you can even secure your tests to make sure responses are genuine. Timed assessments, access codes, password protections – all of these things help remove the threat of cheating. I also like using online assessments for free response questions – even though I still have to grade them, virtual rubrics make scoring a breeze.

Remember that blended learning does not use technology to simply replace pencil-and-paper work. The advantage of using online assessments is the immediate feedback both the student and teacher receive.

2. Personalized learning menus

This is perhaps my favorite review method, and it makes blended learning in science classrooms so simple. I discussed how I use this for AP exam review earlier, and it can even work for introducing new content. Students are given a choice of several different assignments, with a goal of how many to complete or how many points to earn. I like weighting the assignments differently to give more complex assignments an incentive to complete. This strategy gives students choices in their learning and allows them to pick what helps them most.

Here is an example choice board that I made for my AP Physics 1 class. Students had to make tic-tac-toe through the middle but had the choice on which path to take. Choice boards are one way to create a learning menu. I created this board using Blendspace.

With learning menus, the assignments can vary from practice problems to videos to labs. I like including a small group lecture so students that benefit from having a real person working with them get a chance to have more guided direct instruction. This is also a great strategy if you only have a few computers available – perhaps only one or two of the items are technology based.

3. Reinforcement videos

This one can go hand-in-hand with the learning menus, but it’s a good one. Sometimes it just helps to have something explained by more than one person. While showing videos all the time isn’t the best teaching method, assigning videos to help reinforce concepts can be extremely beneficial.

I like assigning videos for homework when I feel like my class needed further explanation. Including these videos on a work-at-your-own-pace assignment can help students get the reinforcement they need or provide extension opportunities for your ahead-of-the-curve students.

Khan Academy is always for videos. I am also a fan of Crash Course and Flipping Physics.

4. Virtual lab notebooks

I am still experimenting with virtual lab notebooks as part of my blending learning endeavors. However, I have used Canvas, Google Docs, and OneDrive’s collaborative document integration. Students can submit their lab work online, work on lab reports together, and the teacher can track who added/edited in the document.

Virtual lab notebooks enhance the laboratory experience by allowing for a more collaborative data analysis phase, as well as being closer to what students can expect in college and career.

5. Virtual lab experiences

Virtual labs are excellent tools for a variety of reasons, and they are such a natural place to include blended learning in science classrooms. Whether you don’t have the equipment, the topic is too abstract, or just to reinforce an idea, virtual experiences enhance the learning process in a profound way.

I love using the PhET simulations from https://phet.colorado.edu/. I often create inquiry-based labs using these. Many are being converted to HTML5 so they can be used on mobile devices as well.

Perhaps my favorite PhET is the Energy Skate Park. Students always have so much fun while exploring energy!

Another example of a virtual lab I use is the Photoelectric Effect from PhET. My school does not have the equipment available to perform this lab, and students often have trouble understanding it without a visual. However, the virtual lab for this is the perfect resource to give them a laboratory experience without the supplies.

AP Physics 1 2017 FRQ 1 Thoughts

May 11, 2017 / dinacav

Here is my messy solution to AP Physics 1 2017 FRQ #1. Here is the full AP Physics 1 2017 FRQ from College Board.

My messy solution to the AP Physics 1 FRQ #1

This FRQ was very simple, but students may have overthought what the question was asking. For example, students may have not recognized the need to analyze the energy usage in terms of power dissipated in each. However, almost every teacher does a lab that involves the principles behind this FRQ, so hopefully, it was familiar to students. I predict this being the highest scoring FRQ.

I think the biggest struggle with this FRQ is students following the paragraph-length response guidelines. College Board does publish guidelines for this type of question, but students tend to write too little or not enough substance in the paragraph. I suggest that students follow a basic CER structure:

Claim – What is your answer to the question?
Evidence – What basic Physics principle or concept are you using to defend your response?
Reasoning – Why and how does that principle apply to this scenario and your answer?

I tend to find that students do not mention specific Physics principles in their responses. Additionally, students don’t write a full paragraph. Practicing the paragraph-length response and scoring is key to tackling this type of question.

If you want more general tips for the AP Physics 1 and 2 FRQs, here is my post with my top five tips!

Using APOD in the Classroom

May 9, 2017 / dinacav

NASA’s Astronomy Picture of the Day, also known as APOD, is one of my favorite Astronomy resources. Though I wrote about APOD in my high school Astronomy resources post, I wanted to talk more about how I use it in the classroom. The subjects and sources vary greatly, and pictures are often topical to things happening in space news.

I begin my Astronomy class every single day with the APOD. It gives the class a routine, but students also find it fascinating. They especially love the amateur astronomy photos – showing that these things are real and you don’t always need super sophisticated equipment to see them. We often delve deeper into how and where photos were taken and research more on the background of the subject. It’s a great way to learn something new every single day.

One of the very first APODs, a photograph of the Pleiades, way back from 1995!

I also love that the pictures are very topical. We will discuss a meteor shower, or rocket launch, or nearby comet, and the very next day the picture of the day will be of that. It gives such relevancy and realism to what we are studying in my Astronomy class. One day, I got carried away and forgot to show the picture of the day. My students were legitimately upset!

Here is one of my recent favorites, of the Cygnus spacecraft taken from the ISS. We watched the launch together, so it was exciting for my students to see the craft actually in space.

A sample APOD taken from the ISS — **Image Credit:** ESA, NASA

Check out APOD at https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/astropix.html

Cavic Physics

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Flipping Physics: My Favorite AP Physics 1 Resource