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A Student Centered Inquiry Based Learning Activity

I wanted to share an example of a student centered inquire based learning activity that I designed for my class. Below I will present an overview of the activity, links to the material used and a formative and summative assessment. I will also explain why I believe this is an appropriate activity for an inquiry based authentic learning experience. I begin the unit by giving student an introduction to wave motion using classroom demonstrations similar to these. This allows students to experience the phenomena directly and in doing so they become more invested in the rest of the unit because they can relate to the material on a deeper level. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-gr7KmTOrx0 Students will draw some pictures of what they see and label some important features of wave motion to become familiar with basic features like wavelength, amplitude and frequency. The following class students work with an online simulation of of the demonstration they saw in class. After a few minut...
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PhET simulations - a great multimedia tool for the classroom

When studying Kinematics early in the first semester I want my students to form basic concepts of how things move under the influence of gravity by observation, not by me telling them. I have utilized the PhET simulation on projectile motion to help with this. While the PhET simulation is not the same as real life, it does have the advantage of being much faster and allows students to work at their own pace and not get distracted by 12 groups all shooting projectiles simultaneously in the classroom. The PhET simulation is located here: https://phet.colorado.edu/en/simulation/projectile-motion Here is a link to the guide students follow as they explore projectile motion: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1byI88MY0YZwwOLVGE4GDOSM7PRcIBAsKclFeYn7a6zA/edit?usp=sharing The activity has students explore launching projectiles at various speeds, angles and starting heights. Students record observations, take data and identify cross cutting patterns about which angles heights and spe...
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Playposit - A web based tool for all learners

Over the past year and a half I have been using a web based tool called Playposit to design videos for my classes. I started off mainly using this for my AP Physics C students to help address their specific needs. My AP Physics C students are gifted and talented students, the best at the school. The are all seniors and it is a small class due to the high level of subject matter and prerequisites. AP Physics C is 2 separate AP courses that are calculus based and require the students to have already completed a physics class and to have taken or be concurrently enrolled in a calculus course. The students are all seniors and come from culturally diverse backgrounds. They have some of the highest GPS's in the school and are motivated hard working students. Playposit is a web based video service that I can use to create videos for my students to watch outside of class. The videos are typically hosted on YouTube but the students must log in to Playposit to watch them. I can embed a var...
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