Week 15 Reflection

This week in physics we focused mostly on acceleration, our current unit, in preparation for our final assessment for the unit on Thursday. On Monday, we further looked at position vs. time graphs, velocity graphs, acceleration graphs, and motion maps for different situations dealing with acceleration. Each group handled a different situation and we used the motion sensor to collect data for different parts of the experiment. For my group, we had an object going down a slope and then continuing for a flat portion. This consisted of us completing two different parts of the experiment with the ramp: the slope and the flat portions. We then had to construct the graphs using both parts of information and used a dotted line to show the separation of the two platforms.

On Tuesday, we practiced using our mouse-trap cars on the school floor surface, which can make a huge difference if your wheels don't provide enough grip to propel the car. I actually was the demonstrator for the class and had a great outcome with my car. I decided not to touch it anymore to avoid damage. Too much of a good thing is a bad thing. I was satisfied with my car and it propelled the whole three meters on the test-drive day. On Thursday we had our last assessment for the break, in which we had a group assessment. This meant that our group tables were able to work together and collaborate onto one sheet. Overall, the assessment went really well for our table. This unit can be a bit difficult because the graphs can get jumbled and confusing, but I thought we handled the test well.

And Friday was race day. I was excited, yet nervous because I had worked so hard on my car and I really wanted to watch it succeed. Unfortunately, as I was winding up my car, the fishing line broke on one side of the axel and I forgot to bring back up string. This meant that one of my strings would be shorter than the other, which would be an issue. However, I handled the situation well and made do with what I had to work with. Instead, I problem solved and make the longer string shorter. This meant that my car wouldn't be propelled as far, but I was hoping that it would at least get me to the three meter line. Although it didn't go much further, my car reached the three meter line despite the hardship. I'm actually really proud of myself looking back on it. Normally I would have been so stressed out, but I worked through it and made things work.

It's not just physics, it's improvement!

Week 14 Reflection

This week in physics we focused more on acceleration and an object's tendency to increase in velocity as it is free failing, due to only the Earth acting upon it (unbalanced force). On Monday, we went up to the roof of the school to observe how different objects fell and how long it took them to hit the ground. We dropped a bowling ball and a lacrosse ball at the exact time and it resulted in both balls hitting the grass at the same time. This is because the Earth was acting on both objects with the same gravitational pull despite their different weights. It was fun to get a fresh eye and witness physics in action outside of the classroom and the lab also demonstrated principals I had never though of before. For example, I would have thought that the bowling ball would have hit the ground first.

On Tuesday, we had our first assessment for the acceleration unit and I though it went really well for me. I understood that an object's velocity would continue to increase as it fell and I was able to use the quadratic equation accurately to calculate the final position and other missing pieces. I liked the fact that we were able to go over the questions on the assessment while having our paper in front of us to see where we went wrong and what we need to improve upon. Also, because we were grading our own, I was able to talk to my teacher and reach a better understanding than my words reflected on my assessment. This was helpful because I could show that I knew the material without having to come in to reassess due to a confusion of words on my paper.

At the end of the week, we began looking at velocity and acceleration arrows. We came to the conclusion that the closer the dots were to each other, the slower the object was traveling. And vice versa, the farther apart the dots were, the faster the velocity. The length demonstrates how fast the object was moving, while the arrow indicates the direction of the motion. Acceleration arrows tell how much and in which direction the velocity changes between the velocity arrows. There was also a demonstration in class of a line of girls traveling at both constant and unconstant velocities to come to a concensus about what the velocity arrows really represented.

And now off to my mouse-trap car!

Week 13 Reflection

This week in physics we continued to discover and study about unconstant velocities regarding both position vs. time graphs and velocity graphs. At the end of last week, we conducted an experiment with a car and ramp in which data was collected for the changing velocities and positions. The data was collected last week, but we ran out of time to debrief the lab, review, and understand its results. The force diagram for the car included the ramp pushing up, balancing the Earth pulling down, and the weight pulling to the right. This weight was considered the F(unbal), the unbalanced force, which meant that forces were not equal, and therefore would not be constant. The position vs. time graph swooped upward, indicating that the velocity was not constant, yet it increased as the time increased. The velocity graph showed that the speed was changing by the same amount each second, but was not a constant line like we are normally used to.

On Tuesday the class was challenged to to walk different position vs. time graphs and velocity graphs using meter sticks acting as the graph increments and a sensor at zero. Although we have walked graphs in the past, this was difficult for my group and the class as a whole. I'm still a bit confused because we didn't get to get through all the groups, but I'm sure I will have a better understanding after further explainations this coming week. Some moved in a positive direction and other in a negative direction and the position vs. velocity graphs confused me a bit. However, tonight I'm going to review my notes and try to come to a better understanding before class tomorrow.

Our class didn't meet on Wednesday due to a half day, so we were unable to complete the free fall lab from the top of the school, but we are doing it tomorrow. I'm excited to see the results from the experiment and get out of the class to experience physics in a real environment. It's nice to actually see what we're learning in action, rather than small examples in the classroom. I know that the old mobile devices that will be dropped will fall at an unconstant velocity due to only the Earth pulling on them, but I'm curious to see how long it actually takes for the object to hit the ground from the roof.

Wish us luck!
(P.S.- No pictures this week, but more to come after the lab!)

Week 12 Reflection

This week in physics we focused mainly on review material, which incorporated labs, class discussions, and whiteboarding activities. On Monday, we finished up our spaghetti bridges, which happened to be a success for the class as a whole. We then began flashing back to our first unit, Velocity, to continue our knowledge on position vs. time graphs, velocity graphs, writing equations, and analyzing the motion of different objects. It poses as a reminder that although we finished the unit and were already assessed on it, we still have to hold onto and apply the skills we learned as it pertains to other units.

We were given a worksheet on Google Drive to work on two days this week that included material that was already covered earlier in the year. In groups we worked on questions regarding constant velocities, calculating an objects weight (w=m*g), and drawing force diagrams for different situations. The following day we had a sub in class, but continued our work on the worksheets, whiteboarded our results, and shared with the class to come to a complete understanding. The worksheet personally went really well for me, but I did have to review some key concepts that I was a bit fuzzy on. We had an assessment on Friday on this material, and I felt that it went really well for me. Having the worksheet helped me a ton in reviewing for the assessment and I hope we use worksheets in the future to review.

In addition to reviewing and assessing, we also began a lab in which we used a car on a ramp with technology that recorded graphs of the position and velocity of our car. My group ended up receiving great, clear results that allowed us to interpret them with ease. For the position vs. time graph, the postion increased as the time increased, but they went up at a slope, indicating that the velocity was not constant. The velocity was actually changing by the same amount each second and continued to increase until the car came to a stop. We came to the conclusion that the car would continue to increase in velocity until it was stopped by an unbalanced force.

Until next week,
#TmPhys12

Week 11 Reflection (Spaghetti Bridge Project)

The task of the spaghetti bridge project was to construct a durable, effective bridge that was the lightest and strongest it could be. Oh, and it was to be made entirely of spaghetti noodles, hot glue, and tape. It was difficult for me to construct my bridge because in order for it to be able to hold more weight, itself had to have more mass. I found myself struggling a bit on deciding whether to make it heavier, but have it be able to him more mass, or make it lighter and have it carry less. I was unsure on what tactic to go for originally, but I feel as though my plan worked out well.

I decided to construct a more durable bridge, which consisted of more noodles and therefore mass. Although the bridge had to contain two levels for structural support, the top level wasn't to have any mass or cars driving on it, so it didn't have to be as sturdy as the bottom level. Mainly the top level was needed to keep the bridge from swaying back and forth and from tipping to the side. Don't want to lose any cars from the bridge flipping over. Because of this, I made the bottom level much beefier and used logs of spaghetti noodles glued at the ends to create the bottom half of the bridge. I then used logs going the opposite way to provide a place for the masses during the destruction test.

The results of my bridge turned out to be very successful and I was interested to witness how strong spaghetti noodles could actually be. I have to admit that in the beginning I was a bit skeptical of the project, but it turned out to be much more enjoyable than I originally thought. At times it could become frustrating due to the construction process, but it was also extremely rewarding to have such a great outcome from my hard work. It was exciting to destruct the bridges, but also sad to see our work completed.

Lesson learned: don't underestimate the power of spaghetti noodles.

Week 10 Reflection

In the beginning of the week, our class focused more on force pairs and the difference between them and objects with balanced forces. Force pairs consist of two forces that are equal in strength and opposite in direction. Non-force pairs are two objects pushed or pulled that become disconnected. For example, a hand pushing a swing is not a force pair because the swing leaves the force of the hand. However, force pairs remain connected. For example, if a weight is on a block that is dropped, the weight will remain connected to the block as it falls to the ground. Although they contain different weights, they are a force pair and their forces are equal in strength.

You would think that because one object has more weight, it would create more force and push/pull the other object away. But, if you make a force diagram for the two objects, you will find that they exert the same amount of force on one another. If two people are arm wrestling, the two people are going to exert different amounts of force based upon their strength, however, the force of the table on their elbows will make up for the lack of strength of one of the opponents. This then creates equal forces in opposite directions, which in definition represents a force pair.

The second half of the week we began reviewing for our assessment on Friday, which covered all of the standards regarding forces in Unit 6. One activity was using whiteboards in which groups had to represent each standard without using words, but with examples, symbols, ect. It was a great activity to review standards that were covered in the beginning of the unit that can sometimes get foggy for the assessment. In addition, the review sheet we received helped me tremendously in preparing and I could focus better on what I was struggling with by completing the sheet. I hope we do this again in the future.

Wish me luck on my spagetti bridge results!
#TmPhys12

Week 9 Reflection

This week in physics was a little mixed up because we didn't have school Tuesday for Election Day and we ended up taking our assessment from the previous week on Wednesday. However, we reviewed unbalanced forces, which the quiz consisted of, and also began exploring paired forces. Because our class was a bit confused overall on the unbalanced force standards, we spent all of Thursday after the quiz Wednesday whiteboarding and going over the correct processes. We reviewed how an object moves in the direction of the unbalanced force and how component forces create resultant forces. We continued to review force diagrams and how to create them from written situations.

I ended up doing really well on the assessment, but I am going to reassess a standard next week because I now understand it much better than before. I forgot the fact that on a ramp, because it is slanted, exerts a force on an angle, not straight up. The force is perpendicular to the ramp, so therefore the force either has to be at a northeast angle or northwest angle depending upon the direction of the ramp. The funny part is that throughout the test another similar question came up, but I completed that one correctly with the ramp angled on my force diagram. So I actually do have a good understanding of the concept, but I'm going to reassess to show my complete understanding this week.

On Friday we began discovering paired forces and used two force panels to introduce the idea. Emily and Donovan pushed the two force panels together, but even when one person exerted more force than the other, the forces on both the panels remained equal. The class then explored further with connected spring scales using mulitple experiments. It was concluded that the spring scales always exerted the same force on one another, but there were two different directions- positive and negative. The graph then looked the same, but was reflected over the x-axis. As we moved at a constant speed, the scales only bobbed up and down a little bit, but at an unconstant speed, they bopped much more frequently and at greater distances.

Until next week,
#TmPhys12

Week 8 Reflection

This week in physics we focused on unbalanced forces, component forces, resultant forces, and center of mass. We also worked on more extensive force diagrams when looking at more complex situations. We looked at the differences between and constant and inconstant velocities and how to tell them apart when looking at diagrams. It was conclude that forces have to be balanced in order to have a constant velocity. Therefore, unbalanced forces result in changing velocities. For example, a ball rising in a parabolic trajectory only has the Earth acting upon it in a downward motion, so the ball would not travel at a constant sped use to the unbalanced forces.

This week I also reassessed for the last assessment, which was my second time coming in to redo specific problems. After the class went over the answers on the assessment and the explanation behind them, I understood the act of balanced vs. unbalanced forces much better and was able to put it all together. Because I was able to reassess, I could show my teacher my new understanding of the topic, not just how I had done the first time. It makes me feel so much more relieved about my grade because I can constantly improve and my understanding increases. It's such a great opportunity to get kids to actually learn the material instead of doing poorly and choosing to disregard it.

I have to say that Thursday was probably the most fun I've had all year in physics. The lab with the four balancing girls was so interesting and exciting for the class. Four girls sat with their backs to another person in a square. The girls were told to lay on the person next to them a keep their feet straight and together. The chairs were then taken out from underneath the girls, yet the girls continued to stay in the same position due to the center of mass. Each girl was in control of part of their own mass and the mass of another person. Because each girl has the same forces, they were balanced. I still can't get over watching it, it was so cool. I hope to do more demonstrations like this in the future.

#TmPhys12

Week 7 Reflection

Over last weekend, we were challenged to create a mobile that would hang from the ceiling that would represent our life in multiple ways. The task was to use actual physical objects, construct four levels, and make sure each level was balanced. Needless to say, this was difficult and took some time as there were not set instructions or rules to follow. The hardest part was starting the project because absolutely nothing balanced at first. I found that creating a plan on paper didn't help me in balancing the objects; instead I just had to start experimenting with different objects and where they were placed on the wooden dowel. I found that even heavier objects could be balanced on the dowel with lighter objects by adjusting where the items where on the level. By creating some leverage, I could control the balance despite the weight of the object. This took a lot of time, but I struck with it and ended up having an awesome (and balanced!) project. I learned to focus on the process of creating it, not its finished product.

This week in physics we focused more on creating force diagrams, relating weight and mass, and doing labs to figure out these relationships. We completed the mass vs. weight lab buy measuring forces of different masses by using a spring scale. We came to the conclusion that generally the greater the mass, the greater the force it exerts. In addition to this lab, we also did a a spring lab, in which we measured the forces of different distances of the spring as it stretched. We had data that supported that the larger the stretch distance, the greater the force. It was also learned that the greater the slope, the greater the stench of the spring. All of these labs worked around forces and their relationships with different things.

Today (Friday) we took our first assessment on this unit and I thought it went pretty well for me. The most difficult part for me is the fact that not much studying can be done at home to prepare for them. They're based on the labs you completed in class and what you learned from them. Yes, I reviewed my notes, but you truly had to be present, both physically and mentally, to understand the tasks at hand. When you get to the assessment, you either know it or you don't. But even with this new type of assessment that I'm starting to get a bit more familiar with, I'm doing my best and it most definitely shows in the grade book.

Here's to achieving and striving to learn more.
#TmPhys12

Week 6 Reflection

This week in physics, we wrapped up unit 2 (velocity) and are now on to unit 6 (forces). On Monday we worked on the T-Bone Challenge, in which we had to position two cars and make them form a "T" when hitting. However, the most difficult part about the challenge was where to place the cars behind the specified tape lines. In order to figure this out, my group had to calculate the speed of both cars, as they had different velocities, measure the distance from the tape line to the tapped x, and figure out how the distance and speed correlated with each other. The first try we missed the target by barely an inch, but we nailed it the second time by repositioning our cars in order to create the "T" of the cars. This activity finished our first unit off.

On Tuesday, our class moved on to the forces unit and we began looking at the difference between mass, weight, and force. It was concluded that mass is when one object contains the total weight, such as muscle mass. Weight is the force exerted on an object. For example, your mass would be the weight of your total body mass, but your weight is the force you exert on the ground/chair/ect. In simplier terms, weight is the same thing as force. I had never really explored the difference between these terms and had no idea before learning it in this class. Everyone thinks they are synonymous, but they indeed are not.

Today (Friday), we began discovering the relation between mass and weight by measuring different masses and their forces using a "forceometer". It was concluded that the larger the mass used, the larger the force the object can exert. For example, a 500 gram mass can exert 5 newtons worth of force, and a 1000 gram mass can exert 10 newtons of force. Because of the delayed pep assembly, we weren't able to get much farther other than finding data, graphing, and equation, but I'm understanding the idea of the lab and the process of it. And as you know, it's all about the process, not the answer.

Signing out from TmPhys12

Week 5 Reflection

This week in physics, the focus was on velocity vs. time graphs, displacement, and matching different parts to explain the same situation. One activity completed in class was that each person received a piece of paper with either a word description, a motion map, position vs. time graph, or velocity vs. time graph. Groups of people held the same situation in their hands, but in different forms, and we were to find our group based upon our part of the equation. Although, there were a few mishaps with the groups, due to duplicates of one paper, the main idea was learned that you could take one part and create the others based upon the situation.

In addition, a lot of time was spent on completing a homework worksheet in class and reviewing/learning the information. We were challenged to try the worksheet, but it was difficult because he hadn't learned some of the information. This was a prime example of focusing on the process rather than the answer. Although I still have that intuition to panic when I don't understand something fully or am left alone to figure it out myself, I'm getting more comfortable that knowing my teacher will go over it and I will learn it. With the use of the Apple TV in class and documents at our disposal thanks to Google Drive, it's easier to learn because my teacher can actually show, rather than tell.

We had an assessment today (Friday) and I felt that it went really well. I feel as if everyone in my class spends more time complaining than trying to learn. Everyone seemed a bit discouraged after the assessment and found it difficult, but maybe if they stayed on task throughout the week, maybe they would understand the material, just maybe. Because of class issues, we weren't able to complete the T-Bone Challenge, which happened to play a role on one question of the assessment. Because I had thought about the challenge, even though it wasn't completed, I had an idea on what to do and I was able to think through the problem on paper for the assessment.

Overall, this class is going really well for me. By reviewing what we've done all week and going over my notes, cramming for assessments doesn't have to be done and I still feel prepared without studying late into the night. For my class, well... I think there should be a banner that says, "Sit down, shut up, and listen."

TmPhys12

Week 4 Reflection

This week in physics a lot of graphing work and discussion took place. Much time was taken to explain symbols for objects on our graph. For example, x represents position and the y-intercept represents the initial starting position. In addition, we also started looking at velocity and the difference between distance and displacement. Today in fact we started discovering the difference between distance and displacement and physically watching my teacher walk to describe displacement helped a ton with my understanding. It's one thing to look at it on a graph, but it's another to actually witness it in action. I've never felt that I've been a visual learner, although it never hurt, but in physics I feel that it clarifies many examples and clearly helps my understanding of the matter. I learn physics and aspects about myself. Cool, right?

On Wednesday we looked at a worksheet that discussed velocity verse time. In this particular problem the object's velocity was 2 meters for every 1 second. The object moving had a constant speed of 2m/1s for an overall time of 4 seconds. Therefore, on the graph it represented a horizontal line at a velocity of 2 meters and continued from 0 seconds to 4 seconds. I understood that the velocity was constant for all 4 seconds, but I didn't understand how the velocity was already at 2 meters when 0 seconds had passed. However, its was explained to me that it didn't represent position and meant that from 0 seconds to 1 second the object traveled 2 meters. Speed is very much different than position.

One of the primarly things I love about my physics class is that everything that we complete gets explained. And if we don't have time, we make time. We don't focus on rushing through topics just to get through them; our main focus is to understand the material, even if that means we spend more time on them than planned. For example, my teacher planned for us to have a practice assessment today, but because our discussion needed additional time, the assessment would have to wait. He didn't try to cut our time to understand as a group, which would ultimately result in lower scores on the assessment. It's nice to know that my teacher actually cares about your learning and not just the grade.

It's not about the answer; it's about the process.
TmPhys12

Week 3 Reflection

This week in physics a lot of progress was made for me personally. I feel as if my level of understanding of the thought process is improving and I'm starting to focus more on the process of a situation rather than the final answer. This is the first class I've had that is based upon pysical experiences, so I still have to get used to it, but I'm learning information, not just memorizing it. For example, I class each group drew graphs of position (m) vs. time (s), exchanged boards, and physically walked the direction of the movements using yard sticks on the ground representing the graph. There were no notes taken and a lecture wasn't present; the whole exercise was to discover and learn by ourselves, with of course assistance from our teacher.

It was announced on Monday that we were to have an assessment the Friday of this week. I'm not going to lie, at first I was a bit apprehensive about it because there weren't many notes to study and I couldn't just memorize information in order to do well on the test. Physics is a skill-based subject and that's exactly how the assessment went. Memorization was not key to do well on this test; to do well on the test you had to be present and involved in class. I personally am used to going home and over-studying many nights before the assessment, but for this class I found myself reviewing the processes we discovered in class and not much else could be done. This was some what relieving for me, but also a bit scary.

A huge aspect of this class that has helped me is the use of Google Drive. As long as I have my phone I can have all of the class documents, worksheets, and keys with me. This is so incredibly helpful. In preparation for the assessment, I re-did and worksheet, which was posted on Google Drive for our use, and was able to check it and learn from the key posted as well. Because we don't have written homework for this class, there weren't any written worksheets I could study, so this source helped a ton in preparing.

This class is an opportunity to not only learn, but to grow.
Physics 2012 - Challenge Accepted.

Week 2 Reflection

To start off, this week in physics I have discovered that I need to develop a new way of thinking and learning to be successful in this class. I'm normally used to reading the book, studying extremely hard for the test, getting an A on the test, and then slowly losing what I have learned over the next following weeks. However, physics is different. It's a more hands on subject that builds on the knowledge you should have already aquired. It's not necessarily based upon memorization, but rather personal experiences and experiments. This is something that I personally am going to need to get used to, but as we say in physics, challenge accepted.

In this past week I have also learned a ton about setting up an experiement properly, getting results, and analyzing those results to uderstand why we proposed the experiement in the first place. I find that using the whiteboards is extremely useful in expressing ideas in my head and for making mistakes. There have been times when my group has had difficult graphing or has made a mistake in using mathmatical techniques that weren't needed. But because we are using a bigger space to put down these ideas, it's easier to disect the problem and get assistance from my teacher. In addition, we're a group and we learn together through our mistakes.

I know this sounds basic and a bit corny, but physics has to do a lot with thinking, problem solving, and also problem shooting. For example, in the buggy challenge outside of the school, there were many possible ways to calculate results, but which one was the best? Even after completing the experiment, I'm not quite sure. Do you measure the distance the car goes in 1 second and quadruple it? Or do you find the distance the car goes in 4 seconds? Which one is more accurate? This is the process that confuses me, yet interests me. This is something that I hope to master this year.

So long until next week.
TmPhys12

Week 1 Reflection

My first week of physics with my current teacher consisted of one day, but just in that 49 minute class period, I enjoyed myself more than I have in two days with my previous teacher. My previous teacher was erratic, confusing, and plainly boring. And frankly, I would be ok with that if he taught me the information I needed. However, us students were given homework without actually being taught the material. Needless to say, I requested a different teacher for physics and that's how I ended up here actually enjoying myself.

And in the 24 hour class change, my perspective on physics erratically altered. Due to my previous teacher, I was confused and ultimately worried about physics because I knew absolutely nothing. But on the first day in my new class last Friday, the first thing told to me was "It's not about the answer, it's about the process." No teacher has ever shed light on this issue as my current teacher has and I've learned that it's not about always being perfect, but the journey that leads us to success. Being a perfectionist myself, actually being told this is relieving and refreshing. This caught my attention. I'm already learning things about myself and my habits one day into the class... impressive.

Going into the weekend, I was much more positive about my learning in physics and felt much more relaxed about the year. And to think that one good teacher could do this to you: make you feel involved, significant, and relieved for the road ahead. "You must be present to win." No, you're not going to be perfect or have the right answers 100 percent of the time, but if you're learning, you're winning. Based on what I've been presented with so far, I'm excited to see how much I'm going to grow personally and intellectually throughout the year. Physics 2012? Challenge accepted.