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Free-body Diagram with Nearpod

big idea
Physicists use free-body diagrams to model the forces exerted on a macroscopic object.
Learning Objective
Students will be able to (SWABT) apply free-body diagrams to model the forces exerted on macroscopic objects in word problems.
NGSS Standard
HS-PS2-1: Analyze data to support the claim that Newton’s second law of motion describes the mathematical relationship among the net force on a macroscopic object, its mass and its acceleration.
Develop Understanding Through video clip
Guiding Question – embedded in the nearpod lesson
[01:22] What are 3 forces acting on the book? What are their directions?
[02:41] Is this a free diagram of the book?
[04:19] What is the force missing in this free body diagram?
[05:32] Is this the correct free body diagram of the cannon ball?
assessment – Practice problem
A book is at rest on a tabletop. Diagram the forces acting on the book
An egg is free-falling from a nest in a tree. Neglect air resistance. Draw a free-body diagram showing the forces involved.
A flying squirrel is gliding(no wing flaps) from a tree to the ground at constant velocity. Consider air resistance. A free-body diagram fro this squirrel looks like …
A rightward force is applied to a book at rest, in order to move it across a desk. Consider frictional forces. Neglect air resistance. Construct a free-body diagram for the book.
A skydiver is falling with a constant velocity. Consider air resistance. Draw a free-body diagram for the skydiver.
Nearpod Integration
Video clip with guided questions: used the Nearpod video editor to embed the questions in the video, and students will answer the questions to deepen their understanding while watching the video.
Practice problems with the drawing function: used the Nearpod drawing function to allow students to draw their FBDs after each question. I could monitor the progress of each student and provide immediate feedback to them. I also usually share sample works from students to promote collaborations in the classroom. I usually use the anonymous mode to avoid embarrassing the students.
Bloom’s taxonomy applied in the activity

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Redshift and the Expanding Universe

big idea
Redshift is a piece of astronomical evidence that supports the Big Bang Theory.
Learning Objective
Students will be able to (SWABT) write a response to compare Redshift/Blueshift with other focal concepts ( frequency, wavelength) using a Frayer Graphic Organizer based on the online reading material.
Students will be able to (SWABT) create an explanation in a written response of the Big Band Theory by analyzing the explanation and evidence from an explanatory scientific article
NGSS Standard
HS-ESS1-2: Construct an explanation of the Big Bang Theory based on astronomical evidence, motion of distant galaxies, and composition of matter in the universe.
HS-PS4-5: Communicate technical information about how some technological devices use the principles of wave behavior and wave interactions with matter to transmit and capture information and energy.
Develop Understanding Through Reading
•http://coolcosmos.ipac.caltech.edu/cosmic_classroom/cosmic_reference/redshift.html
model Read-aloud
In this lesson, I modeled read-aloud for the whole group for the first paragraph as the comments shown above. Then, I instructed the students to continue read-aloud in pairs and annotate the passage for the rest of the article .
Deepen the understanding by comparing concepts using a frayer-model graphical organizer
assessment
Frayer Model Graphic Organizer – The teacher will grade the organizer by completion, mark out the misinformation and identify the potential learning opportunities from the student work.
An Exit Slip: Students will write an exit slip to explain the relationship between redshift and the Big Band Theory, and at least one question.

Bloom’s taxonomy applied in the activity

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Wave-Particle Duality of Light

Big Idea
Light exhibits the properties of wave and particle.
NGSS STANDARD
HS-PS4-3: Evaluate the claims, evidence, and reasoning behind the idea that electromagnetic radiation can be described either by wave model or a particle model, and that for some situations one model is more useful than the other.
Start the lesson with an overarching question(puzzlement):
How do the wave model and particle model explain the wave behaviors?
How do scientists debate and argue about the nature of the light with the discovery of evidence?

Develop Understanding through Video clips
Andrea McDonough Reviewer: Bedirhan CinarYou look down and see a yellow pencil lying on your desk. Your eyes, and then your brain, are collecting all sorts of information about the pencil: its size, color, shape, distance, and more. But, how exactly does this happen? The ancient Greeks were the first to think more or less scientifically about what light is and how vision works. Some Greek philosophers, including Plato and Pythagoras, thought that light originated in our eyes and that vision happened when little, invisible probes were sent to gather information about far-away objects. It took over a thousand years before the Arab scientist, Alhazen, figured out that the old, Greek theory of light couldn’t be right. In Alhazen’s picture, your eyes don’t send out invisible, intelligence-gathering probes, they simply collect the light that falls into them. Alhazen’s theory accounts for a fact that the Greek’s couldn’t easily explain: why it gets dark sometimes. The idea is that very few objects actually emit their own light. The special, light-emitting objects, like the sun or a lightbulb, are known as sources of light. Most of the things we see, like that pencil on your desk, are simply reflecting light from a source other than producing their own. So, when you look at your pencil, the light that hits your eye actually originated at the sun and has traveled millions of miles across empty space before bouncing off the pencil and into your eye, which is pretty cool when you think about it. But, what exactly is the stuff that is emitted from the sun and how do we see it? Is it a particle, like atoms, or is it a wave, like ripples on the surface of a pond? Scientists in the modern era would spend a couple of hundred years figuring out the answer to this question. Isaac Newton was one of the earliest. Newton believed that light is made up of tiny, atom-like particles, which he called corpuscles. Using this assumption, he was able to explain some properties of light. For example, refraction, which is how a beam of light appears to bend as it passes from air into water. But, in science, even geniuses sometimes get things wrong. In the 19th century, long after Newton died, scientists did a series of experiments that clearly showed that light can’t be made up of tiny, atom-like particles. For one thing, two beams of light that cross paths don’t interact with each other at all. If light were made of tiny, solid balls, then you would expect that some of the particles from Beam A would crash into some of the particles from Beam B.If that happened, the two particles involved in the collision would bounce off in random directions. But, that doesn’t happen. The beams of the light pass right through each other as you can check for yourself with two laser pointers and some chalk dust. For another thing, light makes interference patterns. Interference patterns are the complicated undulations that happen when two wave patterns occupy the same space. They can be seen when two objects disturb the surface of a still pond, and also when two point-like sources of light are placed near each other. Only waves make interference patterns, particles don’t. And, as a bonus, understanding that light acts like a wave leads naturally to an explanation of what color is and why that pencil looks yellow. So, it’s settled then, light is a wave, right? Not so fast! In the 20th century, scientists did experiments that appear to show light acting like a particle. For instance, when you shine light on a metal, the light transfers its energy to the atoms in the metal in discrete packets called quanta. But, we can’t just forget about properties like interference, either. So these quanta of light aren’t at all like the tiny, hard spheres Newton imagined. This result, that light sometimes behaves like a particle and sometimes behaves like a wave, led to a revolutionary new physics theory called quantum mechanics. So, after all, that, let’s go back to the question, “What is light?”Well, light isn’t really like anything we’re used to dealing with in our everyday lives. Sometimes it behaves like a particle and other times it behaves like a wave, but it isn’t exactly like either.
comprehend wave-particle duality in small groups

I divided the whole class into six different groups. Each group would answer one text-based(video) question and one open-ended question. They would also pick a present to prepare for a whole group presentation on behalf of the team.

Group 1:

  • Is light a particle or a wave? What did the video say?
  • How would you the toy car and flashlight activity to explain the wave model? (In the previous lesson, we did an activity to compare and contrast the similarities and differences between the scenario when two cars encountered each other and the scenario when two beams of light met each other.)

Group 2:

  • What was the phenomenon that Newton successfully explained using the claim that light was a corpuscle?
  • How would you use Newton’s theory to explain reflection?

Group 3:

  • What evidence disproved Newton’s argument and resulted in a wave model of light?

Group 4:

  • How did the scientists in the early 20th century explain the phenomenon that when you shine light on a metal, the light transfers energy to the atoms in the metal in discrete packets?
  • How could you paraphrase it if you describe it to your parents? (Can be in Spanish)

Group 5:

  • Why did the presenter say, “in science, even geniuses sometimes get things wrong?”
  • If you had a chance to ask a question to Newton, what would you ask?

Group 6:

  • Why do you think it took about a century before some scientists successfully challenged Newton’s theory?
  • What are some measures that we could take to improve the process today?

exit ticket

3-2-1 Exit ticket:

3 – things you learned from other groups’ presentation

2 – things you wanted to learn more about

1 – question you would like to explore more

How does this literacy lesson fit in the 5e model?

I used this lesson as an ENGAGING activity in the 5E model. Students gained an initial impression of the wave model and the particle model. Then, the students would EXPLORE simulations and collect data on wave interference. In the EXPLAIN phase, students would conclude the superposition principle of waves by comparing the behaviors of constructive and destructive interferences. We did not have the time to enact the ELABORATE phase due to school closure, but I envision that students may apply the principles to explain engineering designs such as noise-canceling headsets and create brochures to help their communities to understand the physics behind these devices as their final EVALUATION.

BLOOM’S TAXONOMY APPLIED IN THE ACTIVITY
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Newton’s 2nd Law of Motion

Learning Task: analyze the video clip by writing observations and asking questions
General Graphic Organizer to support group activity

I found in my teaching practices that proving such graphic organizers with list of tasks will improve the quality of the talk in small breakout rooms, especially in virtual classrooms.

Scaffolding ELs and students with special learning needs

In addition to the guiding questions, I selected several snapshots from the video for the students to focus on. I also provided sentence starters for the students to learn to organize their language.

Not the end
By the end of the lesson series, we revisited the video and rewrote the observations and claims here using specific academic vocabulary.
Disaggregate instruction pedagogy

I was inspired by the disaggregated instruction pedagogy proposed in Science in the city by Dr. Brown when designing this learning activity. I tried to provide opportunities for our students to talk about the phenomenon using their own words, build up the understanding of physics concepts through their own ‘language,’ and allow them to practice the academic language after mastering the conceptual understanding.

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Sound waves

Big Idea
Sound is a longitudinal wave.
Start the lesson with an overarching question(puzzlement):
How does the hearing system work?
Develop vocabulary through Reading
Learn to paraphrase the article

Students were supposed to read the short article in pairs and paraphrase the article into bullet points.

Practice Problems – Take-home project

Make your own instrument

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Vector Analysis

Big Idea
Vectors are quantities with both magnitudes(sizes) and direction. Scalars are quantities with only magnitudes(sizes).
Start the lesson with an overarching question(puzzlement):
Ms. Yuan starts from WAPHS and she drives for 10 miles on the I10 freeway, where is she now?
Develop vocabulary through real-world mission
What are the differences and similarities between Ms.Yuan driving to LA Zoo and LAPD’s helicopter flying to LA Zoo?
Summarize Vocabs into Tables/Graphic Organizers
Practice Problems
Given a map and scenario, try to evaluate the statements about distance, displacement, velocity and speed.
Vector calculation
Supporting Materials

Phet Simulation

Archery Mini-games

https://www.minigames.com/games/archery-world-tour

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Capstone Project – Integrating Animation in Physics

Problem of Practice

How to promote creativity in a remote classroom by using technology? How to encourage students to discover the connections and applications of content knowledge in daily activities?

Rossier Mission alignment
  • Improve learning opportunities and outcomes by engaging students in higher-order thinkings that involves creativity and critical thinking
    • Create a short animation by applying the knowledge of motion and forces
    • Evaluate the commercial animations and degree of reality by examining the physics behind the motion

Address disparities that affect historically marginalized groups by emerging the students in high-tech low-cost engineering projects

  • Value the student’s choices and voices of project ideas
  • Using student creations to overcome the technology gaps that are complicated by the remote learning environment
  • Engage students in authentic experiences that foster college and career readiness
Peer-reviewed Research papers and connections

  Chai, G. (2011). Physics for Animation Artists. The Physics Teacher, 49(8), 478–480. https://doi.org/10.1119/1.3651727

“Unfortunately, at present there is little overlap between art and science in the typical high school or college curriculum. This article describes our experience in bridging this gap at San Jose State University, with the hope that readers will find ideas that can be used in their own schools.”

Nearly two-thirds of the high school students disagreed with the statement, “The subject of physics has little relation to what I experience in the real world” and that increased to 96% for graduating college seniors. For both groups, about 85% of these art students agreed with the statement, “Nearly everyone is capable of understanding physics if they work at it.” One student from Art/Physics 123 wrote, “I love how the class puts a rationalization to the physical world. It gives me extra ways to understand things when I animate. Allowing me to make things more convincing or by informing myself. I can make decisions on how I want something to look.”

Ryu, Z. (2020). Fluid Mechanics Education Using Japanese Anime: Examples from “Castle in the Sky” by Hayao Miyazaki. The Physics Teacher, 58(4), 230–233. https://doi.org/10.1119/1.5145464

Bringing visual pop culture into the classroom can help to create a common experience among students that can then be used as an anchor for learning key concepts while connecting with students’ interests and increasing engagement.2 Animation can be useful for teaching physics, because although animation generally reflects reality, it is less constrained by reality than is live-action media, and this potential for separation from reality provides opportunities to test the extent to which principles of physics are bent in the “world” of the animated characters.

Action Plan
  • Animation Background Survey
  • Introduction to Animation – History of Animation
  • Rank the most Physics realistic animation activity
  • Discussion: Do animations need to follow physics principles? If yes, why? If not, why not? If in between, tell us where is the best?
  • Student work [Check out resources]
    • Create (Modify) the program to simulate the projectile motion of a kick
      • Extra challenge: simulate the ball bouncing up and forward when hitting the ground
      • Evaluate a scene (or a clip) in an animation or a movie and determine whether the motions of the characters follow the physics principles. If not, explain what the real one should be like. The student should also evaluate whether the unrealistic scene is a successful artistic design.
  • Post survey
Data Analysis
  • Concept of “Time” – every Physics teacher struggles, but students believe it is most important!
  • “Common experiences” -20% more submission than motion writing homework, and incorporating academic vocabularies in the writing
  • Higher average grades in solving word problems
  • Best moment – “I like your animation lesson!”
  • Most of the students were able to identify unrealistic animations but struggled to find the most accurate one in Physics.
  • Students who need additional instructional support did not participate in the activities much.
Conclusions
  • Animations and motion movies provide a visual and real-world  context for students to understand complex word problems
  • We could learn our students better in the authentic problem-solving context. Most of the students were willing to share their opinions and took risks to solve complex problems when it came to their familiar topics. It especially worked for medium performing students. However, pop culture may become a ‘cultural tax’ for students who are not familiar with them. 
  • Opportunities to pre-assess the student background knowledge and anchoring phenomenon to create the storyline
  • Future studies: How could we approach the students who think such activities are ‘extra work?’