Jim+Physics+9+Plans

We have been studying "Living Matter" (biology) so I will probably try to segue into physics by asking students what they know about the Sun. Given that sunlight is essential for both warmth and photosynthesis, this seems like a nice connection to make between the disciplines. I will keep their "what I know about sunlight" reflections for comparison with whatever knowledge they are able to develop at the end of the year. I may also note the big theme of cycles and periodicity in the Nature (the tides, waking and sleeping, carbon and water cycles, etc.) which can be linked to the concept of periodic motion in physics.

Possible history lecture: Leeunhoek, Galileo, and Priestly all used lenses to make famous discoveries (microbes, the moons of Jupiter, and oxygen through the heating of cinnabar with a magnifying lens!)

A few YouTube videos to motivate big ideas: Any on the list at this wiki are possibilities--students could even vote on which they want to see!

Exploration of lenses, prisms, color, polarizing film, sight, and optical illusion. Show students how to make two lenses work as a telescope, and how to use a single lens to project an image. Students might be challenged to imagine machines or devices that might use these materials.

I will probably give students a list of "big ideas" that I expect them to know well by the end of the year. Perhaps I will divide this into "core and options". I will also let them know that they will be expected to do a controlled experiment, as well as engage in a design challenge.

My thoughts on "unit titles" for 12 weeks are //Conceptual Models// (Waves and Rays), //Controlled Experiments// (with mathematical relationships between variables), //Design Challenges.//

Categories of Assignments
Understanding Models and Making Predictions (including Mathematical Problem Solving)

Controlled Experiments

Design Challenges

World Issues