AP Physics: Intro to Energy

Students measured the average force and the displacement required to give a cart the same change in height on several different ramps. They sketched the force vs. displacement graphs, which I used to introduce gravitational potential energy and work.

Physics: 3rd Law

We ran out of time to hit Newton’s 3rd Law during last tri’s unit on balanced forces, so today we dove in. I showed students a pair of carts, then asked them to draw interaction diagrams and free body diagrams for various collisions, as well as to predict which cart will experience a larger force. One group gave me a hard time about how deadpan I was when they asked if their prediction was right, so we talked a little about Clever Hans the Math Horse.

Chemistry Essentials: CER

As part of the follow-up on yesterday’s lab, I introduced students to the CER framework. I had students identify the claim and evidence in a car commercial, then come up with some potential reasoning for the evidence before they started a CER on whether the mass of steel wool should change.