Overview of Course:

In my class, students will learn to develop hypotheses, design testing experiments, and build functional models as they investigate phenomena of the universe around them. I closely follow a teaching philosophy known as ISLE (Investigative Science Learning Environment) in my teaching, which largely means that students will be developing the same skills as an authentic physicist as they take control of their own learning, rather than simply being lectured information which can be fairly common in more traditional physics classrooms. Generally, this makes for an environment that can seem a bit more challenging or work heavy, but ultimately makes for a more productive and rewarding experience as students become expert physicists themselves. I look forward to working with students as we go on this journey together!

Classroom Expectations:

→ One mic rule: Be mindful of when classmates are talking, give them your attention and wait to speak until they are finished.

→ Be respectful towards fellow students' ideas. In the physics classroom, all ideas are welcome! This is a mistake-rich environment, and it is very important that we become comfortable being wrong or disagreeing with one another.

→ Take care of classroom equipment. Follow the individual instructions for each piece of equipment and return the equipment when finished.

→ Be ready for class and complete work ontime. I am very willing to make accommodations provided you are communicating and giving a sincere effort. 

Course Materials

→ This class involves a lot of new equipment as we investigate phenomena, but this will largely be provided in class. We will learn how to use this equipment as it becomes relevant to us.

→ You will be expected to bring your charged chromebook to class everyday! Nearly every assignment, announcement, etc is done through Google Classroom.

→ Folder & notebook (or binder) specifically for physics

→ If there is anything that I ask you to bring in, it will be cheap and accessible (such as toilet paper tubes, toothpicks, etc.) and, of course, if you have difficulty gathering these items for any reason, then we can make any necessary accommodations.  

Unit Overview:

This class will be a mix of both group work and individual work. Be prepared to communicate with group members as you work your way through designing experiments and developing models, and be prepared for individual assignments where you may have to demonstrate your own understanding of the material.

We will likely cover the following units:

• Scientific Investigation
• Kinematics
• Dynamics
• Momentum
• Energy
• Waves
• Electromagnetism