Story Telling in Physics

NCNAAPT November 3rd, 2012, Sierra College



There are many times during the year that I use the art of storytelling to captivate my students. Setting up a problem or sharing the history of a discovery can be as interesting as the phenomenn itself.

Powerpoint accompanying talk is available here.
Most curriculum resources are available here.  

I have use the book "The Pluto Files" by Neil deGrasse Tyson for several years now as part of my Astronomy curriculum. deGrasse Tyson is a great story teller. All of the material is available here:  
The Pluto Files Curriculum

Exploratorium news story

I was mentioned in a ABC 7 news Story about the Exploratorium's Teacher Institute. I would not be the teacher I am today if it was not for the Teacher Institute.

Review Strategies for Physics

NCNAAPT April 21st, 2012, Lake Tahoe Community College
 
I presented a workshop with more of a Physics focus on review strategies for NCNAAPT.

Workshop handout available here as a word document.
Accompanying workshop powerpoint available as a pdf or as a powerpoint
Blank Jeopardy template available here
Bree's YouTube Channel: www.YouTube.com/MsBarnett

Review Strategies

Exploratorium New Teacher Institute March 24th, 2012
Presented with Maria Kapadia





There are many different ways to review content with students. The ideas shared include quick end of class review games or larger review projects.

Workshop handout available here.
Accompanying workshop powerpoint available here as a pdf or as a powerpoint.
Bree's YouTube Channel: www.YouTube.com/MsBarnett
Maria Kapadia: maria.kapadia@yahoo.com
Feel free to email either one of us for more information on any. You can also ask for pictures or descriptions.

Calendar Pacing (Backwards Planning)

Exploratorium New Teacher Institute September 24, 2011
Presented with Steve Miller

Here is the power point following the General Guidelines sheet is available as a pdf.
Sample templates are available altogether as a pdf or doc. Downloading the templates to word may be easiest.
The website CalendarsThatWork.com has free printable calendars like this one for the current school year.
Bree's sample lesson plan including color coding, etc.
Generic Video questions for emergency substitute plans.
Sample Guided Reading assignment as a pdf or doc (students read the accompanying pages while filling in the worksheet) and the accompanying pages to give you an idea.

Conceptual Physics Strategies

NCNAAPT April 23rd, 2011 at the Exploratorium
Presented with Jon Brix

Jon and I discussed several strategies that we employ in our Conceptual Physics classrooms. There are several links to resources below:

The full powerpoint is available here as a pdf and a summary as a doc.
An example of a Guided Reading homework assignment is available here as well as several more on my calendar.
Project examples are available on my website.
GUESS and equation triangle instructions available here.

Probably the most important piece of advice Jon and I have is that you must have patience when teaching Conceptual Physics to freshmen. Both with them as they are younger students that still need to be taught basic study skills most of the time; and with yourself as you must use several different teaching strategies. Conceptual Physics can be very rewarding but also requires a fair amount of prep in order to continuously assess their understanding and adjust plans as needed. Please feel free to contact us with any questions and we plan to continue to bring workshops and discussions about Conceptual Physics to NCNAAPT meetings.

Blinky Lights Lab Qualitative Analysis

I've often used "blinky lights" in my classroom which are actually Inova Microlights with LEDs. They have a "dim" function that is done by blinking off and on 100 times in a second. These activities were first introduced to me in the New Teacher Institute at the Exploratorium in San Francisco, CA.

The lab that I used this year involved students completing 8 different activities that we photographed and then uploaded. This year I ran two cameras so that I was able to download quickly. They were able to analyze their photos once they were posted here on my website from laptops. There were 20 questions about the photos that they qualitatively answered in complete sentences. If you worry about time, you can use stock photos or have them work on another activity until the photos are shared.