TAP-Teachers,
This
is a reminder that our last meeting will be on December 12th at
J.D. Garcia’s home. We will have the usual 8:30 a.m. start time, with potluck
breakfast. I’ll send out directions closer to the meeting date.
We
have as a speaker for that date the Tucson Amateur Astronomy Association, which
I’m sure many of you know is very active in Tucson. I was contacted by Dr. Jim
Heasley, who is retired from the University of Hawaii Astronomy Department. Jim
was very involved in educational outreach at U of Hawaii, and the TAAA has
helped lots of high schools in the area with astronomy clubs and observing nights.
Jim
and two of his colleagues will give a presentation on what TAAA can offer to
teachers, and I think it will be super useful for teachers looking for an
outside speaker for a lecture or observing night, or for a series of events or
class activities. The group has an incredible array of expertise and
willingness to work with schools, and the astronomers in the group have some
ridiculously amazing equipment.
And
they really want to work with teachers and schools.
Some
notes from our last meeting, which was already over a week ago:
We
had some good discussions about flipped or partially flipped classrooms. I
showed the smartPhysics/flippit set of prelectures that have worked well for us
at Pima. Website is smartphysics.com or flipitphysics.com, for calc-based or
algebra-based respectively. The cost is a concern for high schools. I played
around on the site, but they don’t have a lot of information, and you really have
to call them for high school adoption. Try this
page for the number and information about getting a sample. You can
register as an instructor easily at the flipit site, then you can view the
prelectures.
Chris
Ubing showed the I/O lab cart that he has been working with, which is also
supported by Macmillan/smartphysics. You can go to the smartphsyics site to see
the I/O labs. They are designed to be done at home or at a distance, but the
cart itself is an inexpensive way to do a lot of labs – it has all the sensors
built in, and couples with a labtop or ipad easily. Look here
for details.
Lisa
Volkening gave a quick overview of a system that she uses, and I didn’t write
down the name, I’m sorry. She makes Kahn Academy-style videos that explain
parts of her class. Her cat appears occasionally. I’m sorry I don’t have more
information, but the videos are available on youtube, and you could search on
Lisa Volkening. Or email her: lisa.volkening@tusd1.org.
Lynne
Gillette showed a nice lab activity that doesn’t take much equipment. By
measuring the Brewster angle using a polarizer and a reflection from a
whiteboard or anything really, students can calculate the index of refraction
of that material. I should have that handout, but don’t; Lynne will be happy to
email it to you: lmgillette@pima.edu.
Dave
Katz recommended some gem show sites – the physical kind of sites. He said to
look around St. Mary’s Road and Oracle for vendors that sell meteorites and
fossils and will usually give a discount to teachers.
Fritz
was absent, so you get a break in your reading assignment.
Thanks
to all who attended, and I hope to see everyone at our next meeting, December
12th.
Karie
