Next Meeting and Last Meeting's Notes

TAP-Teachers,

This is a reminder that our last meeting will be on December 12^th 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 12^th.

Karie