My first year of teaching Physics, we did not include momentum-impulse. Second year Physics, we briefly went through impulse quickly. This year, we had an actual unit and went through it. The wonderful Mrs. F brilliantly created some templates for students to work through some of these word problems. When I was in high school learning Physics, I was confused about the givens especially for initial and final situations. The algorithm of mathematics was easy, but comprehending and making sense of the word problems was the difficult part.
Because of the scaffolding Mrs. F created, the students were able to make sense of the problem and show it in multiple ways. They graphed mass-velocity graphs. They filled out a template. They showed their algebra. It’s all very brilliant.
Momentum-Impulse Schedule:
- Day 1: Invention Task, WB Battles, Practice 1
- Day 2: WB Practice 1, Discussion 1, Activity 2
- Day 3: Quiz 1, WB Activity 2, Practice 2
- Day 4: Questions- Practice 2, WB Practice 3, Egg Drop
- Day 5: WB Practice 3, Car Crashes, Impulse-Momentum
- Day 6: Review Momentum-Impulse & start Energy Unit
Learning with Ms. Medrano 