Strand 1. Know, use, and interpret scientific explanations of the natural world

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Strands of Science Proficiency

• In the moon paper we constructed, we had to observe and explain different aspects of the moon.

• We learned how to explain the phases of the moon, as well as light, temperature, and motion.

• While we were learning about the pinhole, we learned how to explain the phenomena scientifically. We learned the proper terms to use. We learned to say light travels in straight lines and some light rays bounce off the object.

• Physics 111 not only gives students knowledge of scientific explanations of the natural world, but allows the student to create, use and interpret during the lessons. An example is light phenomena; students were to decide what the powerful ideas were and how to use these ideas to explain natural occurrences (like pinhole cameras).

• In our light exploration, we began by generating our own ideas about the concept of light and then shared them with our group members and entire class. All of those ideas helped us think more critically when we did the basketball and pinhole activities. We used those activities and group discussions to develop possible reasons why that was happening, and got the ray diagram and the powerful ideas of light our out of it. The powerful ideas about light are useful in the real world, which we learned in our moon exploration.

• We demonstrated this proficiency by teaching a friend about what we learned in class. We are showing that we know the concepts well enough to explain it to someone else.

• Learning about the phases of the moon is an example of a student using their prior knowledge from viewing how the moon phases appear in the sky over roughly a 28 day cycle. By having students use their knowledge and making new observations, collecting data and forming questions of what they predict they will see over the next few days, helps students gain a clearer understanding of the natural world. Teaching students about the pinhole camera is another example of having the students demonstrate a concept that they already know some information about light and shadows, while allowing them to dive deeper into the concept to form a new understanding of how light travels.

• The moon is a perfect example of this proficiency because the moon is part of the natural world; we have observed and interpreted the moon throughout the term and have discovered reasons for certain phenomena. Some of this phenomenon includes: moon phases, position in the sky, and angles between the moon and the sun.