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Hi

I would like recommendations for a Physics that are fun and creative...

but not simplified, and with as much math as possible.

This is for a high school kid who loves math and would love science if it could be more fun.

We are plugging along with ABeka and there are no struggles--but there is no excitement

either.

Any supplements/curriculum/online classes/fun programs/contests that you know of?

Thanks in advance!

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Have you looked at these online labs? Many of them allow the student to do some "what if?" explorations without danger of actually blowing things up. He could simply play with the simulations, or you (or his dad) could assign more formal work, possibly using some of the resources posted by other teachers.

 

http://phet.colorado.edu/en/simulations/category/physics

 

You might also consider Kinetic Books -- a digital textbook, which has many interactive components, some of which might be called fun.

 

http://www.perfectionhighered.com/prodPages/kb_stud_phys.html

 

In addition to the text itself, there is a separate virtual labs component which also contains some fun elements.

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Here's a list of physics related resources that I've kept over the years. Maybe you'll find something that will spice up the course some:

Physics and the Art of Dance: Understanding Movement

Introductory Physics with Algebra as a Second Language: Mastering Problem Solving

The Science of Star Wars: An Astrophysicist's Independent Examination of Space Travel, Aliens, Planets and Robots as Portrayed in the Star Wars Films and Books

Amusement Park Physics

Theme Park Design: Behind the Scene with an Engineer

Building a Better Mouse: The Story of the Electronic Imagineers Who Designed Epcot

Walt Disney Imagineering: A Behind the Dreams Look at Making More Magic Real

The Imagineering Workout: Exercises to Shape Your Creative Muscles

The Imagineering Way: Ideas to Ignite Your Creativity

Hands on Physics Activities with Real Life Applications: Easy to Use Labs and Demonstrations for Grades 8-12

The New Cool: A Visionary Teacher, His FIRST Robotics Team, and the Ultimate Battle of Smarts

1800 Mechanical Movements, Devices and Appliances

Basic Machines and How They Work

Bicycling Science

The Bicycling Guide to Complete Maintainance & Repair

Making Things Move DIY Mechanisms for Inventors, Hobbyists and Artists

Unscrewed: Salvage and Reuse Motors, Gears, Switches and More from Your Old Electronics

507 Mechanical Movements: Mechanisms and Devices

 

The American Physical Society has a page for high school students and a site for high schoolers called Physics Central. Right now there are articles on bulletproof glass, chocolate physics, ping pong and the shipwreck of the Costa Concordia on the site. There are links to podcasts and other resources there as well.

 

I hope you find something that will encourage your student!

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after my son realized how much he hates chemistry, i realized he wont much like physics either. i'm actually thinking of doing LOF intermediate physics, and then letting him do advanced bio topics . . .but i'm hoping my younger will like physics so i'll keep that list, thanks!

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Have you looked at these online labs? Many of them allow the student to do some "what if?" explorations without danger of actually blowing things up. He could simply play with the simulations, or you (or his dad) could assign more formal work, possibly using some of the resources posted by other teachers.

 

http://phet.colorado...ategory/physics

 

You might also consider Kinetic Books -- a digital textbook, which has many interactive components, some of which might be called fun.

 

http://www.perfectio..._stud_phys.html

 

In addition to the text itself, there is a separate virtual labs component which also contains some fun elements.

 

This looks great--thanks!

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Here's a list of physics related resources that I've kept over the years. Maybe you'll find something that will spice up the course some:

Physics and the Art of Dance: Understanding Movement

Introductory Physics with Algebra as a Second Language: Mastering Problem Solving

The Science of Star Wars: An Astrophysicist's Independent Examination of Space Travel, Aliens, Planets and Robots as Portrayed in the Star Wars Films and Books

Amusement Park Physics

Theme Park Design: Behind the Scene with an Engineer

Building a Better Mouse: The Story of the Electronic Imagineers Who Designed Epcot

Walt Disney Imagineering: A Behind the Dreams Look at Making More Magic Real

The Imagineering Workout: Exercises to Shape Your Creative Muscles

The Imagineering Way: Ideas to Ignite Your Creativity

Hands on Physics Activities with Real Life Applications: Easy to Use Labs and Demonstrations for Grades 8-12

The New Cool: A Visionary Teacher, His FIRST Robotics Team, and the Ultimate Battle of Smarts

1800 Mechanical Movements, Devices and Appliances

Basic Machines and How They Work

Bicycling Science

The Bicycling Guide to Complete Maintainance & Repair

Making Things Move DIY Mechanisms for Inventors, Hobbyists and Artists

Unscrewed: Salvage and Reuse Motors, Gears, Switches and More from Your Old Electronics

507 Mechanical Movements: Mechanisms and Devices

 

The American Physical Society has a page for high school students and a site for high schoolers called Physics Central. Right now there are articles on bulletproof glass, chocolate physics, ping pong and the shipwreck of the Costa Concordia on the site. There are links to podcasts and other resources there as well.

 

I hope you find something that will encourage your student!

 

This also looks great--I'll get on it--thanks!

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Richard Feynman's interviews on youtube -

and Pleasure of Finding Things Out

Walter Lewin's lectures on youtube

 

and
(these are beautiful; adds a human side)

Paul Hewitt's Conceptual Physics book (free reading) and videos

Coursera's How Things Work course

Udacity's Physics Course

Great Courses' Physics in Your Life and Understanding Astronomy

Physics Classroom

 

Books: Anything by Feynman, Lewin, Sagan, Hawking etc. Ds loves reading memoirs etc. Makes science more human. Try Feynman's Adventures of a Curious Character or Neil Degrasse Tyson's The Sky is Not the Limit.

 

For the love of Physics by Walter Lewin

Touch This! by Paul Hewitt

Cartoon Guide to Physics

Manga Guide to Physics

Thinking Physics

Mad about Physics

Flying Circus of Physics

 

Documentaries:

 

We watch tons of BBC documentaries - anything with Jim Al-Khalili, Brian Cox, Brian Greene, Sagan. We just watched and loved Light Fantastic. Bill Nye has a Greatest Discoveries series. Try Shock and Awe: Electricity and Magnetism. There is also Newton's Dark Secrets and Einstein Revealed. There are a lot of documentaries about the Large Hadron Collider also.

 

Ds watched Brian Cox's Wonders of the Universe and it basically changed everything. He got interested in physics through astronomy. Once he fell in love with astronomy, falling in love with physics and all other sciences was easy. :) Have fun!

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I reread your original post. You want more math. Well, I had typed in the name of the Teach your Dog Physics book into Amazon search and this other title came up. http://www.amazon.co...ef=pd_sim_b_12. I read through the sneak peak and it looks brilliant for a math loving kid/adult!

 

Have fun!

 

 

"Old dogs may have trouble with new tricks, but now canine brainiacs can use the laws of physics to master their corner of the universe. Complete with technical illustrations, graphs, and formulas, this book shows dogs how to:

  • Bring down the mailman with the correct ratio of stealth and brute force

  • Poop strategically—indoors and out—by understanding variable-mass systems

  • Open any cupboard with Newton's First Law

  • Play fetch by calculating velocity and maximum range

  • Catch squirrels by accounting for friction, weight, and air resistance

  • And much, much more!

 

With this hilariously prescriptive how-to, pooches of every size and temperament will learn to chase cars—and catch them!"

 

Gotta love it! Now, I am curious and will have to see if writers also address cats, parakeets, gerbils....

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OK, I have a question. Do you ladies who posted links or book suggestions schedule the Physics time or take things as they come? I am intrigued by the options presented yet at the same time feel overwhelmed at the thought of trying to figure out what to use, when, and how. My oldest three are doing Conceptual Physics grudgingly which is disappointing as I really wanted them to enjoy this year of science. I would love to make science more fun and interesting yet can't imagine how I would research and incorporate even a few of these resources in time for my dc to actually benefit from my efforts.

 

If anyone has an actual schedule or list of what they use and when, I would very much appreciate seeing it! Also, I looked at the Coursera Terms of Agreement and it indicated the user must be over the age of 18. For those who use/have used this, do you just count yourself as the participant and not your dc?

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Also, I looked at the Coursera Terms of Agreement and it indicated the user must be over the age of 18. For those who use/have used this, do you just count yourself as the participant and not your dc?

 

hmmmm .... the way I read it was that students between 13 and 18 years may take the courses if they have parental permission to do so.

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OK, I have a question. Do you ladies who posted links or book suggestions schedule the Physics time or take things as they come?

 

If anyone has an actual schedule or list of what they use and when, I would very much appreciate seeing it! Also, I looked at the Coursera Terms of Agreement and it indicated the user must be over the age of 18. For those who use/have used this, do you just count yourself as the participant and not your dc?

 

No real schedule here. But I only hs one of my children. That makes it a lot easier!

 

Ds does The Big History Project 3/4 times a week. We use this as a kind of guide/timeline. He watches Intro to Astronomy videos 3/4 times a week. He reads through Hewitt's Conceptual Physics 2/3 times a week. And we have been doing The Elements 3 times a week. On Fridays, he reads an article from Scientific American. We also watch documentaries or youtube videos or lectures when they correspond to what he's learning.

 

For instance, in the last couple of weeks, he watched GC's videos on light, read through the "light" chapters in Conceptual Physics and watched BBC's Light Fantastic (which was fantastic btw) and Iain Stewart's How to Grow a Planet series (first episode is on light; awesome). Because Light Fantastic discussed many important scientists and their discoveries, I've decided that ds really needs to do a paper or project about these scientists (Any ideas? We're off to the library today). No schedule; it just works for us. And the fluidity is what allowed his passion to percolate.

 

As a family, we watch a lot of documentaries at night and ds always reads a "science" book on his own time. Once a week, we eat lunch at an Indian restaurant 30 mins away. We listen to two Astronomy Cast podcasts on those days (thank you Jen in NY for the recommendation :)). And we attend an astronomy club a few times a month.

 

Ds wouldn't love science if it he were just reading through Conceptual Physics or any other text. He needed to experience what it's like to be a scientist. And demonstrations ("experiments") didn't work. It was reading and hearing about inspiring men and women and their discoveries. It was truly seeing the connection among all of the sciences. It was understanding how science impacts us as a society. And it was the "awe" factor - the greatest mysteries in life can be solved using science.

 

My son is only in 7th grade, though. We can use this discovery approach. And I only have one child - who happened to be blown away by one documentary. I just ran with it.

 

Now if you have ideas to stir up any passion about history, I'll take those!!

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I reread your original post. You want more math. Well, I had typed in the name of the Teach your Dog Physics book into Amazon search and this other title came up. http://www.amazon.co...ef=pd_sim_b_12. I read through the sneak peak and it looks brilliant for a math loving kid/adult!

 

Have fun!

 

 

This is funny. I can't tell from the Look Inside if all the science is real...

like the Expected Value of swiping the food. I better go review statistics...

 

:)

 

Thanks for the tip!

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