project based physics?

[JennyD]

I am putting together an integrated science program for my rising 8th grader.  The plan is to do about 8 weeks each of biology, physics/astronomy, chemistry, and earth science.  (My 5th and 2nd graders will be doing the same topics, but with different materials.)  

I am having difficulty figuring out what to do for physics, though.  He has has algebra, so algebra-based would be good, but obviously I am not looking for a full course.  I am wondering if perhaps something project-based might be the way to go.  Any ideas?

 

[JennyD]

It just occurred to me to look at TOPS -- we used a couple of sets for early elementary but I had forgotten that their offerings were so extensive.  It looks like they have quite a bit for middle and high school physics.  Has anyone used these?

[Lilaclady]

There is an integrated conceptual science by Hewitt and Suchoki you can look into. I am not sure how much is project based on it but it has basic physics that covers the spectrum. 

 

[PeachyDoodle]

We used the Thames and Kosmos Physics Workshop a few years ago. It would contain plenty to keep you busy for a quarter's worth of physics I think.

If you wanted additional study material, you could perhaps riff off of Noeo's Physics 3. It uses the T&K set but also includes a bunch of books you could choose from based on his interests. I believe the spine is Exploring the World of Physics by John Hudson Tiner.

[TheAttachedMama]

We used and (LOVED!) exploration education this year.   It is VERY hands-on/project based, but it was incredibly easy to pull off because just about every single lab component came in the kit.  (We had to provide a hot glue gun and batteries.) Plus there were digital instructions written to the student (with little videos showing the steps when needed), so my kids were able to do most of the labs/demonstrations themselves.   I think this was really valuable because they learned to PAY ATTENTION to instructions :) and troubleshoot things on their own when they ran into problems.   Everything worked just fine, and it turned out to be a really fun year.  I feel like the reading is light and there isn't a lot of math, but we found that easily supplemented with lots of fun, living physics books/videos.  (Keep in mind that we are a heavily science/math focused family, so I like to supplement heavily in those subjects anyway.)   

[JennyD]

8 hours ago, TheAttachedMama said:

We used and (LOVED!) exploration education this year.   It is VERY hands-on/project based, but it was incredibly easy to pull off because just about every single lab component came in the kit.  (We had to provide a hot glue gun and batteries.) Plus there were digital instructions written to the student (with little videos showing the steps when needed), so my kids were able to do most of the labs/demonstrations themselves.   I think this was really valuable because they learned to PAY ATTENTION to instructions ? and troubleshoot things on their own when they ran into problems.   Everything worked just fine, and it turned out to be a really fun year.  I feel like the reading is light and there isn't a lot of math, but we found that easily supplemented with lots of fun, living physics books/videos.  (Keep in mind that we are a heavily science/math focused family, so I like to supplement heavily in those subjects anyway.)   

 

Thanks for this.  Did you use the Advanced course (for 7th-10th)?

[Farrar]

I've used some of the TOPS middle school stuff. It's pretty decent. I like the way it's laid out and it's very easy to set up and implement and they are definitely doing "real" explorations with the science. On the other hand, sometimes it's very lacking in actually explaining the science behind what's happening because there's no reading component. I feel like in general it's an underused option (especially for secular users) so I do find myself rec'ing it pretty often, but it's not perfect. They're so cheap and easy to try that I think you can't go wrong getting it though.