My 495 Capstone project has certainly been a journey, one I feel started last year with TED 560: Science Methods. It was there I learned to teach students to think critically, ask questions about the world around them, and explore scientific concepts in the middle school classroom. This semester I was able to apply the knowledge I learned during the Fall semester in my own experimental inquiry project. I was challenged to engage in the thought patterns I wish my future students to adapt and experienced first hand the obstacles and joys of truly being a scientist. Ready, Set, Science states, “When students understand the nature and development of scientific knowledge, they know that science entails searching for core explanations and the connections between them.”(Daniels, Zemelman, Steineke 2007, p. 20) In accordance to this quote, I started my project by perusing the NC Essential Standards. A 7th Grade Science Standard entailing Newton’s Three Laws of
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My first trial was less than satisfactory. I did not account for the variables of throwing objects out a window and therefore my data was unreliable. My hypothesis that the heavier object would break more readily in regards to Newton’s Second Law of Motion, F=M*A, was a spurious correlation. I needed to do my experiment again, this time accounting for volume by ensuring that each piece of material was the same size and dropped at the same distance. I chose a standard piece of paper, 8.5 by 11, and the materials foam, bubble wrap, and card stock with the new hypothesis that the bubble wrap would provide the best protection. The results that I observed are best explained using Newton’s 3rd Law of Motion,.“For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.” In order to ensure impact was minimal, the packaging needed to cushion the fall of the potato chips, helping it decelerate at a much slower
My first trial was less than satisfactory. I did not account for the variables of throwing objects out a window and therefore my data was unreliable. My hypothesis that the heavier object would break more readily in regards to Newton’s Second Law of Motion, F=M*A, was a spurious correlation. I needed to do my experiment again, this time accounting for volume by ensuring that each piece of material was the same size and dropped at the same distance. I chose a standard piece of paper, 8.5 by 11, and the materials foam, bubble wrap, and card stock with the new hypothesis that the bubble wrap would provide the best protection. The results that I observed are best explained using Newton’s 3rd Law of Motion,.“For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.” In order to ensure impact was minimal, the packaging needed to cushion the fall of the potato chips, helping it decelerate at a much slower