Physics can be very challenging, there are four basic methods that will help you learn in this class: lectures, homework, labs, and reading the book. To be successful, you must take advantage of all of these methods.
I am happy to meet with you outside of class. I have the following times/days free. Please be advised that I have offices in the senior commons and the Science Building (S-128), please text me, or call me at 417-9368 to verify my location.
Day 0: Periods 1, 5, 8
Day 1: Periods 1, 5, 8
Day 2: Periods 1, 3, 5, 8
Day 3: Periods 5, 8
Day 4: Periods 1, 2, 5, 8
Day 5: Periods 1, 3, 5, 8
Day 6: Periods 1, 5, 8
Day 7: Periods 1, 3, 5, 8
Day 8: Periods 1, 5
Day 9: Periods 1, 5, 8
Day 10: Periods 1, 3, 5, 8
I am always happy to help you during 6th lunch in the ECDH as well.
Course Goals:
The goals of this course are twofold. The first goal is to develop an understanding of the basic concepts and physical principles in mechanics, thermodynamics, waves, electricity and magnetism, optics and modern physics. The student will develop a qualitative sense of "how things work". The important variables and how they are related to or affect one another will be considered. Secondly, the student will learn to solve specific quantitative problems using the physics concepts developed in this course. Considerable attention will be paid to general approaches in how to set up and solve quantitative problems. These problem-solving skills are generally applicable to many areas.
Prerequisites
Students will be expected to have a working knowledge of algebra and be able to use trigonometry at the level of sine, cosine, and tangent. Calculus is not expected. If you have questions on your math background, see me. Previous physics is not required. Note: The department also offers two other levels of physics. Physics II relies on lesser math skills, while AP Physics C covers similar material but uses calculus.
Class Rules
Be punctual. I take attendance at the beginning of class, so, if you are tardy, you must come up after class to let me know why.
I will work diligently to provide a safe and effective community learning environment. Please be respectful to all others in your community. Disruptive or rude behavior will not be tolerated. Don’t abuse furniture or equipment. No food or soda in the classroom, water bottles are ok in the classroom, but not in the lab.
Please read the appropriate chapter(s) BEFORE the lecture and be prepared to participate in class discussions of the material. Our class time will be spent solving problems; if you are not familiar with the chapter you will not reap the benefits of our class time.
Bring your calculator to class!
Before class starts, please turn off all of your noise producing electronic devices such as cell phones, ipods, etc..., the second time your phone rings in class it will be given to the Division Head. If you have extenuating circumstances, please talk to me before class.
Textbook: Physics, 6th ed., by Giancoli, Prentice Hall, 2005
Homework and Classwork:
Homework assignments will include some conceptual questions, some simpler problems and some quite hard problems. In each assignment you will be assigned 4-6 problems.
You must label your homework with your name, assignment number, & date in upper right hand corner.
Be VERY neat and do not make sketches small and hard to read, I reserve the right to take points off your HW (even when fully correct!) for messy solutions. Leave plenty of room for each problem (many problems may take a whole page). If the work is squeezed together it will probably be hard to read and grade.
The ability to communicate your work to others is vital to your success as a productive member of society. This may mean using words to describe what you are doing instead of simply writing down equations. This also means being organized. It is best to do a problem and then transcribe your solution in a neat form to another piece of paper.
Show your work. Pretend you are teaching the subject to someone else and explain clearly.
Show the equations you use before substituting numbers; box in your answers and be sure to show units.
Follow directions. Sometimes the process is as important or is even more important than the actual answer to a problem. You may have the correct answer but if you leave out portions of the process that are asked for (for example, the free body diagram), you may still loose significant points.
Save your homework after it is returned to you to help study for tests.
If you have a question about the grading come to me immediately for discussion and resolution.
The homework is graded on a scale of 0 to 10.
I cannot emphasize enough that the homework assignments are critical to learning the material and doing well in this class. Reading the book and attending lectures is not sufficient. The homework will be designed to have you think about the basic concepts and their relationships and to be able to make use of them to solve numerical problems. Most of the learning in the course will come from doing the homework.
This course emphasizes problem solving; solving the problems will help you learn physics. I encourage you to work in groups and to talk about the problems (with classmates, with friends or with me). But when all is said and done, you must know the concept behind each problem and how it is applied to solve the problem.
It is hard to succeed in this course if you don’t do well on the homework. Practical Incentive: Tests are closely related to the homework; some of the test material comes from the homework. If you wait until the last minute to attempt the problems or if you merely copy someone’s HW, you won’t succeed. You need to have gone through the sometimes long and frustrating thought processes (correcting many mistakes) in working the problems to really learn the material so you can be successful on the fast paced tests.
Labs
Lab Format - Please include the following sections, in order, in your lab report, and turn in one typed lab per group.
Abstract
The purpose of the abstract is to provide a brief overview of the report. In your own words, state the purpose of the laboratory exercise, the basic concepts covered, a very brief (one or two sentences) overview of the procedure followed, and a brief summary of the actual results. Be specific about results - do not use phrases like "it worked". Be very careful NOT to copy text from the lab handout. The abstract should be one or two paragraphs of text.
Introduction
The introduction should introduce the reader to the topic of the lab and provide any technical background material that is required to make the lab report complete. The introduction should discuss concepts rather than procedure or results. Be sure to include and number all figures, equations, and tables necessary to understand the rest of the lab report, but do not refer to the RESULTS of the lab here.
Procedure
You should summarize each of the major parts of the procedure in your own words. The procedure section should be a couple of concise paragraphs. Remember to use past tense since you are reporting a lab that has already been completed.
Results/Materials
In this section you should include the results of the procedure. The results section will have subsections if there are more than one result to present. All results must be explained and discussed - this means you should answer the question "are these results what one expects or predicts?" with a complete answer.
Conclusion
In this section you should write about the concepts that you learned in the lab. If you experienced problems or obtained data that was incorrect, here is where you might elaborate on the causes and ideas for solutions.
Tests and Quizes
You will have a test every day 1 or 10, and may have reading quizes following reading assignments.
The tests are written to challenge you and intended to spread the class out. The raw average will typically be near a 70%.
Test corrections are offered to shift the test average up near an 83%. In order to earn the maximum number of test correction points, you must:
Multiple choice: explain why you chose the incorrect answer initially, explain why you know that choice to be incorrect, and explain why the correct choice is the best answer;
Free response: please rework the problem, indicating where in the solution you had previously erred, and a short explanation of why.
The procedure for test corrections is intended for you to think about your thinking process. You must Staple the test corrections on top of yourr Original Test before you submit the corrections.
Grading: for Each Semester
- 20% Homework and Quizes
- 20% in class, and lab, participation
- 40% Exams
- 20% End of Semester Exam
The average grade each year for ap physics b students is near 86-87%.
I expect great things from you, and you should do the same for me. I will be punctual, organized, and will return your assignments in a timely manner. I am looking forward to an exciting and fun year!
AP Physics B Tentative Fall Semester Schedule:
Chapter Sections, Days on topic
Kinematics 2-1 to 2-8, 5 days
Vectors and 2d motion 3-1 to 3-8, 7 days
Dynamics 4-1 to 4-9, 10 days
Circular Motion and Gravity 5-1 to 5-3, 5-6 to 5-9, 5 days
Work and Energy 6-1 to 6-10, 8 days
Momentum 7-1 to 7-8, 5 days
Torque 8-1, 8-4, 8-5 and 8-8, 5 days
Equilibrium 9-1,9-2, 5 days
Fluids 10-1 to 10-9, 5 days
Temp and Kin Theory 13-1 to13-4, 13-6 to 13-8, 13-10, 5 days
Heat 14-1 to 14-8, 5 days
Thermodynamics 15-1 to 15-7
Review & Final Exam