1. What do we gain by teaching Motion, Force, and Energy?
Content Connections
10/29/16

2. energy Energy of Motion and Energy of Position Systems of Study
Energy Transfers

3. Force and motion Studying motion What is force? Push or pull
Contact Forces: Applied force, frictional force, normal force, air-resistance force, spring force
Action-at-a-distance forces: Gravitational force, electromagnetic forces
An interaction between two objects

4. What are the challenges for teaching motion, force, and energy?

5. Supporting our students: a vision
“The overarching goal of our framework for K-12 science education is to ensure that by the end of 12th grade,
all students have some appreciation of the beauty and wonder of science,
possess sufficient knowledge of science and engineering to engage in public discussions on related issues,
are careful consumers of scientific and technological information related to their everyday lives,
are able to continue to learn about science outside school;
and have the skills to enter careers of their choice, including (but not limited to) careers in science, engineering, and technology.”
Take a step back from the immediate world of your classroom and curriculum and think about the long term goal of science education.

6. Cross Cutting concepts
“The Framework identifies seven crosscutting concepts that: bridge disciplinary boundaries unite core ideas throughout the fields of science and engineering. Their purpose is to help students deepen their understanding of the disciplinary core ideas, and develop a coherent and scientifically based view of the world.
The seven crosscutting concepts presented in Chapter 4 of the Framework are as follows:”

7. Cross Cutting concepts
1. Patterns.
2. Cause and effect.
3. Scale, proportion, and quantity.
4. Systems and system models.
5. Energy and matter.
6. Structure and function.
7. Stability and change.
1. Patterns. Observed patterns of forms and events guide organization and classification, and they prompt questions about relationships and the factors that influence them.
2. Cause and effect: Mechanism and explanation. Events have causes, sometimes simple, sometimes multifaceted. A major activity of science is investigating and explaining causal relationships and the mechanisms by which they are mediated. Such mechanisms can then be tested across given contexts and used to predict and explain events in new contexts.
3. Scale, proportion, and quantity. In considering phenomena, it is critical to recognize what is relevant at different measures of size, time, and energy and to recognize how changes in scale, proportion, or quantity affect a system’s structure or performance.
4. Systems and system models. Defining the system under study—specifying its boundaries and making explicit a model of that system—provides tools for understanding and testing ideas that are applicable throughout science and engineering.
5. Energy and matter: Flows, cycles, and conservation. Tracking fluxes of energy and matter into, out of, and within systems helps one understand the systems’ possibilities and limitations.
6. Structure and function. The way in which an object or living thing is shaped and its substructure determine many of its properties and functions.
7. Stability and change. For natural and built systems alike, conditions of stability and determinants of rates of change or evolution of a system are critical elements of study.

8. Physical science disciplinary core ideas (DCI’s)
“Under everyday circumstances the mathematical expression of this law in the form F = ma (Newton’s second law) accurately predicts changes in motion of a single macroscopic object of a given mass due to the total force on it.”
“Moreover, the modern explanation of how particular atoms influence the properties of materials or molecules is critical to understanding the physical and chemical functioning of biological systems.”
“Understanding chemical reactions and the properties of elements is essential not only to the physical sciences but also is foundational knowledge for the life sciences and the earth and space sciences.”

9. What are the benefits of teaching motion, force, and energy?

10. Can we overcome the challenges?
Standards
Content Knowledge
Time
No doubt, analyzing and understanding some of the concepts for motion, force, and energy can be daunting (depending upon content knowledge) and time-consuming (with reference to other standards and lessons).
That’s why we are here. Your districts have put in a good deal of work and resources to give you an opportunity to build your content knowledge and pedagogy skills.
You have dedicated a serious amount of time and effort to learning new materials and reflecting upon your teaching practices. That is not always easy, but you have done a great job working through it.
Does adding more explicit MFE to your curriculum actually decrease the amount of instructional time that you have for other concepts?

11. Can we overcome the challenges?
Claim: Yes, we can all overcome the challenges discussed.
Evidence: I have seen it in my classroom, your classrooms and others. Implementing stronger pedagogy and content connections saves time and adds depth to student understanding. Research from many fields has clearly proven that deep conceptual understanding of fewer concepts is much more effective than topical understanding of a lot of concepts.
Reasoning: Based on research, observation, and implementation; building conceptual development of motion, force, energy, through discourse, argumentation with evidence, and systems thinking can make drastic improvements in students’ scientific practices, content knowledge, and critical thinking skills.
No doubt, analyzing and understanding some of the concepts for motion, force, and energy can be daunting (depending upon content knowledge) and time-consuming (with reference to other standards and lessons).
That’s why we are here. Your districts have put in a good deal of work and resources to give you an opportunity to build your content knowledge and pedagogy skills.
You have dedicated a serious amount of time and effort to learning new materials and reflecting upon your teaching practices. That is not always easy, but you have done a great job working through it.
Does adding more explicit MFE to your curriculum actually decrease the amount of instructional time that you have for other concepts?

12. The important questions?
We as professional teachers, looking to provide the best learning experience for our students need to ask:
When could we teach motion, force, and energy?
AND
When SHOULD we teach motion, force, and energy?
It would not be practical or productive to break down every system in your curriculum with a detailed analysis of motion, force, and energy, but leaving these items out of your curriculum could cause serious hurdles for students to be able to fully understand and engage in scientific practices and concepts

13. Take it one step at a time
We are starting with one mini unit in your curriculum for this year.
What are some manageable steps that you could take ensure that your students will have conceptual understanding of motion, force, and energy?
Can you simply build on and improve the unit that you have created?
Could you incorporate monthly lessons, weekly warm up questions, one focus lesson per unit?
Take a moment and put any last thoughts on your index card. Put that in a place that you won’t lose it.