Learning Liftoff! Structured Inquiry Success!

In implementing the structured inquiry lesson, it became very evident that my students learning was positively impacted.  Learning was demonstrated clearly through the samples below. 

The first student sample is the data page that each student collected throughout the experiment.  The students had to use measuring skills with a stopwatch for the time and a trundle wheel for distance.  The students also had to master the mathematical skill of rounding when finding the mean of the data.  It is clear that the student, Cole, in the first link, had a good base knowledge of measuring and averaging.  His data mostly makes sense and he really did a thorough job.  The only critique is that he did not write in my example for distance.  This is a minor detail, but did not have an impact on my evaluation of his personal data collection skills.

In the next student sample , I love how the student mentioned in number 10 that the student energy is saved.  His conclusion tells me that he has mastered the concept in number 11.  He states that the more potential energy you have, the more kinetic energy you release.  This is a solid example of his understanding.

I love that in this next sample, this student identified that the energy comes from the pilot in number 2.  This student also hypothesized that the potential energy was recognized after spinning the propeller.  This student proved to me that he knew the relationship between potential and kinetic energy in the answers to numbers 7 and 9.  He states that the more you spin it (propeller), the longer and farther it will go.  I was so impressed at the connections the students were making.

Finally, the last sample link represents a deeper thinking student.  This student claimed that the energy for the plane to move was provided by the rubberband and the propeller and that the potential energy is stored in the rubberband when you hold it.  This was an interesting perspective because no credit was given to the person who was actually winding the plane.  This was one of the only papers where the student did not look at the energy that was being put into the propeller, but only at the outcome of the stored energy and the result.  After talking to this student during the experiment, she realized that energy was not being created and that the pilot was actually putting a lot of energy into the spinning.  I love how kid friendly the final relationship is stated in answer to number 11.  The more potential you have stored up, the more kinetic you get back.  The end result for this student resulted in a deeper understanding overall.

It was awesome to have the students conduct this experiment at their own speed following the guidelines and procedures that I outlined at the beginning of class.  It was a wonderful feeling to walk around and witness the self-discovery that was taking place. It is amazing to see what students can do with a bit of guidance and direction.  This structured inquiry was the perfect way to teach potential and kinetic energy.