Reassembled Leson Plans (Opposing Forces)

After adding gameification elements and narative necessary I now need to compile what I have back into a deliverable package which acchieves all the origonal learning outcomes. For this I will present below the newly gamified documents and then, in a future post, hold a comparison between the gamified document and the "un-gamified" one. I would like however to take the time here to note that where I say un-gamified, it does not mean that the origonal does not hold and elements of gamification. So with that in mind I will also be highlighting the elemnts of gamification that were already present within the origonal plans and how I encorporated them into my version of the gamified documents.

Session B

Opposing forces

Programme of study: Explain that unsupported objects fall towards the Earth because of the force of gravity acting between the Earth and the falling object.

Working scientifically: Plan enquiries, Report findings from enquiries.

Resources needed: Book, two sets of kitchen scales, video, digital camera, PE equipment. Access to internet

                                       Pens/Pencils, Paper, Rulers (printed picture of stone tablet if able (one per learner))

                                       (Gamified extras if required: Badges, Stamps, or stickers)

Whole class teaching:

Welcome the class with the following introduction:

You are on a school trip with Mrs Pennington, your history teacher, to the natural history museum. The day is nearing its end and the class finally reaches the ancient Egyptian exhibition. Suddenly the doors slam closed around you and lock tight, sealing you and your class inside. Mrs Pennington suddenly turns to stone and a mysterious glowing text appears floating in front of her. It says “If you wish to save your teacher, you must tell me why an apples fall from trees”

Once this has been read, ask the learners to save the teacher and answer the question. Award points for correct facts given about gravity and (if it had not been previous brought up by a learner) lead the learners by telling them the story of Sir Isaac Newton’s Apple. Distribute “Worksheet 1: Sir Isaac Newton” (shown below) for students to read more about Newton. Once the discussion is drawn to a close and you are satisfied with the learners understanding read the following:

The glowing text disappears and Mrs Pennington returns to her normal self once more. The doors however are still locked tight and you see the warm red of the afternoon’s sky through the overhead windows, the sun is setting. On the far wall rests stone statue, a second paragraph of glowing text appears above. It reads “Well done, but you are not safe yet. Now show how gravity is affecting this object in your world. If you do not before the sun sets, you will be sealed in here forever.” Mrs Pennington in a panic looks at her watch and tells you all that you only have 10 minutes until the sun sets.

Hands out worksheets with a simple picture of the stone statue resting on a shelf on the wall (or have the learners draw it themselves on plain paper). The ask learners to show using pencils and rulers what forces are acting on the statue. Learners should not be given any advice on this for the first 5 minutes. After the first 5 minutes stop the class and ask learners to present their solutions. Points should be awarded to any students who have correctly drawn arrows showing both gravity and up thrust pointing the correct direction and (roughly) the same size. Diagnostic feedback should be given for any incorrect answers explaining how and why it should be drawn the correct way.  Award a badge to any learners who correctly identify any other forces at work and depict them accurately. Tell the learners that they have a further 5 minutes remaining to complete the task and escape. When they have all finished pick the best example of work and read the following:

Mrs Pennington traces the diagram into the soft sand in front of the statue, the glowing text fades and three doors beside the statue swing wide open. All of the students run to escape but the teacher quickly jumps in the way screaming “WAIT!” You peer through the door and see that the floor, while very much there, seems odd. Each door has a different floor behind it and on closer inspection you see that they are all made of different materials. The first to the left is made of soft sand. The second in the centre is made from rotted wood. Finally, the floor to the right is made of metal. Which one do you choose to make your escape and why?

Now lead a discussion about why some surfaces would not be ideal for walking on and why. Show using diagrams that water and glass will not have as much force to resist gravity and may give way under the weight of the students. Feel free to use other substances but avoid the three used in the stories question. Ask learners to wright down on the work sheets which route the students should take to escape and then have all of them reveal their answers at the same time. Select examples of work and ask learners explain their reasoning, offer a point to each student with the correct answer and then finally read the following:

Mrs Pennington tells all the learners to use the door on the far right and to follow her.

(If all students chose the correct path)

All of the learner’s hurry to keep up with her and make it to the exit as the shutters were starting to close, the security guard sees you all and says “Oh, you’re just in time! You don’t want to get locked in here over night, strange things happen to those left behind.” The class exits quickly through the double doors and head back home.

(else if some of the students chose to use a different path, let them)

The students that did not follow Mrs Pennington head through their chosen doors. Students who went through the first door on the left, find themselves stuck in the sand and slowly sinking. Those who chose the middle door rush on through only to find the rotten planks gave way and they start to fall. Nobody knows what has happened to them.

Any learners who successfully escaped the museum get an “ESCAPED!” stamp/sticker on their work sheets and an extra point each. Then conclude the experience by summarising what has been learned in that session and congratulates all the escapees. 

Who was Sir Isaac Newton?

Sir Isaac Newton is one of the greatest scientists who have ever lived. Born in 1642 Isaac Newton had a lasting impact on astronomy, physics, and mathematics. His father died before he was born and so Newton had a difficult childhood. His mother remarried when he was just three, and he was then sent to live with his grandmother. After his stepfather died, his mother brought him home to Woolsthorpe in Lincolnshire, where she wanted him to become a farmer. However an uncle noticed how clever he was and he eventually made it to Trinity College, Cambridge University.
Many of his great ideas came in 1665-66, when he spent time back at Woolsthorpe while Cambridge was closed because of the plague. Among his many achievements were the invention of the reflecting telescope, the basic design behind all large telescopes used today; the invention of some mathematics known as calculus, which is very useful in science today; the discovery of the three laws of motion; and the development of the law of universal gravitation: the theory that all objects fall at the same rate without air resistance.
When still in his mid-twenties, he was named Lucasian Professor of Mathematics at Cambridge University, a post now held by Stephen Hawking.

He died in 1727 and is buried in Westminster Abbey.

Sir Isaac Newton’s Laws of Motion

Newton was a clever man.
An avid scientific fan.
He questioned many things he saw.
Like ones we had no answers for.

He thought them through right to their cores.
Then gave us many handy laws.

Newton’s First Law Of Motion:
Without a force of push or pull
an object will remain quite still.
With just one push at just one time
that object moves in one straight line.

Newton’s Second Law Of Motion:
A bigger Force accelerates
an object that is heavy-weight.
While objects of a smaller mass
don’t need much Force to move them fast.

So Newton noticed they obey
that Force will equal m times a.

Newton’s Third Law Of Motion:
Now bend a stick. Before it cracks
you’ll feel its force of pushing back.
For every action there will be
an equal one – opposingly.

Without his formulas in place
we’d soon get lost in outer space.
So Isaac’s Laws help us traverse
the reaches of our universe.

by Celia Berrell

I can:  

1. Talk about Sir Isaac Newton and some of his discoveries.

2. Create a diagram/picture showing forces acting in different directions.

3. Understand that other scientists have developed Newton’s ideas further.

This leson plan can now be delivered, however I would like to take the time in my next post to explain the break down of elements further, the why, and also point out the sections of the origonal that I have brought forward. Again, once I have finished this process for all four lessons I will then revisit the origonals for a comparitive review and to also point out which parts of the origonals were inherantly gamified.