Trinidad “Trini” Garza Early College High School
Mountain View College
Pre-AP PHYSICS
Course Syllabus 2014-2015
Instructor: Dr. Catalina Boudreaux
Room: Room W60A School Phone: 214-860-3680
E-mail: Faculty Office: 214-860-6315
Tutoring: M, W, Th: 4:05 pm – 4:50 pm and by appointment
Textbook: “Texas Physics” by Serway and Faughn; Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2015
Course Description:
This is a one-year course intended to set the grounds for succeeding in both the theoretical and experimental parts of AP and College Physics courses. The course includes discussions of the basic concepts, applications, and problems solving techniques on a variety of topics such as: motion, forces, universal gravitation, momentum, mechanical energy, work, thermodynamics, electricity, electric circuits, magnetism, waves, light and sound, and the basic elements of quantum physics. Students shall be awarded one credit for successful completion of this course. Algebra I is suggested as a prerequisite or co-requisite. This course is recommended for students in Grade 9, 10, 11, or 12.
Course Objectives/Learning Outcomes:
Students will conduct field and laboratory investigations, use the scientific method in investigations, and make informed decisions using critical thinking and scientific problem solving skills. This course provides students with a conceptual framework, factual knowledge, and analytical and scientific skills. The student will, for at least 40% of instructional time, conduct field and laboratory investigations using safe, environmentally appropriate, and ethical practices.
Required Materials:
• Holt McDougal Physics (Textbook)
• Class Notebook
• Laboratory Folder
• Scientific Calculator
• Pencil and Eraser
• Pen (black or blue)
• Ruler (cm- and in-graduated)
Resource List:
Below are useful websites and a book which contain additional information about topics covered in this course, including background information, animations, and simulations to enhance your understanding.
• The Physics Classroom:
http://www.physicsclassroom.com/
• University of Colorado -- PHET Simulations:
http://phet.colorado.edu/en/simulations/category/physics
• Hyperphysics (Georgia State University)
http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/hframe.html
• The Cartoon Guide to Physics by Larry Gonick (1991)
Behavioral Expectations:
Ø Set high academic standards for yourself.
Ø Treat others with courtesy and be respectful and considerate with other’s feelings, opinions, and thought.
Ø Always pay attention and participate actively during all class discussions.
Ø Follow class rules, procedures, and instructions properly at all times (no food, drink, cell phones, music players, etc.)
Ø Do not speak when your instructor is speaking. Raise your hand and ask politely if you have any questions.
Ø Never lie, cheat, steal, use profanity, or obscene gestures.
Classroom Rules:
Ø Students must arrive to class on time, be prepared to work, and stay on task until class is dismissed.
Ø Students must bring pencils, notebook, textbook, and any other material requested by the teacher to every class. Pencils should be sharpened before the bell rings.
Ø Students must listen and follow directions the first time they are given. Stop talking immediately when instructor calls the class to attention.
Ø Students must keep hands, feet, and any other object to themselves.
Ø Students must OBEY all ECHS, MVC, and Dallas ISD rules and procedures. The dress code will be enforced at all times. Wear your ID badge.
Ø Students are not to touch the computers or the equipment without the instructor’s permission.
Ø Students must complete all assigned work and submit it on time. Attend tutoring when needed.
Consequences for breaking class rules:
Ø First infraction will result in a verbal warning via teacher/student conference.
Ø Second infraction will result in the student’s parent being contacted.
Ø Third infraction will result in a parent conference at school.
Ø Fourth infraction will result in the student being referred to the office.
Ø Severe disruptions will be sent immediately to the Principal’s Office with a written referral.
Student Core Beliefs:
Ø “My future success depends on working hard today.”
Ø “I have high expectations for myself, my classmates, and my school.”
Ø “I aim for excellence even when it's difficult.”
Attendance:
Attendance is absolutely necessary at every class session. It is in your own interest to attend class and to participate fully in all activities. Material covered in class (sometimes no contained in the book) may appear in homework problems and/or exams. Attending class and paying attention is the key to a good grade. Professional and mature behavior is expected at all times, both in and out of class, towards all members of the class.
Tardiness:
Students are expected to arrive on time for class and attend the entire class. You will be expected to enter the classroom orderly, take your seat and work quietly while the class begins. Entering class after it is in session or leaving class early can be disruptive to other students. After 20 minutes, a tardy is considered an absence. Absences due to tardiness are included in classroom absence totals. Please notify your instructor if you are going to be late or absent. If you are absent, you are responsible for obtaining and completing any missed class work or tests. Absences, physical or mental, are the kiss of death in physics.
Cell Phone/Other Electronic Devices:
To avoid interruption of class sessions, students are required to turn off all cell phones and other electronic devices and place them out of sight prior to the beginning of class. If cell phones are visible and/or heard throughout the regular school day, they will be collected and taken to the office. No phone calls, texting, or browsing the Internet is allowed during class. Students not conforming to this policy will be subject to disciplinary action as put forth by ECHS, Mountain View College, and the Dallas ISD. If given permission, they may be used for instructional purposes only.
Suggestions for Student Success:
To succeed in this course, you are expected to study the material from the posted notes and textbook in advance of the corresponding class and then come prepared to discuss it and ask questions, as well as to work with others through several practice problems, rather than to listen passively and take notes. You may be quizzed at the beginning of the class on study material. Class time will be used to discuss ideas (rather than to present them), to answer questions, to clarify points of confusion, and to practice doing physics. Moreover, you should also study all the examples presented in the textbook. A few of the examples will be discussed in class, and problems given in the exams will be similar to some of the problems shown in the textbook. After reviewing the in-class notes you ought to integrate the material with what is explained more extensively in the textbook and become familiar with the concepts and the equations relative to the subject matter presented. Only a solid knowledge of the material gives you a good chance to solve the problems assigned in the exams.
Class Participation:
To gain a better understanding of the material, you are expected to be involved in class discussions. Each class period you will be asked to think about and answer questions related to the material. Your answers to these questions will be graded for participation, not correctness, but each question should help clarify your understanding of important concepts in physics. Your final grade may be increased by having a good participation in class throughout the semester.
Problem Assignments:
You will be given homework assignments for each topic. It is crucial that you complete and understand every assignment. I encourage you to work as groups on these assignments. The best way to learn in this class is to thoroughly work and understand the assigned problems. The homework must be completed and submitted on the designated date as indicated by the instructor. Please notice that some homework assignments must be submitted online. For this course, most homework will be in electronic form, but there may be paper-and-pencil homework in a few cases. We will have many quizzes consisting of assigned problems and current topic questions at the start of most class periods. The questions assigned as homework will be similar to the questions in the exams.
If you do not have a computer at home, go to Library early in the morning, during lunch, or after school, and print the assignment or do it during your ACE period. Please be courteous and request permission to use the computer before you start to work.
Use a printed version of the homework to do your work. When your online homework is completed, go back to the homework Web site and submit the answers.
Late work policy:
All work, unless otherwise specified, is due at the beginning of the class period. Late assignments must be turned in no more than THREE days after the due date, even if the student does not have the class on those days. Late work will be accepted with points deducted:
• 0 days late, 10% deduction; if turned in after the homework is collected, but before the next day.
• 1 day late, 20% deduction; if turned in the following school day.
• 2 days late, 30% deduction; if turned in the next time you have my class.
• 3 days late, 40% deduction; if turned in three days after the due date.
After three days, a student may complete a missed assignment at the discretion of the instructor and under her supervision. No work will be accepted one week beyond its due date.
Research papers, classroom projects, or any other assignment which is assigned one or more weeks in advance do not qualify for the late work penalties as outlined above. If the assignment is not turned in on the specified due date, it will not be accepted late.
Portfolio:
All students must keep a portfolio of everything related to this course. During the year, the students will have a notebook check to ensure that all course material, notes and coursework is kept in an organized manner. The portfolio will not only serve as a study guide for the semester and end of course exams, but will also begin to teach the characteristics of organization and responsibility.
Quizzes:
There will be several quizzes given throughout the course. The score on each quiz will count as credit toward the final grade. There will be no make up for a missed quiz. The lowest grade on a quiz will be dropped.
Retesting:
If you fail a test you may be allowed to retest over the same material. You must make an appointment to retake any test within 5 days, either before or after school.
Grading System:
Classwork/Homework 40%
Major Tests/Quizzes 25%
Projects/Products 20%
Six Weeks Test 15%
Test grades include (but are not limited to) chapter tests and/or section tests. In order to do well, YOU MUST STUDY FOR TESTS! Just showing up without advance preparation almost always leads to a failing grade. Classwork/Homework grades include (but are not limited to) class work, class participation, homework, short quizzes and bell ringers. Projects include reports, laboratory work, research, compositions, presentations, etc. If marked, your Physics portfolio will count as a project grade. Six Weeks Tests will concentrate on the material covered during that six week period, but will also contain concepts from the previous six weeks.
Academic Integrity:
Paraphrasing another’s work calls for a citation to the author. Even when you cite accurately, you need to use your own words; use direct quotes sparingly. It is imperative that you create your own work and use your own words. Cutting and pasting from another sources is not acceptable. Never cheat, copy, steal, plagiarize, or misrepresent someone else’s work as your own. Unauthorized use of material is plagiarism and is considered cheating. Make sure to properly reference all information obtained from books or the Internet.
Cheating is NOT acceptable. If a student is caught cheating, parents will be notified and work will receive a grade of zero on the assignment. Repeat offenders may fail the six weeks and be referred for discipline.
Academic Integrity Statement:
I will use my own thoughts, my own words and do my own work to support my own learning. This means:
NO CHEATING
NO COPYING
NO STEALING
NO PLAGIARISM
NO REPRESENTING SOMEONE ELSE'S WORK AS YOUR OWN.
Scholastic dishonesty is a violation of the Student Code of Conduct. Scholastic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to cheating on a test, plagiarism, and collusion. The DISD’s Student Code of Conduct is available at
https://www.dallasisd.org/cms/lib/TX01001475/Centricity/Domain/11/code_of_conduct.pdf
Academic Progress: Students and their parents or guardians are encouraged to discuss academic goals and degree completion with their instructors.
Course Content
ü 3F(S) Express and interpret relationships symbolically in accordance with accepted theories;
ü 4A(R) Generate and interpret graphs and charts describing different types of motion;
ü 4B(R) Describe and analyze motion in 1D using kinematic equations;
ü 4C(S) Analyze and describe accelerated motion in 2D using kinematic equations;
ü 4D(R) Calculate the effect of forces on objects;
ü 4E(S) Develop and interpret free-body force diagrams;
ü 4F(S) Identify and describe motion relative to different frames of reference.
ü 5A(S) Research and describe the historical development of the concept of gravitational, electromagnetic, weak nuclear, and strong nuclear forces;
ü 5B(R) Describe and calculate how the magnitude of the gravitational force between 2 objects depend on the masses and the distance between their centers;
ü 5C(S) Describe and calculate how the magnitude of the electrical force between 2 objects depend on their charges and the distance between their centers;
ü 5D(S) Identify examples of electric and magnetic forces in everyday life;
ü 5E(S) Characterize materials as conductors or insulators based on their electrical properties;
ü 5F(R) Design, construct, and calculate in terms of current through, potential difference across, resistance of, and power used by electric circuit elements connected in both series and parallel combinations;
ü 5G(S) Investigate and describe the relationship between electric and magnetic fields in applications such as generators, motors, and transformers;