“CPR gets
your heart pumping!”
The
Grant info found at: http://www.physics2005.org/events/physicsontheroad
Overview
The
Department of Physics and Astronomy at The University of North Carolina
at
Existing
Program
In 2004, our department provided three demonstration programs: one public show held on campus in the spring,
and two off-site programs at local schools (one for second-graders, the
other
for eighth grade girls and their mentors).
The combined audience for these three programs was approximately
250,
and all were organized and presented by ten graduate students from our
department plus one undergraduate student.
A typical program consists of five to ten physics
demonstrations, such
as static electricity with a Van de Graaff generator, rotational
dynamics with
a bicycle wheel, refraction with laser light, balloon pressed on a bed
of
nails, standing waves on a string, and magnetic eddy currents. Each interactive program includes audience
participation and ends with an opportunity for questions and hands-on
examination of selected demonstration equipment.
Proposed
Program
By
formalizing the student-led physics demonstration program, we plan to
provide
(free of charge) approximately ten shows in 2005, (three times as many
as this
past year) with increased participation of both graduate and
undergraduate physics
students. Through this expanded
program, we hope to reach a greater number of students in rural and
under-resourced areas of
Events
to date:
Future
Events and Collaborations
· Daily physics demonstration programs will be offered to school groups by UNC’s Morehead Planetarium (in consultation and coordination with the department of Physics and Astronomy) beginning September, 2005
·
Coordination with DESTINY science
bus program to
include physics demonstrations on two new buses funded by NASA. These buses travel to rural schools
throughout
·
Invited to present physics demo show
to 2000+
high school teachers at the fall institute of the North Carolina
Science
Teachers’ Association (NCSTA) in
·
Invited to present physics demo show
to 2000+
high school teachers at the fall institute of the North Carolina
Science
Teachers’ Association (NCSTA) in
Coordinated
Effort
As we expand our outreach program, we are coordinating with other groups that have similar interests and existing infrastructures that we can utilize to maximize our effectiveness.
· DESTINY – UNC-CH’s Traveling Science Learning Program. Destiny is a fully-equipped wet-lab bus used primarily for biological investigations, and a second bus has recently been added with support from NASA. http://destiny.unc.edu
·
Morehead
Planetarium at UNC-CH – One of the largest planetariums in the
· INSPIRE program at UNC-CH – service learning program for undergraduate students interested in becoming science teachers. http://www.unc.edu/~ropra/Inspire/Inspire.htm
· Apples Service Learning Program – This UNC organization coordinates with faculty members to provide service learning opportunities for students in the local community.
· Educational outreach efforts of departmental research programs
· Society of Physics Students at UNC-CH
· Other K-12 Traveling Science Programs (currently only 4 in NC) http://van.hep.uiuc.edu/van/ShowDirectory/NC.htm
· Institute for Science Learning – This is a newly-created group at UNC-CH to assist research faculty with the educational outreach component of their federally-funded grants.
·
The
Science House is a learning outreach project of NC State University. Their mission is to work in partnership with
K-12 teachers to increase the use and impact of hands-on learning
technologies
in science and mathematics. http://www.science-house.org
For
additional information, contact:
Duane L.
Deardorff, Ph.D. – P.I. for this UNC-CH grant
Department of
Physics and Astronomy
The
Campus
duane.deardorff@unc.edu
(919) 962-3013