Sensor Cart Physics features 25 guided-inquiry investigations. It provides a stimulating structure to explore introductory through AP-level concepts in kinematics, Newton’s laws of motion, forces, and conservation of energy and momentum. The investigations make exclusive use of the Vernier Go Direct® Sensor Cart and the Cart Fan.
Each investigation incorporates many of the features exclusive to the Vernier Graphical Analysis® Pro app, including
- Synchronized Video and Data Playback Allows students to link data points in the graph to corresponding frames in the videos, helping students connect the motion of the Sensor Cart(s) with the graphical data representation of that motion.
- Data Sharing Offers remote learners the opportunity to conduct data analysis for each investigation without the use of a Sensor Cart.
- Notes Displays relevant information for students and teachers in separate files.
If using the free version of Vernier Graphical Analysis, students have access to graphs of the collected sensor data and basic data analysis including statistics and select curve fits.
Additional Features
- All investigations include links to internet-based background information that ties the topics to real-world phenomena.
- Students are challenged to develop their own experimental procedures.
- Spreadsheet files are offered to organize data and perform calculations.
- The investigations complement guided-inquiry and Modeling Instruction™ classrooms.
The latest version of Sensor Cart Physics also features a new Summative Assessment tool that uses a “Design Challenge” to evaluate students’ laboratory skills. The assessment asks students, working as individuals or as a team, to design and implement a procedure to solve a physics question that has not been addressed in the 25 Investigations offered in Sensor Cart Physics. The instructor’s notes include four sample procedures, including a data analysis spreadsheet, that serve as model solutions for the design challenge.
ISBN 978-1-948008-42-6
