The series features a constructivist, activity based approach that allows students to analyze physical situations conceptually and to learn about how to apply physical concepts properly. The series is designed to help students improve both conceptual understanding of physics and problem solving ability. This activity book consists of two parts. The first part provides 23 activities where students explore ideas about circular motion, projectile motion, and relative motion, as well as rotational motion. Students are encouraged to read the appropriate part of the reader after finishing the corresponding activity.
Students can also use the reader as a resource for later activities.
Each activity includes a statement of expected outcomes, prior knowledge needed, and additional background information needed to do the activity, in addition to a main activity and reflection questions. Each main activity section contains specific questions and problems that probe students' understanding and prepare them to make sense out of the ideas. In a sample section on projectile motion, students learn about how to analyze the forces on a projectile and how the energy of a projectile changes during trajectory. In a sample activity, students sketch position and velocity graphs for a variety of moving objects, such as a space shuttle drifting at constant speed far from Earth, a skateboarder flying off a short set of stairs, and a rock thrown from a short cliff. Students then analyze the acceleration of the objects, and explore certain features of trajectories, such as maximum height and the horizontal distance covered.