Category: Grade 12

Physics 12 – Equilibrium Project – Sonoma, Heliya and Aya

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Here is a picture of our final project and my calculations for the top level:

Here are some pictures of how our thinking process started:

Self Reflection:

I believe this project went really well. I had a chance to develop my knowledge on equilibrium and to clarify my calculations with the help of my peers. I learned about some factors that I wasn’t too sure about, such as, if certain variables would change our data significantly. At first, I was unsure if we needed the weight of the popsicle sticks that we had on each level that we were measuring. I was thinking that the mass was needed because each mass for the popsicle sticks were different, then that would contribute to our data. In reality, because the mass of the popsicle sticks were so light, there isn’t a huge difference to note in the calculations.

My data for each weight was relatively similar with 0.0260946Nm for the 0.20kg mass, and 0.0288395Nm for the 0.50kg mass that was hanging on the other side of the popsicle stick. The difference between each of these were 0.0028449Nm, but that was resolved once I rounded the data to the correct amount of significant figures (0.03Nm each). Some possible errors that could have caused this difference in data were the friction between the table and our objects in equilibrium, or how the surface we were using for our project wasn’t exactly straight, causing our project to be at a different angle and having our project not be in total equilibrium. My only suggestions for next time would be to create it on the ground away from others to step on because the surface would be flatter, and to add some more colour or more visually appealing aspects.

Core Competency Reflection:

The Core Competency that I feel works best with this project is Critical and Creative Thinking. During this project, Critical and Creative Thinking really kicked in when designing, creating, calculating and presenting our project. For example, when starting to think of ideas, we tried to think of something that was eye-catching, but that mainly followed all of the criteria for the project: to maintain equilibrium.

After looking at a few ideas for inspiration, we decided to start building for fun to see what we could come up with. I started by adding a few beads into two different spheres to change their weights, then we were creating additional levels using other objects. While we liked our ideas and the way we were thinking towards building, we still had some things to adjust. We decided we liked some components that we created, however the next step was to develop our ideas. While we still used objects such as popsicle sticks and paper cups, we had to scrap some other aspects that weren’t needed, like the spheres. From there, we changed our idea from a few simple levels to a few levels with more weights, string tensions, and fulcrums involved.

For the next step, we were more focused on the set-up for the presentation, and our correct calculations. To make sure our set-up was correct, we made markers on the popsicle sticks to make sure that all objects were in equilibrium. Whenever we had one object leaning or starting to fall, we knew we had to adjust our placement of the objects on each level. With that process, we were left with a lot of questions, such as if we measured and placed everything correctly? If not, how could we fix that before presenting?

While critiquing our work, we realized that everything would be in equilibrium as long as our paper cups (fulcrums) weren’t too far apart from the center. Even though each level had different centers of gravity, we used that to our advantage in order to help keep our project in equilibrium, and to help make the visual aspect look less messy. For our calculations, we took each level apart one at a time, and we measured each competent that was needed to determine the total torque on both sides of the popsicle sticks. We had to assess what parts were needed for the calculation and what parts weren’t necessary – such as the mass of the popsicle stick itself.

Finally, we presented our project and explained how our it was in equilibrium, as well as how particular our set up was. We reflected on our past ideas and how they helped us work towards our final product. In the end, I learned more about how equilibrium works, especially with more weights, more center of gravities, and more dimensions involved.

Français Langue – Core Competencies Reflection – Debate Project

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What was the most challenging element of the debate project for you personally? Did you overcome that challenge and if so, how did you do so?

The most challenging element from the debate project for me was finding a topic that had two unbiased sides, and that was written in French. To start, we had to find a good argument, write a introduction, then present it to our partner in order to decide on our topic. While finding a topic wasn’t too difficult, writing a good draft of an introduction was tricky because I didn’t really know which topics would be best to dive into to create a well written argument to present to the class. After, neither my partner nor my ideas were good enough for a topic, so we went back to searching. While Le Monde or Radio Canada are great sources, sadly my partner and I couldn’t find anything on either sites to help us with our argument. After lots of research, we finally found a good article to use, even though it was a bit too long for our liking. Another challenging aspect was creating a convincing argument for our audience and writing it formally. Once we had our official topic, it was to find good evidence and to write it formally. Our last step was to fine-tune our original argument with all of our evidence, but there was a lot of rewriting that needed to be done. For instance, when we were mentioning one topic, a different piece of evidence was used, yet it had no relevance to the subject. After doing our final edits, I believe we didn’t have any other conflicts with the project.

How did this project (as presenter or listener) change your perspectives?

This project changed my perspectives in many ways as both a listener and a presenter. For instance as a listener, I was convinced by the presenters and their arguments, as appose to the opposite argument that the audience was supporting. While the audience knew very little on the subject (other than the article that was read at the start of the debate), the opposing side always seemed more convincing as they did the research to understand their subject best. However as a presenter, my partner and I understood both sides to the argument and wrote down key facts for both of them. This was done to help build our original argument. For example, we turned those key point about the apposing side and turned them into questions to help build our argument even more. If someone in the audience asked a question, we had the answer to it, which demonstrated where we stood with our argument.

What were you most proud of in your project?

In my project, I was most proud of the research that was accomplished as well as the presentation done towards the class. My partner and I both did lots of research to build our argument with facts, research experiments, statistics, graphs, etc. We both found a fair amount of evidence, but it was important to use the pieces that were concise for our argument to help make our point clear. It was a lot of hard work and research that was done during and outside of school as well. In the end, our presentation to the class went well: we provided answers to key words and tried our best to explain the ones we didn’t have written down, we spoke clearly to the class when presenting our discussion, and we tried to answer the questions as best as we could. Overall, the project went well, it could have been better but I am confident that our argument was strong regardless.

Tech Team – Quarter One Reflection

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What are some initiatives\things\volunteering you have been involved with this past term? Describe what you have done, and the time you have spent.

Some volunteering aspects that I have been involved with this past term was supporting people in the Maker Space with the Cricut machine, keeping the Maker Space clean, helping at the Wave, and assisting the new Grade 9’s during the Boot Camp. With the Cricut machine, I would stop by after school to help anyone who was having difficulty using, understanding, or even connecting to it. Anytime I am in the Maker Space, I am always making sure that it is clean before leaving and that everyone is doing their part to keep it clean for the next user. Whenever I can get to school early, I make my way to the Wave to work on homework or study for a test while I wait to help others. Finally, with the Grade 9 Boot Camp, I came on time and assisted in anyway that I could by setting up before, helping with any technical problems that students had, and I made sure I helped clean up afterwards as well.

 

What are some things you have learned? What are some of your strengths?

Some things I have learned this past term were how to better use the Cricut machine as well as how to use it confidently to help others. Now, whenever someone asks me about a problem they are having with the Cricut machine, I can help them with confidence in what I am doing without asking others. If I can’t seem to find a solution to their problem, then I can ask an adult for additional assistance to help solve it.

 

What are some of the challenges, aha moments, small wins…you experienced? What are some areas where you can grow? What are some stretches?

Some challenges of mine this term were using the Cricut machine for the first time and instructing others on how to use it. For instance, when using the Cricut machine for the first time, some hiccups I had were how the application wouldn’t load for me to start my design, saving my sticker online or on my desktop, and setting up the printer itself. When assisting others on how to use the printer, I didn’t understand what the initial problem was until I stopped and really noticed what was not working for them. However, a small win for me was when the issue was finally resolved, and the print came out amazing! Now, I can continue to grow in that area by working with the Cricut machine, helping others and working on my own personal projects.

 

Looking ahead…What are some things you would like to improve and/or accomplish? Is there something I want to learn or try?  Focus on technology, leadership and school culture. Provide a specific goal.

Some things I would like to accomplish in the future are to use the Cricut machine more for personal projects or in group settings with clubs, classes, teams, etc. Something I would like to try would be to use the 3D printer and being more comfortable with using it. Perhaps for the next term, I can incorporate both my use of the 3D printer and the Cricut machine in a personal project of my own.

 

Here are some pictures of what I have done this term:

Tech Team – Sticker Made with the Cricut Maker

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Here are some pictures of how I designed, created, sized, and gifted my first sticker made with the Cricut Maker:

     

Some thing that was challenging for me to accomplish was signing into the Cricut App because the app had consistent loading problems. Finally, when the app worked, I looked at a few design ideas before coming up with the the one I wanted. After, I printed it, cut around the design, and I got rid of any excess vinyl. Another challenging aspect for me was determining the size of the sticker, just to make sure it wouldn’t be too big or small. A good way to verify this for me was by looking at the design while connecting to the Cricut machine that I was using.

Some things that worked well for me during this process was choosing a simple design to print, picking a colour to use, and peeling any extra material away. To choose a design for printing, I decided to create a flower as a surprise for one of my close friends, so I looked up some simple ideas and found the perfect one to use. In order to pick a colour, I looked in the vinyl drawer for the one that I wanted to use as a sticker (premium removable vinyl), and from there I picked a colour that I knew my friend would like. Finally, when it was time to clean up the excess vinyl, I made sure that I didn’t scrap the design and made it look clean to gift.

What I learned during this assignment was how to use the Cricut machine on my own, as well as how to help others by sharing my knowledge and tips on how to use the machine. I can apply this by assisting others who want to use the Cricut Maker, showing them how to set up the machine, how to design, which vinyl to use, etc. After, I can assure they know how to use it on their own so they can help others too. In the future, I can also use the Cricut on my own for personal projects, club designs, gifts to others, and more!