essential-questions

[]One question that I’ve seen pop up again and again in science classes is, “what would happen to Earth if the Sun suddenly disappeared?” I’ve had this question in science 9, science and technology, and in physics. I guess it’s one of those things that many people hypothesize on. I was thinking about this today, along with the idea of Essential Questions driving classroom explorations and learning. I wondered if we could use the following as the essential question for a unit on gravity in Physics 12

I’ve often wondered if all of the segmented learning objectives in Standards Based Grading results in too much reductionism and micro-managing of learning, where the forest gets lost in all of the trees. In response to this, I’ve been reading “Understanding By Design” by Grant Wiggins and Jay McTighe, with hopes of clarifying the learning intentions with my students. Certainly my students should be aware of individual skills or required knowledge, but how these pieces fit into a bigger picture is more important.