1. C1 2010 Home-Based Learning: Do-It-Yourself Physics

2. DIY Physics Read the instructions in this PPT presentation carefully and thoroughly before embarking on the assignment.

3. DIY Physics This assignment involves you carrying out a physics demonstration/experiment at your own home. The objective is to entice you to the fun of getting your hands dirty and performing investigations of your own. Observe safety precautions at all time.

4. Step 1: Choose a task The following is a list of websites that provide demos/expts that one can carry out at home. Browse through them to decide on one task that you will Do-it- yourself. http://www.thenakedscientists.com/ http://www.csiro.au/resources/PhysicsActivities.html http://scitoys.com/ http://www.instructables.com/id/Science/ http://www.pitt.edu/~dwilley/Show/menu.html http://www.lhup.edu/~dsimanek/scenario/demos.htm http://scifun.chem.wisc.edu/HomeExpts/HOMEEXPTS.HTML http://www.physicscentral.org/experiment/physicsathome/rocket- balls.cfm http://www.physicscentral.org/experiment/physicsathome/rocket- balls.cfm Any episode of Mr G’s “Do try this at home” on http://www.youtube.com (search for: physics experiments at home, do try this at home)http://www.youtube.com

5. Step 2: Film it Make a video (not exceeding 3 mins) of you performing the chosen task. IMPORTANT: It must be clear from the video that it was an original video from you and not one downloaded from the internet. You can appear in the video, OR You can place a card bearing your name in the background of your demo.

6. Step 3: Think of an extension Think of an extension to the original task. The extension could take the form of achieving the same result in another way (e.g. change some material here, make some modification there) Or the demo could be tweaked to show another physics concept. The extension should allow you to demonstrate your understanding of the physics behind the task.

7. Step 4: Film the extension Make a video (not exceeding 3 mins) of you performing the extension task.

8. Step 5: Upload Upload both your videos to a video-sharing website. We recommend www.youtube.com

9. Content with vulgarities, obscenities, racial and religious prejudice are strictly disallowed. Swift school disciplinary action will be taken against offenders.

10. Step 6: Submission Template Fill up the submission template (the 2 nd attachment in the EMB). This includes filling in the URLs of the source your chosen task, and your own videos. It also includes a 150-word write up to explain the extension task.

11. The demo/experiment should be entirely your own work! Swift school disciplinary action will be taken against ALL involved in submitting a work that was not done by you. You can discuss with friends, but you must DO-IT-YOURSELF.

12. Step 7: Email your tutor Name your file in the format – “CLASS NAME – TITLE of SUBMISSION.doc”. – E.g. “10S6Z Tan Ah Teck – Egg in a Bottle.doc” Email the document to your tutor

13. List of Tutors’ emails Mr Chua Kah Hean chuakh@hc.edu.sgchuakh@hc.edu.sg Miss Esther Tay esthertay@hc.edu.sgesthertay@hc.edu.sg Mr Ho Hon Wing hohw@hc.du.sghohw@hc.du.sg Mr Lee Lih Juinn leelj@hc.edu.sgleelj@hc.edu.sg Mrs Leo-Chua Hui Li Teri chuahl@hc.edu.sgchuahl@hc.edu.sg Dr Lim Jit Ning limjn@hc.edu.sglimjn@hc.edu.sg Mrs Loh-Lam Yen Ling lohyl@hc.edu.sglohyl@hc.edu.sg Mr Tan Oon How tanoh@hc.edu.sgtanoh@hc.edu.sg

14. Marking Rubric No marks (0 mark) Approaching expectations (1 mark) Meeting expectations (2 marks) Exceeding expectations (3 marks) Implemenation of Task Criterion has not been met. Task is carried out in a sloppy, half- hearted manner, with poor choice of material and procedures. Task is carried out in a thoughtful manner, with suitable choice of material and procedures. Task carried out demonstrated great determination and effort to overcome technical difficulties, with suitable choice of material and procedures. Presentation of Task The task is presented in a manner that is hard to follow. The task is presented in a manner that is easy to follow. The task is presented in a professional manner, with clear narration or subtitles. Task ExtensionThe extension demonstrates ideas that are trivial. The extension demonstrates physics ideas that are relevant. The extension demonstrates physics ideas that are insightful. Write-up on the Task Extension The physics ideas are wrong or poorly verbalized. The physics ideas are partially correct and explained. The physics ideas are correct and clearly explained. NOTE: One mark will be deducted if the write-up on the task extension exceeds the 150 word limit.

15. Sample To make things really simple and self-explanatory to you, we have provided a sample submission in the EMB (the 3 rd attachment in this EMB) Make sure you view the videos to get a feel of our expectations. Sample video of ‘Egg in a bottle’ : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z4IVy_CZEcs http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z4IVy_CZEcs Sample video of ‘Egg in a bottle’ extension : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6O9BLun8RsY

16. DEADLINE 8 am on 8 th March (Monday) Submit early to avoid the curse of Murphy's Law. Late submissions will be greeted with pure joy from your tutors who will award you a zero for your effort.

17. Island Creamery vouchers Top submissions will be shortlisted. C1 students will vote for your favourite submission. The top 3 submissions (by vote) win Island Creamery vouchers!

18. Frequently Asked Questions

19. FAQ: How do I provide evidence that my video is an original? You can appear in the video, OR You can place a card bearing your name in the background of your demo.

20. FAQ: Can I appear in the video to provide narration? Yes, you can. However, we insist that you be dressed in civilian wear and not school uniform. Since your video is going to be uploaded to a public website, we want to minimize the risk of you tarnishing the reputation of your school.

21. FAQ: Can I edit my video before uploading? Yes. In fact, you are encouraged to use video-editing software to add subtitles or narrations. The Windows Movie Maker software that comes with pre-installed in every windows PC is idiot-proof and good enough for our purposes.

22. 1. Use the import functions to pull in your video and audio files 2. Drag the video/audio files into the story board 3c. Move/split your video/audio in the story board. Play and see how it goes. 3a. Videos 3b. Use audio files if you want to “dub” over your video 4. Finally, save your video into a movie Windows Movie Maker

23. FAQ: How do I “dub” over the video to provide narration? A neat way to provide narration is through those text-to-speech converters which allows you to type your script and output them into mp3 files. An example is the ClipSpeak 1.5 available at http://www.freewarefiles.com/ClipSpeak_pro gram_42972.html http://www.freewarefiles.com/ClipSpeak_pro gram_42972.html

24. FAQ: What if I only have a camera capable of only photographs and not videos? You must then use a video-editing software (e.g. Windows Movie Maker) to string your photographs together and make a movie out of it. (See the second video in the sample submission which was done this manner)

25. 3a. Import photographs into the story board 3c. Arrange “title overlays” to provide subtitles 3b. Create “title overlays” Windows Movie Maker

26. FAQ: Can I borrow equipment from the school labs? No. It is meant to be Do-It-Yourself.

27. FAQ: Can I carry out a task of my own that is not listed in your list of websites? No. To minimize the risk of you endangering yourself and your neighbours, we insist you choose from our list.

28. Yes, you can do the same experiment as your friend. But you cannot share the same materials, submit the same video, or copy his task extension. It can be the same experiment BUT you still have to Do-It-Yourself in all aspects. FAQ: Can I do the same experiment as my friend?

29. Read the ‘Help’ section in Youtube. Ask your friends to teach you. FAQ: What happens if I do not know how to upload my videos into Youtube?

30. No. 1 mark will be deducted for each video that exceeds 3 mins. FAQ: Can my video exceed 3 mins?

31. FAQ: Can my write-up on the task extension exceed the 150 word limit? No, 1 mark will be deducted for exceeding the 150 word limit.

32. The End Have fun! Remember to email your tutors your work by 8 a.m on 8 th March (Monday)!!