Today is the first day of our Sec 1 Physics class. I’ve been teaching JC and Sec 4 Physics for 10 years but have never thought of teaching S1 Physics until late last year. Last Nov I decided to have a Fast-Track Physics class in 2015 for interested S1 students especially those from IP schools, as their Physics in S1 normally includes concepts from S3.
Today we covered Physical Quantities, SI units, base quantities, prefixes, standard form and conversion of units. Terms taught included magnitude, direction, scalars and vectors.
Of the above, students found conversion of units and standard form to be the most difficult. This is because fractions, decimals and indices are involved. This is why I insist on teaching indices in my post-PSLE S1 Math Headstart classes. Many Physics students in S3 and S4 still find conversion of units difficult even though it is taught in S1 as well as in math.
Nevertheless, the S1 students enjoyed the class as they could see how math was applied to solve science problems. Next week we will be learning about how to measure lengths more accurately using vernier calipers.
Ilyasa
