Introduction

Hey Folks,

If you are here, you must be in the Modeling Physics Workshop at Oakland Schools this summer.  I figured a good first post would be to introduce myself.  I am Ben, and I teach at University Liggett School in Grosse Pointe Woods, MI.  It is a PK-12 grade secular private school that was founded in 1878.  I just finished my 11th year teaching exclusively physics there.  I am also a class dean, I am in charge of creating the schedule, and I act as the registrar in the upper school.  One of the gifts I have is total autonomy in my classroom.  This has allowed me to design a neat curriculum, and test out a bunch of new teaching methods in my 11 years.  I currently teach two junior level electives called "Light, Sound, and Waves" and "Classical Mechanics" a junior level honors physics class and two senior electives titled "Calculus-Based Mechanics" and "Electricity and Magnetism."  I am interested in meeting other physics teachers from southeast Michigan, as I am the only physics teacher at Liggett.  I attended Lake Forest College in Illinois, and have been the lucky recipient of loads of equipment and advice from my college professors there.  But, while I have had lots of experience, and I get help where I need it, I have not had a lot of interaction with other high school physics teachers.  I became interested in attending this workshop after speaking with Gary Abud of Grosse Pointe North High School.  He spoke very highly of this program, and it was clear that he was an energetic and capable teacher.  It was also clear that his students engaged in class in a different way than mine do.  We are currently undergoing a shift in focus with our curriculum at Liggett, and we are placing a heavy emphasis on student engagement and on making thinking visible in the classroom.  Our headmaster has written an academic paper outlining the curriculum, and he has named this new model the "Curriculum for Understanding."  This workshop seemed like the perfect fit for me in my current place in my career.  I look forward to meeting all of you.  See you next Thursday!