Teacher workshop in Physics

On 12 March, 2019, a workshop for Physics teachers Komorebi- An interplay of activities and ideas in Physics was organised by BVN-IAPT Anveshika, at Birla Vidya Niketan, Pushp Vihar. The resource person was Dr. B. N. Das, eminent ex- professor of Presidency College, Kolkata. Our Ms. Archana Raichandani attended the workshop.

The Japanese word Komorebi refers to the interplay of light and leaves when sunlight filters through the trees. The aim of the workshop was to look at small concepts in a big way and let the clarity of concepts illuminate the teaching of Physics in the classroom.

The workshop started with simple activities like cloud formation in a small plastic bottle. To demonstrate the activity, a bottle was filled with water up to a fourth of its capacity. When the bottle was compressed and released, it suddenly lead to a sudden rise and fall in temperature, forming vapours inside the bottle. Then a burning piece of paper was placed inside it and the cap was fastened. Upon opening the cap of the bottle a sudden burst of clouds appeared.

The phenomenon of lateral inversion was demonstrated using a plane mirror and a transparent plastic sheet with something written on it, indicating how the angle between the observer, object and mirror affected the formation of laterally inverted images.

Differentiation between diffraction (bending of light around the corners of an obstacle) and interference (superposition of light waves from two coherent sources) was demonstrated using a laser beam and a strand of hair ( for diffraction) and a double slit grating ( for interference).

Rolling of wheel was demonstrated using a spinner fixed on a CD with a screw attached to it, depicting the effect of variation in the position of centre of gravity whenever the wheel tilts.

The workshop was highly interactive and thought provoking. It highlighted the various ways of solving a problem and laid stress on how to kickstart the process of learning in the class.