QuarkNet Data Portfolio

A collection of proven instructional activities developed around data strands that help students develop an understanding about how scientists make discoveries. 
The Data Portfolio organizes activities by data strand and level of student engagement. Activities differ in complexity and sophistication—tasks in Level 1 are simpler than those in Levels 2 and 3. While each level can be explored individually, students that start in one level and progress to more complex levels experience increasingly engaging and challenging tasks. Teachers select activities to offer a learning experience of an appropriate length and level for their students.

A collection of proven instructional activities developed around data strands that help students develop an understanding about how scientists make discoveries.

The Data Portfolio organizes activities by data strand and level of student engagement. Activities differ in complexity and sophistication—tasks in Level 1 are simpler than those in Levels 2 and 3. While each level can be explored individually, students that start in one level and progress to more complex levels experience increasingly engaging and challenging tasks. Teachers select activities to offer a learning experience of an appropriate length and level for their students.

Activity Name Data Strand Level Curriculum Topics NGSS Practices Topic
Making Tracks II

Students analyze tracks in a bubble chamber.

Mapping the Poles

Students explore some basics of magnetic fields that can be related to experimental particle physics.

Mass of U.S. Pennies

Students create and interpret a histogram of penny masses.

Mean Lifetime Part 1: Dice

Rolling dice serves as the model for decaying particles.

Mean Lifetime Part 2: Cosmic Muons

Students learn how physicists measure muon lifetime.

Mean Lifetime Part 3: MINERvA

Students collect data from muons which decay in the MINERvA detector in the Fermilab NuMi beamline to understand particle decay and determine the muon lifetime.

Particle Transformations

Students discover the rules of particle transformations using transformation diagrams.

Quark Workbench 2D/3D

Students use Standard Model rules to build hadrons and mesons from quarks.

QuarkNet STEP UP Women in Physics

Lesson #3 in QuarkNet STEP UP Series on diversity and inclusion.

QuarkNet STEP UP: Careers in Physics

Lesson #2 in QuarkNet STEP UP Series on diversity and inclusion.