Data Activities Portfolio

The Data Portfolio is a compendium of particle physics classroom activities organized by Data Strand, Level of student engagement, Curriculum Topics and NGSS Standards. Follow the links provided for information about using the Data Portfolio to plan your students’ experience. Level descriptions explain the data analysis skills that students apply at each level: tasks in Level 0 are simpler than those in Levels 1 and 2...

Activity Name Data Strand Level Curriculum Topics NGSS Practices
epmlogy Energy, Momentum, and Mass

Students examine data to find how energy, momentum, and mass are related.

Cosmic Ray, LHC, Neutrino Level 1 Conservation Laws, Electricity & Magnetism, Skill: Developing Models, Skill: Graphing, Special Relativity 2, 4, 5, 7, 8
dpdx What Heisenberg Knew

Heisenberg knew that, at the quantum level, we cannot know everything, at least not all at once. Students explore uncertainties in measurements of complimentary variables to find this out for themselves.

Neutrino Level 1 Kinematics, Quantum Mechanics, Skill: Coding, Skill: Developing Models, Skill: Graphing 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
uspenny Mass of U.S. Pennies

Students create and interpret a histogram of penny masses. 

Cosmic Ray, LHC Level 0 Skill: Coding, Skill: Developing Models, Skill: Histograms, Skill: Uncertainty 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
sn Signal and Noise: The Basics

Students analyze signals and noise first in audio and video forms and then look at signals and noise from physics measurements.

Cosmic Ray, LHC, Neutrino Level 0 Instrumentation, Skill: Uncertainty, Waves & Interference 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
wokbench Quark Workbench 2D/3D

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

Cosmic Ray, LHC Level 0 Conservation Laws, Nature of Matter, Skill: Developing Models, Standard Model 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7
quad Mapping the Poles

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

LHC Level 0 Electricity & Magnetism, Skill: Developing Models 2, 4, 6, 7
muoncard Shuffling the Particle Deck

Teams of students organize cards depicting fundamental particles based on their characteristics. This activity is a foundation for learning about the Standard Model and parallels the methods used by scientists to organize the elements into the period table.

Cosmic Ray, LHC, Neutrino Level 0 Spanish Language, Standard Model, Skill: Developing Models 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7
index Dice, Histograms & Probability

Students roll dice, record the resulting individual values as well as the sum of the values, create histograms of the data and develop insight into the concept of “degrees of freedom." 

Cosmic Ray, LHC Level 0 Skill: Developing Models, Skill: Histograms, Skill: Uncertainty, Spanish Language 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
cloud chamber Making Tracks I

Students analyze tracks in a cloud chamber.

Cosmic Ray, LHC, Neutrino Level 0 Nature of Matter, Skill: Developing Models, Standard Model 1, 2, 4, 6, 7
hexigon QuarkNet: Changing the Culture

Lesson #1 in QuarkNet STEP UP Series on encouraging the study of physics. 

Level 0