Sosnowski Uses Ropes Course to Teach Physics

Roosevelt High School science teacher Chris Sosnowski and Southeast Polk High School science teacher Garrett Hall recently presented at the 24th Annual International Association for Challenge Course Technology (ACCT) Conference in Orlando, Florida. Hall and Sosnowski spend their summers working for the Adventure Learning Center, a program run by the Iowa State University Extension and Outreach office in Polk County, in which they lead students and adult groups through experiential learning using local challenge courses.

Sosnowski, a physics teacher, realized that the challenge course, which consists of low ropes (challenge elements that are near or at ground level) and high ropes (challenge elements that are usually 10-30 feet off the ground) could be manipulated to teach physics content to students, by using the students as the physics problems. With the help of Hall, the two facilitated groups throughout the summer and realized that a curriculum could be born from the experience.  At the ACCT conference, Hall and Sosnowski worked with 14 challenge course operators, owners, and builders, taking them through the learner and teacher perspective of using the challenge course as a teaching tool. The physics curriculum can be used by students in grades 6-12 and can be modified for all ability levels. By leading the participants through the normal functions of climbing, belaying and traversing a challenge course, Hall and Sosnowski were able to relate high school and middle school science lessons that teach concepts like the force of gravity and friction.

The conference participants were able to reimagine how they could engage local teachers and students. Although participants were reluctant to share their lack of physics knowledge at the start, they left the workshop with concrete experiences that linked them to physics content. They are now prepared to return to their home courses, ready to invite their local science teachers out for a spin on the ropes