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How to Inspire a Lasting Love for Physics in Your Child?

by Sep 13, 2016Physics

Subjects like English, Mathematics and Science form to be the basic necessary elements in a student’s career. These are the subjects which are not only limited to academic career of a person, but also have its significance in the practical life ahead. These subjects have huge learning potentials which are just not limited to walls of classroom.
Physics comprises to be a major part of science education. It helps students learn various ways to analyze concepts critically. The subject deals with topics related to matter and energy. It involves various laws, calculations, derivations which are essential to understand the fundamental concept of the subject.
Students, who generally have curiosity to know everything under the world, are bound to fall in love with this subject. However loving and understanding a subject like Physics is not same. While many students automatically excel in this subject, there are many who fail to bring good marks in the subject. These students need to put in great hard work to excel in the subject.
Students spent most of their time with their parents and teachers. While the daytime is generally spent with school teachers, the rest of the day is with parents only. Teachers and parents know each of their children well. They are quite aware of their strengths and weaknesses. As elders, it is your moral responsibility to help a child who is weak in physics.
Initially your focus should be how you can make your child inspire in a way that he starts loving physics. Loving a subject is very essential to understand its fundamental concepts. And once the concepts are clear, good academic results will follow.
So, if your child is weak in physics or hates it completely, then you need to learn ways in which you can make your child love Physics. You can even check 5 practical examples to help your child learn Physics.

  • ways to make your child love Physics

Step-1: Make the child understand the basic concept

  1. Help him memorize the basic constants of physics-

Forces like accelerating force of gravity on Earth are some mathematical constants which are very important in the world of physics. These constants are represented by numbers which are used the same way no matter what the context is. Thus it is very important for your child to memorize these basic concepts.
Some of these important constants are listed below-
* Speed of light- 3×108 meters/second
* Gravity on Earth- 9.81 meters/second2
* Molar Gas Constant- 8.32 joules/ (mole× Kelvin)
* Planck’s Constant- 6.63× 10-34 Joules × seconds
* Avogadro’s number- 6.02 × 1023 per mole

  1. Memorization of basic equations-

Physics involves a lot of equations which are used for describing the relationship between many different forces in the universe. Ask your child to memorize the simple equations. Once these are memorized, it will somewhat be easy to solve the complex problems. These equations are the easiest part of the subject. If the child learns these equations, it is guaranteed that the child will be able to solve some part of the complex problems at least.
Some important equations are-
* Velocity= Change in time/Change in position
* Acceleration= Change in Velocity/Change in time
* Work= Displacement × Force
* Force= Mass × Acceleration
* Power= Change in Time/Change in Work
* Current velocity= Initial velocity + (Acceleration × Time)
* Kinetic Energy= (1/2) Mass × velocity2

  1. Know the derivation of basic equation-

It is true that memorizing the equations will help your child during problem solving. But memorizing those blindly is not going to help in the long run. Your child needs to know why those equations are important to work. Make your child know how these equations are derived. When he knows the significance of these equations, he will be able to work out the problems more efficiently other than just memorizing it.
Step-2: Ensure that your child is strong in Mathematics
It is a universal fact that maths and physics are inter-related. Whenever you need to solve a problem in Physics, you will see that it involves calculations and equations which are a component of basic mathematics. Thus, if you want your child loves physics and excels in it, at first you need to ensure his command on mathematics. If a student is good in mathematics, he will surely success in physics with hard work. There are some complex problems in physics which require expertise in mathematics. However, there are few parts of mathematics, which will help your child to succeed in physics.
* Pre-algebra and algebra
* Geometry
* Trigonometry
* Pre- calculus and calculus
Step-3: Make the child learn strategies for score boosting during exams

  1. Your child should focus on the important part of the question only-

Whenever your child gets to solve a question or problem in Physics, he should focus on the important areas of the question only. This is because physics questions consist of some unnecessary parts too which are there only for confusing students.
Once he identifies the important parts, he should note down the equations important for the sum and simply ignore the unnecessary parts. Getting indulged into the unnecessary parts can simply slow down your process and consume a lot of your valuable time.

  1. Have the knowledge to use the correct units for every problem-

Usage of the correct units with the correct answer is very important in a subject like Physics. Students often get confused which units to use in what type of problem. Thus, even if your child has got the correct answer, a wrong usage of the unit can fetch him a ‘0’ or negative marks. Some students even tend to forget mentioning about units in a sum. A physics problem with no unit is equal to a wrong answer. Some important units are-
* Mass- kilograms or grams
* Acceleration- meters/second2
* Velocity- meters/second(can even be kilometers/hours)
* Force- Newton
*Power- Watts

  1. Re-checking the answers-

Sometimes students tend to make some silly mistakes which result in wrong answers. Ask your child to double check each part of a physics question as it involves lot of equations and calculations. While checking, your child should have full attention to every part.
Step-4: Performing Well during Physics class in School
If children perform well in class, or can connect with what they are taught in class then they are bound to love the subject. Parents and teachers can ensure the class performance by-

  1. Reading the topic to be taught prior to class-

Most teachers let their students know what they will teach the next day. Thus you need to ensure that the child reads the topic prior to his physics class. This will help him in understanding the topic well and he can even clear all his doubts related to the topic there itself. This even creates a good impression among the teachers.

  1. Being attentive in class-

It is true that students should enjoy their school life. But it does not mean compromising with class hours. If your child pays attention in the class to what the teacher is teaching, good results will follow. Ensure that your child does not get distracted by other classmates at the cost of his studies.
Step-5: Studying at home

  1. Ask him to review- The child should review everything taught in class. This will help in his clear understanding. This will help in retaining the knowledge of the topic.
  2. Solving practice questions and mock tests- The child should be ready with exams beforehand. Make him practice various practice questions and appear in mock tests. The more he practices, the more he will love it!

With these strategies you can inspire and motivate your child in a way that he loves Physics. These will not only generate love in him but also help him to excel in the subject. You can also go through Ways to Understand Physics with real life examples or take help from professional websites which can give best suggestion to resolve your issue.
If your child is facing problems with certain sub-topics of physics like ‘electricity’, you can get help from Simple yet effective tips to understand electricity.