Sheila Edstrom

“Kids, Cars, and Kinematics” is Edstrom’s winning program that is designed to bring the description of motion to life through hands-on experience in her physics classes. Through the use of wireless units attached to high-speed remote control cars, the students measure the changes in acceleration, velocity and vertical displacement, and map out the paths taken by the cars through an analysis of the data captured. Additionally, some of the more experienced students will be able to use the devices to explore everything from the motion of a gymnast flipping and twisting through air to the arm movements of a cellist playing music. Edstrom, who lives in Tower Lakes, hopes her program provides hands-on experiences that allow her students to construct meaningful interpretations of every day motion.