Gretchin Geye’s Physics classes at Brownwood High School were given the opportunity to do something out of the ordinary on Tuesday, November 22nd, the day before the Thanksgiving holiday. For many years now Geye has taken her Physics classes bowling, and though this proves to be a fun time for her students, the focus of the trip is actually about applying Physics learned in the classroom to a real world scenario.
With two dual credit and five regular physics classes including an additional one taught by Coach Derrick Stacks, a total of 186 students participated in the activity at Academy Lanes.
“Mr. Faircloth (BHS Principal) makes sure we have the funds to pay for the student’s bowling and Academy Lanes helps us by absorbing the cost of the student’s shoes,” Geye said.
While coordinating the different classes and getting the students to the bowling alley might seem to be a daunting task, Geye has a group of BHS administration and staff that she relies on to get it all accomplished including Andy Gill and Mitch Moore, both of which are assistant principals at Brownwood High School.
“Mr. Moore and Mr. Gill are instrumental in helping me with logistics and with setting up transportation,” Geye said. “Coach Stacks drove the bus and also helped us to monitor (the students).”
Armed with rulers, calculators, and their best bowling skills, BHS students took to the lanes and began measuring different variables associated with ball and its journey to the pins. Bowling gives the students a chance to see how the equations learned in the classroom can be seen in action.
“I learned it (Bowling to teach Physics) from Dr. Robert Beck Clark, one of my favorite professors at Texas A&M University,” Geye said. “The students work with speed, mass, weight, momentum, kinetic energy, potential energy, radius, angular velocity, centripetal acceleration, and centripetal force.”
Pictured above: (From left) AJ Stokes, Lexie Garrett, and Sarah Faetche. Pictured Below: (From left) Nat DeLaTorre and Jordyn Senkirik. Photos Contributed by BISD.
