To most of us, the Frisbee is just a toy, something to toss around in the backyard or on the beach. But to Keith Watts, it’s a teaching tool. 

For the last two years, the Gainesville High School teacher has been incorporating Frisbees into his physics lessons. Recently he took his students and those from several other science classes out onto the school’s athletic fields for a day of tossing--and teaching. He says the hands-on approach helps the students experience and internalize lessons on such concepts as lift, force balances and other aerodynamic principles.

“If they’re just reading it out of a textbook they’ll memorize it, write it on a test and then probably forget about it,” said Watts. “But when they see it and experience it here, they really retain it.”

Watts recognizes that the subject of physics intimidates a lot of people. But he believes that physics can be much easier to understand when science teachers relate it to everyday activities.

“When you walk down the stairs, it’s physics,” he said. “When you drive a car, it’s all physics. Everything you do is about physics, and once you make that connection it really demystifies the concepts.”

Watts’ students say they are making those connections thanks to his emphasis on physics in everyday life.

“One time I was driving and I started wondering what the problem would be if I went over a speed bump faster,” said senior Yael Goldstein. “It just randomly popped into my head, so he’s definitely brought it into actual life.”

“He’s really good about telling us how we can relate what we’re learning to examples in real life,” said classmate Dana Jackson.

Of course, the Frisbee activity required the students to do more than play catch. They were asked to toss the Frisbees in different ways and to try tossing irregular or broken Frisbees. They then had to record their observations and consider possible explanations for what they saw. Students say the combination of play and work made a difference.

“We can really learn because it’s interactive,” said junior Matt Deardon. “I learn a lot more doing hands-on stuff than just reading out of books.”