Abstract for: Introducing Change over Time Lessons for Math and Science Pre-College Classes

Central to understanding dynamic phenomenon is understanding change over time patterns. In school, these patterns are formally introduced using symbolic representations which are often not intuitive to students. Activities that introduce some of the simple behavior patterns in a more intuitive manner will be introduced, followed by the stock/flow modeling structure that will capture the important components that produce the given pattern of change. Then these structures can be used together to study more realistic (but still simple) systemic problems appropriate for undergraduate students. Participants should expect to participate in the activities and follow up by building the models. Please bring a laptop.