Our textbook is divided into chapters that correspond to those found in many other textbooks. Almost all the chapters start with interactive simulations that focus on qualitative aspects of the key topics. A typical chapter has six to ten interactive exercises.

For instance, the chapter on one-dimensional motion starts with simulations that ask students to experiment with velocity and acceleration in the context of “the tortoise and the hare” parable. The second simulation in the introduction requires the student to enter a negative acceleration to win the race (the hare has to make a U-turn to round a pole). The problem is easily solved qualitatively, but students are immediately exposed to, and asked about, the relationship of velocity and acceleration.

The chapter then has sections that present concepts like displacement and velocity. These are the sections where the bulk of the “classic” information is conveyed to the student. They function like expository sections in other textbooks that convey the information the student needs to know. Each such section has text and illustrations.

However, unlike a print textbook, the illustrations in these sections can be clicked on to launch another window that contains animations and audio. In this way, the students control their pace. These “whiteboards” are typically divided into three sections: concept, equation, and example. The introduction to the textbook discusses whiteboards in more depth.

Sample problems and derivations merit their own sections in Kinetic Books textbooks and are found between the expository sections. The sample problem sections offer students both the question and the answer and have ample space for illustrations, a listing of the variables, and so on. The sample problems are interspersed throughout the chapter, while the derivations are placed next to the section that contains the equation that is being derived.

The mix of expository sections, sample problems, and derivations resembles that found in other textbooks, and the mix will vary by the level of textbook. Where the Kinetics Books textbook differs is that it has ongoing interactive exercises throughout the chapter for students to self-assess their learning. These may be additional simulations, requiring them to apply what they learned.

For instance, in the one-dimensional motion chapter, the students are required to quantitatively solve the acceleration problem they encountered in the introductory section, and the parameters are set to require an answer with three significant figures. In other words, they must use a motion equation to solve the problem; qualitative experimentation proves a highly inefficient tactic.

The interactive self-assessment could also be an interactive checkpoint problem that walks the student through the solution of a problem, but the student must do the bulk of the work. Interactive checkpoints are discussed, and an example of one is shown, in the introduction. This pattern of exposition, sample problems and interactive self-assessments continues through a chapter. When appropriate, chapters conclude with a final interactive simulation that pulls together the topics covered in the chapter.