I do this demonstration on the first day of school to get the students attention. After talking about the syllabus, what is physics, making them think, etc, I ask them which falls faster, a heavy object or a light object? I get the discussion going and everybody into it, then I jump up on my demonstration table, take off my shoe and ask which will hit the ground first, the pen in my hand or my shoe, which is now in my other hand. I drop them several times so that everybody sees they hit the ground at the same time.
I can’t tell you how many kids have told me they went home and did the same experiment. Sure it would work standing on the ground, but the act of climbing up on the table shakes them up and shows them this is going to be a different kind of class.
