Blog Post Week 12

 

To start lab we reflected on our previous homework assignment. Our group said we learned the different endpoints for each grade band, that the weight of a substance doesn't change no matter the reaction, and that we should introduce vocabulary before the concept to aid in teaching the content. We found it interesting that matter can form new properties through chemical reactions, and that all substances are generally made up of 100 different types of atoms. A question we had remaining after our homework was which concept is typically most challenging for students to understand?

Then we completed a series of experiments and recorded our observations:

            Will it sink or float?
                penny: sank

                 cork: floated

             wood block: sank                                                      Will it have the same volume?

                                                                                       with the half wood stick, it went up by 5 mL

                                                                                    with the crayon, the volume also went up by 5 mL

    Will it have the same mass?

            full cork mass .05 

      1/3 -1/2 cork mass : .018                                                   Will it conduct electricity?

                                                                       electric circuit foil worked w both half and full tin foil

             Will it be attracted to a magnet?

        The magnets stuck to only the paper clip

By conducting all these tests during lab we were able to more finely define what matter is and what its properties are. I thought this was really interesting because it seemed to happen almost subconsciously. I think this would be a beneficial sequence of activities for elementary students to complete when getting introduced to matter.