The students make observations and take the mass of various structures constructed by the teacher. They rearrange the structures and measure the mass again. During the whole class discussion the students come to understand that during a chemical or physical change the mass is conserved.
Students will:
This lesson reinforces the previous lesson on physical and chemical changes. The focus of this lesson is to demonstrate that the mass remains the same when matter undergoes a physical or a chemical change.
Students should:
Guiding Questions
The teacher will begin the lesson with the chemical and physical changes t-chart and melting butter probe. After the discussion the teacher will review classroom and lab safety rules.The class will then read directions for the activity as a group. One person from each group will collect materials. students follow directions and complete assignment. When students are finished with activity the second person in the group will return materials. During the assessments and activity the teacher must monitor each student and/or group.
This is not a food lab, and safety rules should be reviewed.
In this lab, the teacher uses candy and toothpicks to model atoms. The teacher must set up prior to students arriving.
Use toothpicks and various shapes and types of soft candy (gummy bears, jellybeans, marshmallows, Starbursts, etc.) to create different structures. Students must be able to easily take them apart and rearrange them into different shapes. They can be as creative as they wish. Students will work in cooperative pairs to complete the activity.
Materials for each pair:
Procedure:
Students will measure the mass of the structures at the beginning and at the end of the activity and record the data in a data table. They will make observations by drawing before and after pictures of the structures and describing similarities and differences.
Students will answer the questions individually and share answers during whole class discussions.
Whole class discussion
From the discussion, the teacher and students come up with three facts that are essential to the lesson.
Students write the three facts in their science notebook. The students will then read it to themselves five times to process. Then, without looking at their notebooks, the students take turns repeating the facts to their shoulder/face partner until all of the facts have been verbalized by all of the students.
At the end of the lesson, the students will answer the following questions.
1. Students create a t-chart and classify the following as a physical change or a chemical change. Students should be able to justify answers.
Cracking eggs (physical), frying eggs (chemical), toasting bread (chemical), slicing bread (physical), lighting a match (chemical), rusting nails (chemical), melting butter(physical), breaking glass (physical), boiling water (physical), baking a cake (chemical), cutting the grass (physical), fireworks (chemical), and digesting food (chemical).
2. Melting Butter Probe - Students will complete this probe individually and then share answers during whole class discussion.
Leslie took 40 mg of solid butter out of the refrigerator, put it in a closed container, and placed it in the microwave. When she took out the melted butter there seemed to be less butter in the container. She turned to her sister and said, "There was more butter in the container before I melted it." Her sister said, "No, it's the same amount." With whom do you agree and why?
The formative assessments will take place at the beginning of the class. Students will get feedback as the questions are discussed during the whole class discussion.
Students keep a journal and document the ways that mass is conserved in their every day lives.
Teacher must have candy structures ready prior to the start of class. Materials may be reused.
Materials for each student pair: