Melting Ice

Just trying out tomorrow's lesson from a student's point of view.  I think this is going to work.  This experiment doesn't really have a problem and hypothesis portion of the scientific method.

Background:

The kinetic theory of matter is the current theory that explains how the particles within an object behave as they absorb or release energy.  These are the 4 main points:

1. As particles gain energy they move more quickly.
2. Particles are held together by attractive forces.
3.  Particles are in constant motion.
4. At the same temperature more massive particles move more slowly than less massive ones.

Materials: 

2 hot plates, 2 beakers, ice, water, LabQuest, temperature probes

Procedure:

1. Set the LabQuest to record the temperature once every 2 minutes for 20 minutes.
2. Place 200 mL of water in one beaker and 200 mL of ice in a second beaker.
3. Put each on their own hot plate that is set at a moderate temperature.  (We used 4.)
4. Put one probe in the water and one in the ice.
5. Press play on the LabQuest. 
6. Record data in the data table and answer questions while waiting for the data to be collected.

Results:

Data Table 1: (This data is completely made up by me so that I may show students a sample lab report.)

time (minutes)	temp ice (deg C)	temp water (deg c)
0	5	11
2	7	20
4	7	25
6	8	32
8	10	35
10	15	40

Data Analysis:

 As both the raw data above and the graph at the left indicate the temperature began to significantly increase at the 8 minute mark.  This increase occurred with both the ice and the water.

Also, it should be noted that both substances have very similar heating patterns.

Finally, ........

Conclusion:

I am choosing not to write up the conclusion here as I want to see what the students have to say as opposed to them copying my thoughts.

The Rainbow Lab

 I am so excited for the new year!  I have a wonderful group of students that are very interested in "doing" science.  We were able to set up our blogs and get started blogging about our science experiences. 

In this particular lab students were to practice reading a graduated cylinder using colored water to create a rainbow.  Not only did the kids have to read the graduated cylinder correctly they also had to follow directions to the letter in order to get the appropriate results.  Some were more successful than others as always but all completed the assignment with enthusiasm. 

I love my students!

A New Year; Another Try!

Every year it seems I try this blogging thing with my students.  I hope once again to be able to get them to write their lab reports on their own blog and then to comment on each others' posts. Some of the limitations I run into is the students accessibility to the internet and our ability to use computers at school.  I am hopeful that we will be able to blog from our devices (ipads, smartphones, etc.).

Setting up a blog is really very simple but for some reason 14 year old students have trouble.  If I am able to take them to the computer lab next week I hope to get all of them set up.  And I hope that each of them will be able to post their gummi bear lab report complete with bar graph and images.  That is this week's technology goal.

Fingers crossed!

Response Journal Entry 1

Remember to complete the prompts from the "Am I Freezing" project on your blog in complete sentences and to copy the questions there too.  These questions are designed to get you thinking about the Kinetic Theory of Matter and how it relates to changes in state.

Part I:  Complete the Melting/Freezing Matrix and answer the following:

1.    Why do the substances melt? (Hint: you need more information than just saying they got hotter.)

2.    Why do the substances freeze?

3.   Why doesn’t the water refreeze? (Hint: you need more than saying it didn’t get cold enough)

Density Column

Today's lesson involved creating a density column.  This column is created with various concentrations of sugar water.  Each color represents another layer.  By changing the concentration I am changing the density. 

The Passing of a Former Student

The young man on the right touched my life only briefly.  I will remember his constant smile and his attitude toward life.  He is amazing in that he was fighting a battle that not many knew about. He had a form of cancer that was attacking his spinal cord.  While he often aggravated me with his pranks and the fact that he often wouldn't do his homework, he was a good kid.  You will be missed Will.

Gummi Bears

This lab never ceases to fascinate the students.  We soak a Gummi Bear overnight in cold tap water and then observe the results.  I use this lab to teach the difference between qualitative vs. quantitative data. 
Someday, I hope to have a group of students who will investigate the reactions in other liquids.  I would love to know how they react in Kool-aid, salt-water, etc.