Name:
ANSWER KEY
Period: _______ Date _____________
TOC # 2
What Do We Know About Fireworks?
Directions:
Part 1 (10-15 minutes)
Before reading, in the first column, write “A” or “D” indicating your agreement or disagreement
with each statement. After making a decision about each statement compare answers with the
person sitting next to you and discuss the reasons you have for differences in your choices.
Part 2 (20-25 minutes)
As you read the article, compare your opinions with information from the article. In the space
under each statement, write a statement from the article that supports or refutes your original
ideas. Now compare notes again with a classmate. Do you agree?
Me
Text
Statement
1. The colors of fireworks are produced by metals.
The colors of fireworks are made by explosive materials known as
“stars”. The metal determines the color of the fireworks.
Reds – strontium, lithium
Orange – calcium
Yellow – sodium
Green – barium + chlorine
Blue – copper + chlorine
Purple – mixture of strontium (red) and copper (blue)
2. Gunpowder is used to explode fireworks.
Gunpowder is a well known explosive. The fast-acting fuse causes
the gunpowder to explode and the shell shoots up into the sky. The
bursting charge also explodes when the time-delay fuse ignites.
3. During the explosion of fireworks, gases are moving faster than
the speed of sound, so a sonic boom is produced.
The loud boom that accompanies a firework is actually a sonic
boom produced by the expansion of the gases at a rate faster than
the speed of sound. Gases expand when you heat them up.
Me
Text
Statement
4. Colored light can be produced when electrons change energy
levels inside atoms.
Atoms have electrons inside them. When they absorb energy from
heat it causes them to move even faster into an “excited” state.
They then move to a Lower energy state and emit (give off) light of
a specific color.
5. Firework explosions can be designed to look like flowers or trees
in the sky.
If fireworks are packed carefully in predetermined patterns, then
the firework will have a specific shape – such as a flower or a tree –
because the “stars” are sent in specific directions during the
explosion.
6. Fireworks that can be legally purchased in most states contain
less than 10 mg of gunpowder.
Forty one of our 50 states allow for the purchase of fireworks.
These should have NO more than 50 mg of gunpowder.
7. The highest temperatures produced by firecrackers are only
about 500 C.
Firecrackers can burn up to temperatures of 1000 degrees Celsius
OR 1800 degrees Fahrenheit.
Me
Text
Statement
8. Chemists who design fireworks are experts on many kinds of
explosions.
Many chemists who design fireworks also work on military
applications such as producing brightly colored smoke for signaling
purposes. Those who dispose of bombs may need to know how
these kinds of explosions are made.
9. Pyrotechnic chemists are working to make fireworks safer for
both people and the environment.
It is important for pyrotechnic chemists to develop stable
compounds that only explode/ignite in the sky. It is also important
to make them as environmentally friendly as possible.
10.This article may change my views on fireworks.
Opinions will vary.