Science Learning Community: Science and Engineering Lesson Plans
LIGHT IT UP!
Jon Claesson
July 17, 2014
INFORMATION ABOUT THE LESSON
Grade Level and Subject Area
Grades 5-7 Physical Science
Time Frame
Approximately four 45 minute class periods.
Objectives: Upon completion of this unit, students will be able to:
Students will be able to determine the difference between series and parallel circuits.
Students will be able to determine what type of circuit is mainly used in our homes.
Students will apply the Engineering Design Process to solve an electrical circuit problem.
Next Generation Science Standards
Science Standards:
4-PS3-4.
Apply scientific ideas to design, test, and refine a device that converts energy from one form to
another.* [Clarification Statement: Examples of devices could include electric circuits that convert electrical energy
into motion energy of a vehicle, light, or sound; and, a passive solar heater that converts light into heat.
Examples of constraints could include the materials, cost, or time to design the device.] [Assessment Boundary:
Devices should be limited to those that convert motion energy to electric energy or use stored energy to cause motion or
produce light or sound.]
Engineering Standards:
MS-ETS1Define the criteria and constraints of a design problem with sufficient precision to ensure a successful solution,
1.
taking into account relevant scientific principles and potential impacts on people and the natural environment that
may limit possible solutions.
MS-ETS12.
Evaluate competing design solutions using a systematic process to determine how well they meet the criteria and
constraints of the problem.
MS-ETS13.
Analyze data from tests to determine similarities and differences among several design solutions to identify the
best characteristics of each that can be combined into a new solution to better meet the criteria for success.
MS-ETS14.
Develop a model to generate data for iterative testing and modification of a proposed object, tool, or process such
that an optimal design can be achieved.
Funded by an Elementary and Secondary Education Act Title IIb Wisconsin Improving Teacher Quality Grant in
Partnership with the University of Wisconsin-Stout
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Science Learning Community: Science and Engineering Lesson Plans
Standards for Technological Literacy
Standard 8: Students will develop an understanding of the attributes of design.
Standard 9: Students will develop an understanding of engineering design.
Standard 10: Students will develop an understanding of the role of troubleshooting, research and development, invention and
innovation, and experimentation in problem solving.
Common Core State Standards in Mathematics
Common Core State Standards in English and Language Arts
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.6.7
Integrate information presented in different media or formats (e.g., visually, quantitatively) as well as in words to develop a
coherent understanding of a topic or issue.
Prior Learning
Students will already be exposed to the basics of an electric circuit. We will have already demonstrated a simple circuit using
one wire, a light bulb, and a D battery.
Materials (Each group)
Circuits Problem Scenario
6-7 wires with alligator clips on each end
2 D batteries with battery packs
Two light bulbs with sockets
Switch
Funded by an Elementary and Secondary Education Act Title IIb Wisconsin Improving Teacher Quality Grant in
Partnership with the University of Wisconsin-Stout
Page 2
Science Learning Community: Science and Engineering Lesson Plans
LESSON IMPLEMENTATION
DAY 1 Objective: Upon completion of this lesson, students will be able to:
Use the Engineering Design Process to begin solving the circuits problem.
Pre-Assessment
Interactive Journal (On SmartBoard as students enter the room)- How does more than one light bulb go on in a
room when you only hit one switch? Make a drawing of what you think is happening.
Procedures
45
minutes
Engineering Design PPT What do scientists do? What do engineers do?
Share engineering design process.
Problem Introduction: Read the scenario together.
SCENARIO:
King C was out shopping for a new castle over the weekend.
As he went through the castle he encountered a variety of differences in
the way the rooms were lit in the castle he was thinking of purchasing.
When he walked into the mudroom he flipped the switch on the wall
and one light bulb on the ceiling lit up the room. No problem!
Purpose
Introduce Engineering
Design Process and
share the scenario
that the project is
based upon.
When his highness strolled into the royal library, King C was
pleased to see two lamps on each end of a very comfortable looking
couch. However, when he flipped the switch on the wall and the lamps
turned on, the light bulbs were barely glowing! There was no way he
could read with such dim light. The King decided that there must be
something wrong with the light bulbs, so he marched over to one of the
lamps and unscrewed the light bulb. To the King’s amazement, the
light bulb in the other lamp went off as well. Something wasn’t right!
From there, King C sauntered into his favorite room in the
house, the kitchen! When he flipped on the light switch in the kitchen
he was pleased to see that not only did both of the light bulbs come on,
but they came on to their full brightness. Even when he unscrewed one
light bulb, the other light bulb continued to shine. That was more like it!
The King is confused, and he needs some help from his young
peasants. He needs you to solve the lighting problem in his library.
Your job is to design the circuits that King C found in the mudroom,
then the library, then the kitchen. King C will show you how to draw a
circuit, so you can have a record of what you did in your science
journal.
Formative Assessment
Informal checking for understanding throughout the lesson.
Closure
In your interactive science notebooks, write about what you learned about engineering today.
Funded by an Elementary and Secondary Education Act Title IIb Wisconsin Improving Teacher Quality Grant in
Partnership with the University of Wisconsin-Stout
Page 3
Science Learning Community: Science and Engineering Lesson Plans
Summative Assessment
There is no Summative Assessment at the end of this day.
Day 2 & 3 Objectives:
Students will be able to determine the difference between series and parallel circuits.
Students will be able to determine what type of circuit is mainly used in our homes.
Students will apply the Engineering Design Process to solve an electrical circuit problem.
Pre-Assessment
Interactive Journal (On SmartBoard as students enter the room)- According to the story yesterday, what was the
problem that King C was having with the lights in his library?
Procedures
Two 45
minutes
classes
IDENTIFY THE PROBLEM (Large group):
King C’s lights aren’t working properly. Students need to become Jr.
Electrical Engineers and design an electrical circuit that solves the
problem.
Use the Engineering
Design Process to
create the circuits
described in the story.
IMAGINE (Individually):
Students will make sketches in their interactive science notebooks of
what they think the circuits look like in each room.
SHARE & SYNTHESIZE IDEAS (Small Groups):
Students will work in groups of 2-4 students to share their imagined
drawings, and synthesize their ideas into a best prediction of what is
happening in each room of the castle.
CREATE:
Groups will use the materials to design the three circuits found in each
room. Students could be charged for materials in an attempt to make
their circuits as efficient as possible.
TEST:
Testing and improving their circuits will most likely occur throughout
the process as they try to get their circuits to perform the same way they
do in the story. Students should use their interactive notebooks
throughout the creating and testing process to show what is working
and not working for each room.
COMMUNICATE:
When the circuits they are creating do not work properly, they will need
to communicate as a group why they think it is not working properly,
and discuss what they should try differently on their next attempt. Each
room, from the mudroom to the kitchen, will get progressively more
difficult. More than likely, it will take the most number of trials to
determine how to design the parallel circuit in the kitchen.
IMPROVE:
Funded by an Elementary and Secondary Education Act Title IIb Wisconsin Improving Teacher Quality Grant in
Partnership with the University of Wisconsin-Stout
Page 4
Science Learning Community: Science and Engineering Lesson Plans
Students will improve and document their trials as until each circuit is
performing properly.
Formative Assessment
Teacher quick check! Students call the teacher over after they have completed each type of circuit to show they
have designed it properly. If they are using extra wires, challenge the group to recreate the circuit with a certain
number of fewer wires.
Closure
At the end of day three, review with the groups the three types of circuits they designed. Identify the circuits as
series and parallel.
Summative Assessment
Summative Assessment is Day 4.
Day 4 Objective: Upon completion of this lesson, students will be able to:
Use a Summative Assessment to demonstrate their understanding of series and parallel circuits, and determine
which one is mostly used in our homes.
Pre-Assessment
Interactive Journal (On SmartBoard as students enter the room)- What was the problem with the lights in King
C’s library?
Procedures
45 minute
class
period
PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT:
Groups will work through a series and parallel circuits lab sheet that
will demonstrate that they not only can design series and parallel
circuits, but that they will be able to determine at least two reasons
why we mainly use parallel circuits in our homes.
Demonstrate
understanding of
series and parallel
circuits.
Formative Assessment
Series and Parallel Circuits Performance Assessment: This assessment (still to be developed) will have students
construct and test both a series and parallel circuit. Students will conduct some tests and answer some
questions about each type of circuit. They will then use this information to answer some questions and predict
which type of circuit makes the most sense for us to use in our homes.
Funded by an Elementary and Secondary Education Act Title IIb Wisconsin Improving Teacher Quality Grant in
Partnership with the University of Wisconsin-Stout
Page 5
Science Learning Community: Science and Engineering Lesson Plans
Closure
Interactive Journal- Draw a picture of a series circuit and a parallel circuit in your journal. Explain two reasons
why a parallel circuit is the best option to use in your home.
Funded by an Elementary and Secondary Education Act Title IIb Wisconsin Improving Teacher Quality Grant in
Partnership with the University of Wisconsin-Stout
Page 6