Conservation of Matter and Chemical Reactions UBD Unit Plan 1
Chris Leverington
Established Goals
What content standards and
program goals will the unit
address?
Stage 1 – Desired Results
Transfer
1. The law of conservation of mass applies to all chemical
reactions that occur in the universe.
2. Chemical reactions (elemental interactions) follow a set of
known rules when taking place.
HS-PS1-2—Construct and revise
3. All matter that is on the Earth has always been here, it just
an explanation for the outcome of
cycles through different forms.
a simple chemical reaction based
Meaning
on the outermost electron states Understandings
Essential Questions
of atoms, trends in the periodic
table, and knowledge of the
1. The products of a
1. What happens to matter
patterns of chemical properties
chemical reaction can be
when it reacts with other
determined by the valence
matter?
HS-PS 1-7—Use mathematical
electron arrangement of
2. How do chemists use the
representations to support the
the reactants.
formula of the product
claim that atoms, and therefore
2. Chemical reactions can be
they desire to determine
mass, are conserved during a
modeled in various ways,
what reactants to use?
chemical reaction.
but the general pattern
3. What happens to the
stays the same.
gasoline in your car when
NGSS Practices
3. Matter is constantly
you go for a drive?
1. Plan and Carry Out
cycling different forms,
Investigations
but is never created or
2. Constructing Explanations
destroyed.
3. Analyzing and
Acquisition
Interpreting Data
Students will know …
Students will be skilled at
4. Using Math and
Computational Thinking
1. Chemical compounds
1. Planning and carrying out
form due to the
an investigation
arrangement of valence
2. Analyzing Data from
electrons in each element
investigation
2. In a chemical reaction the
3. Constructing an
atoms rearrange, but do
explanation from the data
not change composition.
including a mathematical
3. Most chemical reactions
representation of said
follow distinct patterns in
data.
product formation
4. Predicting the outcomes
(synthesis, decomposition,
of chemical reactions.
displacement, combustion,
Redox)
4. Matter is not created or
destroyed in a chemical
reaction, it only changes
form
2
CHRIS LEVERINGTON
Stage 2 - Assessments
Performance Task (in GRASPS format)
[A][S]The biology students at Williams Field High School are having difficulty seeing how the law of
conservation of matter applies to biological processes within the cell. [G]Your task is to provide the
biology students with an explanation of the law of conservation of mass and demonstrate how mass is
conserved in either the process of photosynthesis or in the process of cellular respiration. [R]As the
experts in the field of matter conservation you will be teaching the biology students that the law of
conservation of matter applies in all situations. You will research the chemical reactions that occur in the
process you choose and determine how matter is conserved in that process. [P]You will create a poster,
power point demonstration, or video to demonstrate the following information to the biology students:
1) An explanation of the Law of Conservation of Matter
2) A detailed drawing of the process that you chose (Photosynthesis or Respiration) including all
intermediate steps and electron carriers.
3) A complete balanced equation of the reaction, including ATP, NAD+,NADH, etc.
4) A statement explaining how matter was conserved in this process.
[S-2]Grading will be completed according to the attached rubric. Items that will be considered are
accuracy of information in parts 1-3, your ability to accurately explain how matter was conserved in the
process, neatness and appeal of your poster, and individual effort toward group success.
Other Evidence: (quizzes, tests, prompts, work samples, labs, etc.)
Students will complete worksheets regarding types of chemical reactions, electron movement in chemical
reactions, predicting products of chemical reactions, balancing equations, and conservation of matter.
Students will complete the “Law of Conservation of Matter Inquiry Lab,” the “Precipitate Lab,” and the
“Types of Reactions Lab”
Students will complete a quiz on types of reactions and balancing equations.
Students will complete district unit test covering the Law of Conservation and Chemical Reactions.
Student Self-Assessment and Reflection
Students will self-assess and reflect using the following self assessment rubric.
Conservation of Matter and Chemical Reactions UBD Unit Plan 3
Chris Leverington
Stage 3 – Learning Plan








Alka-Seltzer/Water demonstration—Demonstration will be used to pre-assess
students understanding of the Law of Conservation of Matter (H)
Discuss Performance Task Project (W)
Direct Instruction on the Law of Conservation of Matter (E)
 Students will complete “Law of Conservation of Matter Inquiry
Lab”(E)
Discuss Determining Products of Reactions using Valence Electron Arrangement
(W,E)
 Review Octet Rule and Lewis Structures
 Group work on determining products using electron arrangement (E, R)
Direct Instruction on Balancing Equations (W, E)
o Group work on balancing with manipulatives (E-2, O)
o Worksheets on Balancing Equations (E-2)
o Balancing Equations Race (E-2, R, T)
Quiz over Law, Determining Products, and Balancing (E-2)
Introduce Types of Reactions (W)
o Students will carry out Precipitate lab (H)
o Students will partner read Chapter 5, section 2 and draw conclusions
regarding the types of reactions. (E)
o Direct instruction on reaction types (E)
o Students will be given manipulatives containing various reactants and
products of chem reactions. Based on the reactants students will classify
the reactions by type and determine the products for the reaction. (R, T,
E-2, O)
o Worksheets on types of reactions (E-2)
o Students will complete the “Types of Reactions” Lab. (E, E-2, O)
District Unit Exam on Law of Conservation of Matter and Reactions (E-2, T)
Performance Task:
o Students will readdress the performance task scenario. Students will
research the reactions in the biological process chosen and determine the
balanced equation and explanation of how it shows conservation of
matter. (E-2, R, T, O)
Create Poster and present to classes (E-2, R,T, O)
Pre-Assessments
What pre-assessments will you use to
check student’s prior knowledge,
skill levels, and potential
misconceptions?
Students will be given a preassessment to measure their
understanding of the law of
conservation of mass and chemical
reactions. Students will also be given
a short balancing equations preassessment.
Progress Monitoring
• How will you monitor students’
progress toward acquisition, meaning,
and transfer, during lesson events?
I will monitor their progress by checking
their homework assignments, quiz
scores. I will also monitor their progress
via conversations and the student’s
weekly self assessments.
• What are potential rough spots and
student misunderstandings?
I believe the biggest area for
confusion will be in predicting
products. My experience in the past is
that students struggle with this aspect
of chemical reactions. I have never
taught to look at valence electrons in
this process before, so that might
help.
• How will students get the feedback
they need
Teacher will give formal feedback on
assignments and quizzes.
Teacher will provide informal
feedback in one on one discussion
based on weekly self-assessments.
Students will also receive feedback
from their peers during in-class
learning activities.
• Are all three types of goals (acquisition, meaning, and transfer) addressed in the learning plan? Yes, learning plan leads to meaningful
understanding of material and the transfer of knowledge to different content areas.
• Does the learning plan reflect principles of learning and best practices? Yes, learning plan includes multiple modes of instruction and learning.
• Is there tight alignment with Stages 1 and 2? Yes, lessons and activities are designed to encapsulate the learning objectives and
understandings laid out in Stage 1. The lessons and activities will lead to successful completion of the assessments described in stage 2.
• Is the plan likely to be engaging and effective for all students? I believe it will be engaging for all due to the various activities and labs that we
will be completing, as well as the various modes of instruction for the material.
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CHRIS LEVERINGTON
APPENDIX A
Responses to Analysis Questions
How does this unit relate to my internship?
My internship was in the field of aerospace engineering, which doesn’t directly relate to my classroom
teaching in many ways. Orbital Sciences Corporation builds rockets that launch satellites into space;
therefore there aren’t many areas that correlate between the industry and my chemistry classroom. One
area that I did find applicable was chemical reactions. There are many chemical reactions that must take
place in order to provide the rocket with the thrust required to enter into orbit, as well as to separate the
stages of the rocket. The chemical reactions that take place in the rocket are far too complex for a high
school introductory chemistry student, but the general idea of chemical reactions does apply in this
setting; therefore I chose to focus my unit on chemical reactions.
This summer I also took a biochemistry course, a topic of chemistry that is very commonly overlooked in
high schools even in the biology courses. In the biochemistry course I kept coming back to how all of the
reactions with the body, demonstrate the law of conservation of mass so clearly, that I felt that I could use
that to demonstrate that this law is followed in many different settings, so I chose to apply my
biochemistry content to this unit as well.
The major way that my unit relates to my internship is through the use of workplace skills, often called
21st Century Skills. In my workplace I commonly observed engineers collaborating on projects, going to
each other for help, working together to solve problems, self-teaching and communicating their findings
to each other through presentations and technical documents. I think that all of these skills are reflected
in my unit plan. The students will have to work together to solve problems in lab situations and on the
performance task, they will have to collaborate to complete the performance task, and they will need to
teach themselves about the Calvin or Citric Acid Cycle. Lastly they will have to communicate their results
to their peers to demonstrate what they have learned.
All-in-all I feel that with my limited participation in the workings of Orbital Sciences, I have done a decent
job of pulling what I could from the experience and putting into this unit plan.
What technology resources will be used in this unit?
Due to the nature of the content there isn’t much need for advanced technology, nor do I have much
technology available. Students will definitely be using computers and the internet in the performance
task. They will use the internet to search for information on the Calvin or Citric Acid Cycle and determine
how mass is conserved within the processes of photosynthesis or cellular respiration. They will use
computers and possibly a video camera and photo editing software to create the presentation to
communicate their findings.
Conservation of Matter and Chemical Reactions UBD Unit Plan 5
Chris Leverington
APPENDIX A
Responses to Analysis Questions
Item 1: Self-Assessment Rubric
Unit Weekly Self-Assessment Rubric
This week’s topic: _______________________ Name: ______
Category
Doing Great
Hangin in There
Up a creek
Concepts related
to this week’s
learning
Problems/
Calculations
I understand all of
the concepts
discussed
I understand most,
need help with some
(listed below)
I understand some of
the concepts, but not
most of them
I feel confident that I
can solve the
majority of problems
learned this week
I worked hard on the
labs this week and
understand their
connection to the
learning in class
I have put a lot of
effort into learning
the material this
week, including work
after school.
I feel confident that I
will be able to
contribute to my
group regarding the
use of this week’s
learning on the final
assessment
I can do most of the
problems, but get
really stuck on some
(listed below)
I tried on the labs
this week and can
see how they relate
to the learning in
class
I have tried to learn
material in class this
week, but haven’t
spent time out of
school
I feel that with some
extra support I will
be able to
adequately
contribute to my
group regarding the
use of this week’s
learning on the final
assessment
I can’t do any of the
problems, I just don’t
get it.
Labs
My Effort
Progress toward
Final
Assessment
Questions you have regarding this week’s material?
Concepts that you just didn’t understand?
What efforts have you made to get extra help?
I let my group
members do the labs
this week
We learned
something new this
week?
I don’t think I will be
of much help to my
group on this portion
of the final
assessment
6
CHRIS LEVERINGTON
Item 2: Law of Conservation of Mass Inquiry Lab
Law of Conservation of Matter Inquiry Lab
Names: ________________________________
The Task:
As a group you will design an experiment that you will use to prove the Law of Conservation of
Matter to be true. Once you have written your procedure and gotten it approved, you will carry
out the experiment.
Materials Available for your use:
A Balance
Baking Soda
A flask
A Balloon
Vinegar
A Graduated Cylinder
A weighing boat
A thermometer
A 250 ml beaker
Safety Concerns—and other rules
 When you are carrying out your experiment you must wear goggles.

You are not allowed to mix large amounts of baking soda and vinegar together—Use small amounts
please—No more than 12g of baking soda per trial
Procedure—Refer to the “Keys to a good procedure” on the board
1. _________________________________________________________
2. _________________________________________________________
3. _________________________________________________________
4. _________________________________________________________
5. _________________________________________________________
6. _________________________________________________________
7. _________________________________________________________
8. _________________________________________________________
9. _________________________________________________________
10. _________________________________________________________
11. _________________________________________________________
12. _________________________________________________________
13. _________________________________________________________
Conservation of Matter and Chemical Reactions UBD Unit Plan 7
Chris Leverington
14. _________________________________________________________
15. _________________________________________________________
Data Collection—Draw a Data Chart here to use for data collection according to your procedure.
Analysis Questions—The questions will be on the smart board, answer them here. You do not
need to write the questions down.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
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CHRIS LEVERINGTON
Item 3: Precipitate Lab
In this lab you will be practicing writing and balancing equations. You will then carry out the
reactions of the equations that you wrote. The items letters in parenthesis behind the name of
the compound tell you the state of the compound in the reaction.
(ppt) means precipitate, flecks of solid formed.
(aq) means aqueous, or in solution, no solid formed.
(s) means solid, (l) means liquid, (g) means gas.
Step 1: Determine the correct chemical equation for each reaction below.
Step 2: Check your equation, at the board to see if it is correct. If it is not correct, fix it on your own.
Step 3: Once you are sure you have the correct equation, balance the equations, using an atom inventory
on a separate sheet of paper.
Step 4: Once all equations are correctly written and balanced, you may move on to step 5 on the board.
1. Nickel(ll) chloride (aq) + sodium sulfide (aq)  nickel(ll) sulfide (ppt) + sodium chloride (aq)
2. Barium nitrate (aq) +copper(ll) sulfate(aq)  barium sulfate (ppt) + copper(ll) nitrate (aq)
3. HCl + calcium carbonate (s)  Water (l) + calcium chloride (aq) + carbon dioxide (g)
4. Potassium Chromate (aq) + silver(I) nitrate (aq) -> silver(I) chromate (ppt) +potassium nitrate (aq)
5. Silver (I) nitrate (aq) + nickel(ll) chloride (aq) -> silver chloride (ppt) + nickel (II) nitrate (aq)
6. Cobalt (ll) Nitrate(aq) and sodium hydroxide (aq)  cobalt(ll) hydroxide(ppt) + sodium
nitrate(aq)
7. Potassium iodide (aq) and lead (ll) nitrate (aq)  lead (II) iodide (ppt) + potassium nitrate (aq)
Conservation of Matter and Chemical Reactions UBD Unit Plan 9
Chris Leverington
Observations
Reaction 1
Color of precipitate:________
Reaction 2
Color of precipitate:________
Reaction 3
Color of precipitate:________
Reaction 4
Color of precipitate:________
Reaction 5
Color of precipitate:________
Reaction 6
Color of precipitate:________
Reaction 7
Color of precipitate:________
Questions
1. List the signs of a chemical reaction that we discussed in class that you saw in this
lab. Provide an example of which reaction each one occurred in. (Ex: In reaction 1 we
saw bubbling, which means a gas was formed.)
2. Choose two of the balanced equations above and write the correct sentence equation
for that reaction. (ex: 2 molecules of hydrogen reacted with 2 molecules of oxygen to
produce 2 molecules of water.)
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CHRIS LEVERINGTON
Item 4: Types of Reactions Lab
Types of Reactions Lab
*** Do not write on this lab handout***
Objective: The purpose of this lab is to give us some insight into each of the types
of reactions that we discussed in class this week. In this lab you will be carryout
each type of chemical reaction, make observations regarding the chemical
reactions and predict the final products of each reaction. If time permits, I will be
doing some larger scale demonstrations of a few of the reactions shown below.
Materials
Magnesium Ribbon
3 small test tube
Hydrochloric Acid
Copper(II) Sulfate Solution
Hydrogen Peroxide
Aluminum Foil
Magnesium Pieces
1 small grad. cylinder
Large Test Tube
Potassium Carbonate Solution
dish soap
Copper (II) Chloride
4 Wood Splints
Watch Glass
3 small beakers
1 Flask
Isopropyl Alcohol
Graduated Cylinder
Safety






All hair must be pulled back
Safety goggles must be worn at all times
Report any spills or accidents to the teacher immediately
Do NOT look at the burning magnesium directly
The Bunsen burners burn at a very high temperature, do not put your hands in the flame or touch
anything that has been in the flame.
Do NOT attempt these things at home or without proper supervision
For Safety concerns we will carry out each portion of the lab together. Do not work ahead…wait until I
instruct you to do the reaction before doing anything.
Procedure
Reaction 1
In this reaction will be burning magnesium in the presence of oxygen. The reactants of this reaction are
Mg + O2 
1. Obtain a piece of magnesium metal from the teacher.
2. Ask the teacher to come light your Bunsen burner.
3. Take a hold of the piece of magnesium metal in the tongs provided.
4. Carefully place the piece of magnesium into the flame. Do not look directly at the magnesium
as it burns. You can look at someone else’s who is not near you.
5. When the magnesium is finished burning place the remains on a watch glass.
6. Light a wood split on fire in the burner, let it burn down a little ways and blow it out. Place the burnt
end near the ashes and record any results in the data chart.
7. Turn off gas supply to the Bunsen burner. Discard ash into trash, wash and dry glass.
Conservation of Matter and Chemical Reactions UBD Unit Plan 11
Chris Leverington
Reaction 2
In this reaction we will be mixing Magnesium Metal with Hydrochloric Acid. HCl is a corrosive
chemical. If it comes in contact with your skin, wash hands immediately and report to teacher.
The reactants in this reaction are as follows.
Mg + HCl 
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Measure 10ml of Hydrochloric Acid (HCl) and add it to your first small test tube.
Take a hold of the 2nd test tube in a test tube holder.
Ask the teacher for a piece of magnesium metal.
Drop the piece of magnesium into the HCl solution.
Immediately place the 2nd test tube upside down over the top of the 1st test tube. Create an
airtight seal between the two. Refer to drawing on board.
When the bubbling ceases or slows down, ask the teacher to light your Bunsen burner.
Light a wood splint on fire, bring it near the mouths of the two test tubes. Turn off gas supply.
Pull the test tubes apart slightly and put the lit splint between the two.
Record observations in the data table.
Reaction 3
In this reaction we will be decomposing Hydrogen Peroxide. In this reaction Potassium Iodide will
act as a catalyst. A catalyst is something that speeds up a chemical reaction. Hydrogen Peroxide
will decompose slowly over time, by adding the KI, it speeds this process up considerably. The
equation is as follows:
H2O2
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Place your large test tube inside your flask. Fill your large test tube approximately ½ full of
H2O2.
Caution: Soap
Place a drop or two of dish soap into the large test tube.
bubbles will stain
Complete the rest of this lab in or near the sink.
skin for a few days if
Pour 20 ml of KI into the test tube.
touched!!
Record your observations on the data chart.
Reaction 4
In this reaction we will be mixing two solutions together. We will be copper (II) chloride with
Potassium Iodide. The equation is as follows:
CuCl2 + KI 
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Place your 3rd test tube in the test tube rack.
Put 20 drops KI solution into the test tube.
Put 10 drops of the CuCl2 solution into the test tube.
Record any observations on the data chart.
Dispose of chemicals in the waste bucket in the front of the room.
1
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CHRIS LEVERINGTON
Reaction 5
In this reaction will be burning isopropyl alcohol in the presence of oxygen. It is imperative that all
directions are followed on this section 100% correctly. The equation for this reaction is:
C3H8O + O2 
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Measure out 5ml of isopropyl alcohol in a small beaker.
Pour the alcohol onto your watch glass.
Raise your hand and ask the teacher to light your alcohol on fire.
Record observations on your data sheet
Place a wooden splint into the fire until you see it light, be careful not to burn your fingers. Once it is
lit, slowly pull it out of the flame.
6. Hold the splint slightly above the top of the flame.
7. Record any observations you see happening to the fire on the splint in the data chart.
Reaction 6
In this reaction we will be mixing silver(I) Nitrate with copper to make Ag. The equation for this reaction is:
CuCl2 + Al 
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Measure out 30ml of Copper (II) Chloride into the small flask.
Place the piece of aluminum foil into the copper (II) chloride solution.
Swirl or Stir the contents of the flask to help the reaction start.
Record your observations on your data sheet.
Dump contents of flask into waste bucket in front of room!