Innovation Academy
Unit Plan Template
Unit 5: Fossil Fuels
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ELA:
India,
Anthropology
bnadjbadsdsd
Reading
Literature,
Writing
Math:
Science:
Forces in Nature
Energy
Grade
Level
Unit
Overview
6th Grade
Percentages
Unit Length
Social Studies:
Two Weeks
Fossil Fuels is a two-week standards-based unit that includes a three-day project at the end of the unit in
which students create a detailed analysis of mankind’s mining, distribution and use of fossil fuels. The
analysis will include contributions from science, math, ELA and social studies. The unit culminates in
student presentations of their findings and a debate-oriented discussion about which fossil fuels are most
beneficial or damaging economically and environmentally.
The relevant strands are:
Science – Energy and Forces in Nature
Math – Ratios and Proportions
ELA – Reading Literature, Language, and Writing
Social Studies – Culture, Individuals, Groups, and Interactions
The project supports state standards in science (comparing and contrasting three forms of potential
energy, analyzing energy transformations – including electrical - and explaining the law of conservation of
energy), math (exploring the Real Number System, the Pythagorean Theorem, area, surface area, and
volume), ELA (comparing and contrasting informational text and literature based on the same topic; using
transitions; writing a thesis; and expository writing), and social studies (cultural awareness and realization
of societal needs for energy).
Unit
Essential
Questions
Grouping Strategy – For this project students will be placed into groups of six. Each group of six will
contain students of various abilities. Students will be then be paired with one other student of similar
ability within the group. Each pair will be assigned one aspect of the project (one fossil fuel and/or
renewable energy) and will work parallel to the other two pairs within the larger group.
What are three forms of potential energy?
Where does the potential energy in fossil fuels come from?
How can you demonstrate that fossil fuels contain energy?
How can you demonstrate the Law of Conservation of Energy using fossil fuels?
What energy transformations take place in electric circuits?
How do transitional words assist in written communication?
Culminating
Event
How can you infer information about an unfamiliar topic from a historical fiction and a historical text?
How does a thesis help guide your writing of an expository essay?
What is a percentage?
How do you use a percentage to solve a problem?
How do I calculate the efficiency of fossil fuels?
How does India compare to the United States when evaluating their use of fossil fuels?
What are India’s anthropological views of using coal in comparison to the United States?
Students will create a technical report that will encompass the four subject domains. The verbal
presentation will consist of graphs and multiple visual aids, but little text.
 ScienceStudents will identify the energy transformations (10) from the power production to the usage
within the school using flow charts.
Identify 3 forms of potential energy, within the school, using labeled photos as visual aids.
 MathStudents will measure the percentage of efficiency for two renewable and one nonrenewable
resource using the collected data from the green energy models and coal data. This will be displayed
using the simple equation and a photo. (Demonstrate conservation of energy- how much energy the solar
panel produces verses how much energy the school can actually use, and how much is lost in waste heat.
Useful Energy/Total Energy Input= Efficiency You will have wasted energy. )
 Pre-AlgebraIn a drawn graph, students will compare and contrast India’s and the United States’ consumption of
coal over a five-year span of time using a function table. Then students will verbally describe the
functions and graph.
 Social StudiesUsing visual aids to assist with understanding, students will verbally compare and contrast India’s and
the United States’ consumption of coal in relation to the individual country’s view of the use of coal.
 ELAStudents will verbally summary of the pros and cons of solar, hydro, wind, and coal energy using visual
aids during the presentation. Students will use eye contact and good voice quality throughout the
presentation.
STEM Project Rubric
Common
Assessment
STEM Math IA
Components
Functions
25%
STEM Math IB
Components
The Number
System
25%
Science
Components:
Energy
Forces in Nature
(Electricity)
25%
Social Studies
Component
Major Religions
25%
ELA Component
Expository Essay
25%
Project Title: Fossil Fuels
Student Name: _______________
Date: _______________________
Advanced
Proficient
Needs Improvement
The presentation will clearly
show:
1. The percent of efficiency for
each of the power plants.
2. Create a function rule,
function table, and graph of the
efficiency for each of the power
plants. Provide a verbal
description of each graph,
explaining the slope, y-intercept,
and x-intercept. The verbal
description should be in
paragraph form.
The presentation will clearly
show:
1. The percent of efficiency for
each of the power plants.
2. Write a verbal description of
what the percent of efficiency
means for each of the power
plants. Examples should be
included in your verbal
description.
The presentation will clearly
show:
1. The percent of efficiency for 2
of the power plants.
2. Create a function rule,
function table, and graph of the
efficiency for 2 of the power
plants. Provide a verbal
description of each graph,
explaining the slope, y-intercept,
and x-intercept. The verbal
description should be in
paragraph form.
The presentation will clearly
show:
1. The percent of efficiency for
two of the power plants.
2. Write a verbal description of
what the percent of efficiency
means for each of the two the
power plants. Examples should
be included in your verbal
description.
The presentation will clearly
show:
1. The percent of efficiency for
one of the power plants.
2. Create a function rule,
function table, and graph of the
efficiency for one of the power
plants. Provide a verbal
description of the graph,
explaining the slope, yintercept, and x-intercept. The
verbal description should be in
paragraph form.
The presentation will clearly
show:
1. The percent of efficiency for
one of the power plants.
2. Write a verbal description of
what the percent of efficiency
means for the power plants.
Examples should be included in
your verbal description.
The presentation will clearly
show  Where fossil fuels got their
energy and how they
formed.
 Six energy transformations
from energy input to
use in homes.
 How other forms of energy
are turned to KE in at
least two places in the
energy route.
 That energy is conserved at
all transformations in
the first step.
 What power lines are made
of and why.
 What energy transformation
takes place in power
lines and explain why.
 Ten things in our homes that
use electrical energy
and how much energy
they use
The presentation will clearly
show  Where fossil fuels got their
energy and how they
formed.
 Five energy transformations
from energy input to
use in homes.
 How other forms of energy
are turned to KE in at
least two places in the
energy route.
 That energy is conserved at
all transformations in
the first step.
 What power lines are made of
and why.
 What energy transformation
takes place in power
lines and explain why.
 Eight things in our homes that
use electrical energy
and how much energy
they use
The presentation will clearly
show  Where fossil fuels got their
energy and how they
formed.
 Four energy transformations
from energy input to
use in homes.
 How other forms of energy
are turned to KE in at
least two places in
the energy route.
 That energy is conserved at
all transformations in
the first step.
 What power lines are made
of and why.
 What energy transformation
takes place in power
lines and explain
why.
 Five things in our homes
that use electrical
energy and how
much energy they
use
Students will answer the
following questions pertaining to
India and the US in detail and
offering ample evidence:
How is the use of coal
perceived?
What renewable energies are
being considered? Why?
Students will verbally discuss 3
pros and 3 cons for each of the
four energy sources.
Good eye contact and voice
quality is used.
Students will answer the
following questions pertaining to
India and the US in detail and
offering some evidence:
How is the use of coal perceived?
What renewable energies are
being considered? Why?
Students will answer the
following questions pertaining
to India and the US in detail:
How is the use of coal
perceived?
What renewable energies are
being considered? Why?
Students will verbally discuss 3
pros and 3 cons for at least three
of the energy sources.
Good eye contact and voice
quality is used.
Students will verbally discuss 2
pros and 2 cons for each of the
four energy sources.
Good eye contact and voice
quality is used.
Unit
Objectives
I can compare/contrast three forms of potential energy.
I can describe and explain energy transformations in the use of fossil fuels.
I can analyze various types of energy transformations.
I can explain the principles underlying the Law of Conservation of Energy.
I can write a typed two-page expository essay about coal that states a clear thesis and uses multiple
transitions.
I can identify the world’s major religions, what they believe, and their founders.
I can use percent’s to solve problems.
I can calculate the efficiency of fossil fuels.
I can create a linear function using percentages.
Strands (main ideas taught in unit)
ELA
Reading Literature, Writing, Language
Math
The Number System, Ratios and Proportions
Science
Energy, Forces in Nature
Social
Studies
Culture, Individuals, Groups, and Interactions
Vocabulary
ELA





Math
STEM Math IA
 Percent— ratio whose second term is 100. Percent means parts per hundred. The word

Science
Thesis Statements- the main idea of an essay that is sometimes written as a single declarative
sentence that contains claims of justification
Transitional Phrases- a phrase that shows how the meaning of one sentence is related to the
meaning of preceding sentences
Clauses- a group of words that contains a subject and a predicate
Dependent Clauses- a group of words that contain a subject and a predicate that could stand
alone as a sentence
Independent Clauses- a group of words that contain a subject and a predicate that cannot stand
alone as a sentence
comes from the Latin phraseper centum, which means per hundred. In mathematics, we use
the symbol % for percent.
Percent of Change— the amount of increase (or decrease) divided by the original amount.
 Proportion—equal ratios
 Slope— a ratio that compares the change in y to the change in x in a coordinate plane
 Ratio— a comparison of two numbers

STEM Math IB
 Percent- ratio whose second term is 100. Percent means parts per hundred. The word comes from
the Latin phraseper centum, which means per hundred. In mathematics, we use the symbol % for
percent.
 Proportion- equal ratios
 Ratio- a comparison of two numbers
 Percent Equation- a ratio of a whole figure but which has been expressed in terms of 100
 Equivalent Ratios- ratios that have the same value
 Potential Energy – stored energy
 Kinetic Energy – energy of motion
 Conservation of Energy – form of energy can change, but the total amount energy remains the
Social
Studies


same
Electric Power – power generated by current and voltage in a circuit (P = IV)
Watt – energy (Joules) transformed each second (J/s)





Hinduism- the largest religion in India today
Caste System- the division of people in India due to wealth, birth, or occupation
Monsoon- seasonal wind patterns that cause dry or wet seasons
Reincarnation- rebirth
Subcontinent- a land mass bigger than state, an smaller than a continent
Key Questions
ELA
How do transitional
words assist in written
communication?
Math
How do I calculate the
percent of efficiency?
What is a percent?
How does a thesis help
guide your writing of an
expository essay?
How can you infer
information about an
unfamiliar topic from a
historical fiction and a
historical text?
How do I find the
percent of a number?
How do I graph a
proportional
relationship?
Science
Social Studies
Where does
the
potential
energy
stored in
fossil fuels
come from?
How does
India compare
to the United
States when
evaluating
their use of
fossil fuels?
How is the
energy in
fossil fuels
converted
to electrical
energy?
What are
India’s
anthropologica
l views of using
coal in
comparison to
the United
States?
Do fossil
fuels obey
the law of
conservatio
n of energy?
CTE &
Technology
Hook for
Unit
“Coal Mining”- This will introduce the students to the process of mining coal.
Literature /
Informative
Text
Component
Students will read excerpts from the books A Coal Miner’s Bride, a historical fiction, and Growing Up in
Coal Country, a factual text. Families in the Pennsylvania coal communities inspire both texts. The
excerpts will add an emotional connection to a lifestyle an occupation in which the students are
unfamiliar.
A Coal Miner’s Bride- Meet Anetka, a 13-year-old Polish girl who comes to America as a promised bride to a
Pennsylvania coal miner. Her fascinating diary entries give readers a personal glimpse into what life was like in a coalmining town during a tumultuous time in our country's past. A diary account of thirteen-year-old Anetka's life in
Poland in 1896, immigration to America, marriage to a coal miner, widowhood, and happiness in finally finding her
true love.
Growing Up in Coal Country- Inspired by her in-laws' recollections of working in coal country, Susan
Campbell Bartoletti has gathered the voices of men, women, and children who immigrated to and worked in
northeastern Pennsylvania at the turn of the century. The story that emerges is not just a story of long hours, little pay,
and hazardous working conditions; it is also the uniquely American story of immigrant families working together to
make a new life for themselves. It is a story of hardship and sacrifice, yet also of triumph and the fulfillment of hopes
and dreams.
Writing
Closure
Materials
Needed for
Culminatin
g Event
Students will compose a typed two-page expository essay based on the knowledge obtained through the
study of coal. Essays will be required to have a thesis, supportive details, and conclusion. Throughout the
essay, the formation, mining, transformation, and uses of coal will be explained using factual information
discussed in class. Students will also read excerpts from the books A Coal Miner’s Bride, a historical fiction,
and Growing Up in Coal Country, a factual text. The two texts will be compared and contrasted to infer
information about living in a mining community around the turn of the twentieth century. To add to their
understanding, students will research the current living conditions of miners and their families along with
their economic circumstances. These inferences will also be included within the essay.
Each group needs:
1 multimeter
4 alligator clips
10 LED bulbs
1 bread board (or other way to assemble circuit)
1 wind turbine (can be shared)
1 6V 200mA solar panel (can be shared)
1 water turbine (can be shared)
A summary of math equations needed for calculations
4 sheets of heavy construction paper of a sheet of cardboard (6 x 9 in)
The class needs:
1 Watt-meter
1 to 4 domed lamps
sink
fan
anemometer
Phillips screwdrivers (one per group if possible)
Pencil sharpener (for turbine shaft)
Glue
Cardboard
Sand paper
Pliers
Standards: Common Core Standards, Tennessee State Standards
ELA
RL.6.1 Cite textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences
Common
drawn from the text.
Core
RL.6.2 Determine a theme or central idea of a text and how it is conveyed through particular details;
Standards.
provide a summary of the text distinct from personal opinions or judgments.
RL.6.5 Analyze how a particular sentence, chapter, scene, or stanza fits into the overall structure of a
text and contributes to the development of the theme, setting, or plot.
RL.6.9 Compare and contrast texts in different forms or genres (e.g., stories and poems; historical novels
and fantasy stories) in terms of their approaches to similar themes and topics.
RI.6.1 Cite textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn
from the text.
RI.6.2 Determine a central idea of a text and how it is conveyed through particular details; provide a
summary of the text distinct from personal opinions or judgments.
RI.6.3 Analyze in detail how a key individual, event, or idea is introduced, illustrated, and elaborated in a
text (e.g., through examples or anecdotes).
RI.6.9 Compare and contrast one author’s presentation of events with that of another (e.g., a memoir
written by and a biography on the same person).
W.6.2 Write informative/explanatory texts to examine a topic and convey ideas, concepts, and
information through the selection, organization, and analysis of relevant content.
W.6.2.b Develop the topic with relevant facts, definitions, concrete details, quotations, or other
information and examples.
Math
Common
Core
Standards.
W.6.2.c Use appropriate transitions to clarify the relationships among ideas and concepts
W.6.2.d Use precise language and domain-specific vocabulary to inform about or explain the
topic.
W.6.2.e Establish and maintain a formal style.
W.6.2.f Provide a concluding statement or section that follows from the information or explanation
presented.
STEM Math IA
8.EE.5 Graph proportional relationships, interpreting the unit rate as the slope of the graph. Compare
two different proportional relationships represented in different ways. For example, compare a
distance-time graph to a distance-time equation to determine which of two moving objects has greater
speed.
7.EE.3 Solve multi-step real-life and mathematical problems posed with positive and negative rational
numbers in any form (whole numbers, frat ions, and decimals), using tools strategically. Apply properties
of operations to calculate the numbers in any form; convert between forms as appropriate; and assess
the reasonableness of answers using mental computation and estimation strategies. For example: If a
woman making $25 an hour gets a 10% raise, she will make an additional 1/10 of her salary, or $2.50, for
a new salary of $27.50. If you want to place a towel bar 9 ¾ inches long in the center of a door that is 27
½ inches wide, you’ll need to place the bar about 9 inches from each edge; this estimate can be used as a
check on the exact computation.
7.RP. 2. Recognize and represent proportional relationships between
quantities.
a. Decide whether two quantities are in a proportional relationship, e.g., by testing for equivalent
ratios in a table or graphing on a coordinate plane and observing whether the graph is a straight
line through the origin.
b. Identify the constant of proportionality (unit rate) in tables, graphs, equations, diagrams, and
verbal descriptions of proportional relationships.
c. Represent proportional relationships by equations. For example, if total cost t is proportional
to the number n of items purchased at a constant price p, the relationship between the total cost
and the number of items can be expressed as t = pn.
d. Explain what a point (x, y) on the graph of a proportional relationship means in terms of the
situation, with special attention to the points (0, 0) and (1, r) where r is the unit rate.
7.RP.3. Use proportional relationships to solve multistep ratio and percent problems. Examples: simple
interest, tax, markups and markdowns, gratuities and commissions, fees, percent increase and decrease,
percent error.
STEM Math IB
6.RP.3. Use ratio and rate reasoning to solve real-world and mathematical problems, e.g., by reasoning
about tables of equivalent ratios, tape diagrams, double number line diagrams, or equations.
a. Make tables of equivalent ratios relating quantities with whole number measurements, find missing
values in the tables, and plot the pairs of values on the coordinate plane. Use tables to compare ratios.
c. Find a percent of a quantity as a rate per 100 (e.g., 30% of a quantity means 30/100 times the
quantity); solve problems involving finding the whole, given a part and the percent.
Science
Tennessee
State
Standards.
SPI 0607.10.1
SPI 0607.10.2
SPI 0607.10.3
SPI 0607.10.4
Distinguish among gravitational potential energy, elastic potential energy, and
chemical potential energy.
Interpret the relationship between potential and kinetic energy.
Recognize that energy can be transformed from one type to another.
Explain the Law of Conservation of Energy using data from a variety of energy
Social
Studies
Tennessee
State
Standards.
Notes
transformations
6.23 Locate and describe the Himalayas and the major river systems, including Indus and Ganges and
evaluate the importance of each. (E, G, H)
6.24 Analyze the impact of the Aryan invasions. (C, H, P)
6.25 Explain how the major beliefs and practices of Brahmanism in India evolved into early Hinduism. (C,
H)
6.26 Outline the social structure of the caste system and explain its effect on everyday life in Indian
society. (C, E, H, P)
6.27 Write a narrative text describing how Siddhartha Gautama’s (Buddha) life experiences influenced his
moral teachings and how those teachings became a new religion that spread throughout India and
Central Asia as a new religion. (C, H, G)
6.28 Describe the growth of the Maurya Empire and the political and moral achievements of the Emperor
Asoka. (C, H, P)
6.29 Identify the important aesthetic and intellectual traditions, including: (C, E, H)
Sanskrit literature, including the Bhagavad-Gita Gita, Ramayana, and the Mahabharata
medicine
metallurgy
mathematics, including Hindu-Arabic numerals and the zero
Project Day OneResearch the pros and cons of wind, solar, and hydro renewable energy sources.
Each group will build a working wind turbine model. Teachers will construct the hydroelectric model.
No construction is needed for the solar cells. By the end of day one, all groups will have access to models
representing wind, solar or hydroelectric power sources.
Project Day TwoGroups will collect data from the renewable energy models (wind turbine and solar cell) they built and
calculate the efficiency of each model. They will build a circuit consisting of a switch and lights arranged
in parallel and use a multi-meter to measure current, voltage and resistance in the circuit while it is
powered by the renewable energy source. From the collected data they will calculate power in the
circuit (P = IV). For the solar cell, the input power will be measured using a Watt-meter on the lamp
providing light for the cell. For the wind turbine, an anemometer will be used to measure wind speed
and the speed will be used to calculate the input power. Teachers will assist students with the required
math (a cubic function of wind speed).
Given four articles to choose from, students will identify relevant information in order to drawn graph,
that will compare and contrast India’s and the United States’ consumption of coal over a five-year span
of time using a function table. Then students will verbally describe the functions and graph to a peer to
assure understanding.
Research will be completed.
Project Day ThreeStudents will create the presentation using a mode of their choosing. The presentation should contain
very little text; therefore, the groups will need to practice to assure they verbally describe all the
required materials.
Project Day FourAfter being allowed some time for practice, students will give their presentations to the entire grade.
Students will be reminded to use eye contact and good voice quality.