Title Page
TLT407
Unit Plan Assignment
Gas Laws Instructional Unit
General Chemistry, 10th -12th grade.
Mr. Leo Macdonald
February 16, 2016
1
1.
Unit Overview ......................................................................................................................... 4
2.
Educational Philosophy .......................................................................................................... 6
3.
Needs Assessment ................................................................................................................... 7
3.1.
Desired Performance ....................................................................................................... 7
3.2.
Current Performance ....................................................................................................... 7
4.
Pennsylvania Related Standards ............................................................................................. 8
5.
Goals and Objectives ............................................................................................................ 11
5.1.
Goal: .............................................................................................................................. 11
5.2.
Objectives: .................................................................................................................... 11
6.
Assessment Plan.................................................................................................................... 13
7.
Learner Analysis ................................................................................................................... 16
7.1.
General Description of Learners ................................................................................... 16
7.2.
Strengths ....................................................................................................................... 17
7.3.
Weaknesses ................................................................................................................... 19
7.4.
Areas of Potential Difficulties ...................................................................................... 20
7.5.
Special Needs/Circumstances ....................................................................................... 21
7.6.
Strategies ....................................................................................................................... 24
8.
Description of Learning Environment .................................................................................. 28
8.1.
9.
Student List ................................................................................................................... 29
Content Analysis ................................................................................................................... 34
9.1.
Outline form of Unit Content ........................................................................................ 34
9.2.
Concept Map form of Unit Content .............................................................................. 36
9.3.
Activities/Lab List ........................................................................................................ 38
10.
Instructional Materials Plan .............................................................................................. 40
10.1.
General Description .................................................................................................. 40
10.2.
Lesson by Lesson Plan .............................................................................................. 42
11.
Unit Description ................................................................................................................ 43
11.1.
Overall Plan for each day in narrative fashion.......................................................... 43
11.2.
Unit Map ................................................................................................................... 50
11.3.
Timeline .................................................................................................................... 51
12.
Individual Lesson Plans .................................................................................................... 52
2
12.1.
Lesson 2 .................................................................................................................... 52
12.2.
Lesson 3 .................................................................................................................... 68
12.3.
Lesson 4 .................................................................................................................... 74
12.4.
Lesson 5 .................................................................................................................... 78
12.5.
Lesson 7: Laboratory ................................................................................................ 91
12.6.
Lesson 8 .................................................................................................................... 93
13.
Technology Items Overview and Description: ................................................................. 96
14.
Educational Beliefs Statement .......................................................................................... 97
15.
References ....................................................................................................................... 101
3
1. Unit Overview
A. Title: Gas Laws Instructional Unit
B. Target Learners: High school students including those who are planning on going to
college and those who may not be going to college. These are diverse students with
many different life goals, and very different interests. Some may like chemistry and
some may dislike chemistry. A wide variety of motivational strategies will be used to
generate interest and excitement thereby increasing student learning.
C. Overall Goal: Students will develop an advanced understanding of what a gas is, learn
various gas properties, and be able to connect the usefulness of dynamic gas situations to
everyday pneumatic situations (such as pistons, turbines, rockets, etc).
D. Rationale for why the instruction should be carried out: The PA Standards
(www.pdesas.org) explicitly state, in section 3.4.10 that students in chemistry are
responsible for explaining and predicting the behaviors of gases and the various laws that
govern these behaviors. Additionally students shall analyze and explain common
phenomenon involving gases such as refrigeration systems, rocket propulsion, etc.
Additionally students who develop an understanding of gases and the role they play in
our technology filled society will be more competent and educated citizens, and able to
make smarter choices in life regarding topics as diverse as air conditioning, combustion,
transportation, refrigeration, and many other arenas.
E. Description of the unit: This unit is a comprehensive learning environment in which the
students are systematically exposed to increasingly complex ideas about gases and their
behaviors. It will start with a review of prior knowledge, and then introduce and define
4
necessary vocabulary and concepts. Once the basic scientific language of gases has been
learned, we will delve into the various types of gas behaviors, and their interrelationships.
These interrelationships will culminate in learning of the three gas laws; Boyle’s Law,
Charles’ Law, and the Ideal Gas Law. These laws will be practiced by the students until
proficiency is attained. The students will demonstrate their thorough understanding of
the language and their abilities to analyze the behaviors of gases by creating a project that
explains real world applications of the dynamic behaviors of gases in pneumatic
situations.
F. Scope of the Unit: The scope of this unit was drawn from public documentation available
on the Whitehall-Coplay School District Curriculum website
(http://www.whitehallcoplay.org/districtsite/highl.html ) They provide a list of units in
their various chemistry classes. The units are listed as taking ~2 weeks each. The unit
selected for this unit development was the Gas Laws unit.
G. Materials to be included: This unit
H. General Development Guidelines The guidelines used for the development of this Unit
were those presented over the course of this semester in the class TLT 407: Designing for
Teaching and Learning. The instructional unit design document was instrumental in
validating the form of this unit.
5
2. Educational Philosophy
Students learn information by remembering things they find interesting and/or useful. This
information can be social (friends), personal (home address), educational (classroom materials),
career oriented (jobs), and more. Information they view as difficult, have difficulty
understanding relevance, think is hard, is much less likely to be remembered.(Caine, & Caine,
1991) Unfortunately, this type of information is common in the rigorous academic environment.
Long derivations of esoteric formulas are difficult, irrelevant, and hard for the students. In my
classroom we will learn via fun and exciting exploration of the very relevant real world and
discovery of the mechanisms by which it works. We will continuously utilize real world
examples and hands on learning, to create lasting understanding (Garner, 2007) of the rigorous
chemical knowledge required by the PA Standards. My students will be encouraged to develop
challenging questions and pursue detailed answers using a rigorous inquiry based learning style,
emphasizing student achievement and utilizing appropriate teacher guidance. (Bybee, Powell, &
Trowbridge, 2008) My learning environment will be encouraging of inquisitive minds, exciting
and fun for all students, and inclusive of students of all abilities. Additionally I will utilize
collaborative teaming with local industry and university professionals to bring in guest lectures
and have the students meet “real scientists” who are doing cutting edge research and
manufacturing using chemistry.
6
3. Needs Assessment
Discrepancy Analysis : Where the students “are” currently, and where they “will be” at the end
of the unit. Current vs Desired Performance.
3.1. Desired Performance
Students in General Chemistry are required to be able to “predict the behavior of gases
through the use of Boyle’s, Charles’ or the ideal gas law, in everyday situations” by the PA state
standards. Additionally, according to PA Science Anchors for grade 11, students shall be able to
“explain the relationships between the structure and properties of matter”, including “predict the
behavior of gases through the application of laws (i.e., Boyle’s law, Charles’ law, or ideal gas
law).” These state dictated requirements are applied to all students’ skills and knowledge at this
grade level. The study of gases and the related gas laws during this unit will enable the students
to understand gas behaviors, apply logical thinking to determine changes in properties of a gas
subjected to changing conditions, and analyze gas dominated behaviors through measurements
and calculations. The students should be able to understand and apply the three gas laws to
predict the behaviors of gases in various situations.
3.2. Current Performance
The students currently do not have the requisite previous knowledge of gases that is
required under the state standard. The have learned (but may not remember) that gases make up
the atmosphere. They may have learned that gases have properties, including weight, pressure,
temperature, and may behave in certain ways depending on their composition. It is unlikely that
these students know that such behaviors vary according to a pattern and follow set rules/laws as
various influential parameters are modified. Additional gas information that the students are
7
unlikely to understand include inherent molecular properties of gases including flammability
(gaseous fuels), the ability to support life (oxygen), and no reactivity (inert gases). These
students also do not know how to analyze situations in which gases play a major role in
determining various manifestations of observed physical properties. Pressure in a soda bottle is a
good example. This is a gas dominated behavior the student are likely to have basic familiarity
with (they have all opened a soda bottle and heard it go “PSSSTTTT”), but none of them have
had to describe that “PSSSTTTT” using measurements and mathematics.
4. Pennsylvania Related Standards
The Pennsylvania Standards describe what students should know and be able to do; they
increase in complexity and sophistication as students progress through school (www.pdesas.org).
It is important to address the state standards as part of a unit plan to ensure that the material
taught is in alignment with these standards. The Standards Aligned System (SAS) ensures that
all students are learning relevant and important material. The goals of this unit include
understanding the chemistry of gases which is related to composition of various gases, including
the atmosphere, pollution, and artificial environments and falls under the standards 4.3.12,
4.8.10, . The goals of this unit also include describe the behavior of gases which is covered by
3.4.10, and apply the three gas laws to evaluate real-world dynamic pneumatic situations, which
is covered under 3.7.10, 4.8.12, and 4.9.12.
This unit is explicitly reference to the following applicable PA State Standards:
3. PA Academic Standards for Science and Technology
3.4.10 Physical Science, Chemistry and Physics (Grade 10)
A. Matter: Explain concepts about the structure and properties of matter
8

Predict the behavior of gases through the use of Boyle’s, Charles’ or the ideal gas
law, in everyday situations.
B. Energy: Analyze energy sources and transfers of heat

Use knowledge of conservation of energy and momentum to explain common
phenomena (e.g., refrigeration systems, rocket propulsion, etc.)
3.7.10 Technological Devices (Grade 10)
A. Tools: Identify and safely use a variety of tools, basic machines, materials and techniques to
solve problems and answer questions.
 Select and safely apply appropriate tools, materials and processes necessary to solve
complex problems.
 Apply advanced tool and equipment manipulation techniques to solve problems.
C. Computer Operations: Apply basic computer operations and concepts.
 Apply knowledge of advanced input devices.
 Apply knowledge of hardware setup.
4. PA Academic Standards for Environment and Ecology
4.3.12 Environmental Health (Grade 12)
A. Environmental Health Issues: Analyze the complexity of environmental health issues.

Identify invisible pollutants and explain their effects on human health.

Explain the relationship between wind direction and velocity as it relates to dispersal
and occurrence of pollutants.
4.8.10 Humans and the Environment (Grade 10)
C. Human Impacts: Analyze how human activities may cause changes in an ecosystem.
9

Analyze and evaluate changes in the environment that are the result of human
activities.
4.8.12 Humans and the Environment (Grade 12)
D. Supply and Demand: Analyze the international implications of environmental occurrences

Analyze environmental issues and their international implications
4.9.12 Environmental Laws and Regulations (Grade 12)
A. Environmental Laws and their Impact: Analyze environmental laws and regulations as they
relate to environmental issues.

Analyze and explain how issues lead to environmental law or regulation (e.g.,
underground storage tanks, regulation of water discharges, hazardous, solid and liquid
industrial waste, endangered species).

Compare and contrast environmental laws and regulations that may have a positive or
negative impact on the environment and the economy.

Research and describe the effects of an environmental law or regulation and how it
has impacted the environment.
10
5. Goals and Objectives
5.1. Goal:
The student should understand the chemistry, describe the behavior of gases, and be able to
apply the three gas laws to evaluate real-world dynamic pneumatic situations.
5.2. Objectives:
1. The student will demonstrate knowledge of basic mathematical graphs (proportional and
inversely proportional) by identifying them on an in-class worksheet.
2. The student will demonstrate knowledge of basic atomic structure by identifying various
atoms and their parts (proton, electron, etc) on an in-class worksheet
3. The student will demonstrate he/she remembers the specific elements and molecules that
are gases, by labeling several gases with their name or type on homework and on a quiz.
4. The student will demonstrate understanding of key terms used to describe gases by
explaining what each term means on an in class worksheet and on a quiz. These terms
include Pressure, Temperature, Volume, Moles.
5. The student will demonstrate he/she remembers the formulas of the three gas laws
(Boyle’s Law, Charles’ Law, and the Ideal Gas Law) by recognizing each formula and
identifying it on an in-class worksheet.
6. The student will demonstrate he/she can apply the three gas laws to compute1/calculate2
the changes that occur in a target parameter, as a result of a change in another parameter
by completing various calculation based problems both in class and on homework sheets.
11
7. The student will analyze sketches of gases in containers and in the environment in order
to infer1/predict2 the changes in gas behavior based on their analysis of the forces acting
on the gases. These sketches and the resulting student analysis will take place on various
worksheet completed during lessons 4,5,6, and evaluated finally as part of the final
project in lesson 8.
8. The students will analyze how various real world objects behave when pressurized (either
externally or internally) by comparing1/measuring2 their properties before and after
pressurization as part of a laboratory exercise using an in-lab worksheet.
9. Students will create a final project by composing a detailed scenario that presents the
relevant technical details required for an average adult to understand a complex dynamic
pneumatic situation. This will include evaluating a dynamic situation, writing a
description, drawing a detailed schematic, calculating various pneumatic forces using the
three gas laws, and creating a “representation” (e.g. posterboard, paper, etc) that contains
all necessary and relevant information for the average adult to understand the
information. This final project will require the students to use all the skills they have
learned in this unit, and all of the objectives will be assessed on this Formal Summative
final project.
12
6. Assessment Plan
Several types of assessments will be used during this unit. The assessment key is shown in the
table below:
Assessment Informal
Value
Type of
(Does Not Count)
Assessment
Formative
In class queries,
Formal
(along the way)
ungraded worksheets
(in school or at home),
Summative
Graded, but not counted worksheets
Graded and Counted
(at the end)
(used to assess “Yes they do understand”
Quiz, Test, Final Project
(Counts)
Graded worksheets incl Lab
Or “No they do not understand”)
IF = Informal Formative, FF = Formal Formative,
IS = Informal Summative, FS= Formal Summative
Each objective will be assessed using a summative assessment that will gauge the understanding
of the students at the end of the lesson. Some of these are the informal type while some are the
formal type. Additionally there are several formative assessments used within the lessons to
assess the students’ progress towards the lesson objectives. These formative assessments align
with the lessons, while the summative assessments align with the objectives.
Lesson 1: The students will receive an in class worksheet (IS) to fill in after the
lecture/discussion review of prerequisite knowledge. This worksheet will have ~6
questions including identification of various graphs and atoms/parts, etc. This worksheet
will be collected at the end of class and used for assessing the student’s prior knowledge
via a “yes/no” answer to the question “Do they have basic understanding of the material?”
13
This worksheet will not count towards their final grade. This worksheet will assess
objectives #1 & #2.
Lesson 2: The students will complete a homework worksheet having various molecules, gas
types, and other pertinent atomic and molecular information on it. They will have to
correctly label several gases by name or type on the homework sheet. This homework
will have ~10 questions. They will turn in this homework for a grade (FF). This
homework will formatively assess their understanding of gas types and vocabulary per
Objective #3. This objective will also be assessed summatively (FS) on the quiz after
Lesson 3.
Lesson 3: The students will use the interactive gas simulation courtesy of University of
Florida. Their understanding and progress with this simulation will be measured
informally by moving around the room and asking probing questions (IF). At the end of
lesson 3, there will be a Quiz (FS) covering gas types and properties that will summatively
assess Objectives #3 and #4. This quiz will have having ~ 10 questions including
identifications/labeling of gas types, recognitions of various molecules, and explaining the
four key vocabulary words.
Lesson 4: The students will be responsible for remembering the formula for the Boyle’s
Law and be able to demonstrate application of Boyle’s Law by calculating various
problems. This remembering and application will be demonstrated on an in class
worksheet that the students will fill in the graphs and calculate some basic pressure and
volume relationships. This worksheet is to be finished in class or as a homework that is
handed in but not graded (IS). This worksheet will assess Objectives #5 and #6.
14
Lesson 5: The students will be responsible for remembering the formula for the Charles’
Law and be able to demonstrate application of Charles’ Law by calculating various
problems. This remembering and application will be demonstrated on an in class
worksheet that the students will fill in the graphs and calculate some basic volume and
temperature relationships. This worksheet is to be finished in class or as a homework that
is handed in but not graded (IS). This worksheet will assess Objectives #5 and #6.
Lesson 6: The students will be responsible for remembering the formula for the Ideal Gas
Law and be able to demonstrate application of the Ideal Gas Law by calculating various
problems. This remembering and application will be demonstrated on an in class
worksheet that the students will fill in the graphs and calculate some basic volume and
temperature relationships. This worksheet is to be finished in class or as a homework that
is handed in but not graded (IS). This worksheet will assess Objectives #5 and #6.
Lesson 7: The students will be responsible for analyzing how various real world objectives
behave when pressurized or evacuated. They will receive an in class worksheet on which
they will make plots of data, analyze the data and apply the gas laws to differentiate the
patterns and trends in the data. This in class worksheet is handed in as a graded
assignment (FF). This worksheet will assess Objective #8
Lesson 8: This lesson is a multi-day creation of a Final Project that will be used as a
summative assessment (FS). This project will be assessed using a rubric that will be
described in the lesson plan. This final project will require the students to use all the skills
they have learned in this unit, and all of the objectives will be assessed on this final
project. Additionally this assessment item explicitly aligns with Objectives # 7 and #9.
This final project is described in detail in the unit description (Section 10, Lesson 8)
15
7. Learner Analysis
7.1. General Description of Learners
I will be teaching general chemistry to 18 students in the 10th, 11th, and12th grades. These
students are generally between 14 and 18 years old. They are 56% female students and 44%
male students for an approximately equal male to female balance. They come from a variety of
socioeconomic backgrounds (4 upper middle, 10 middle, and 4 lower middle) and a variety of
family groups (13 intact families and 5 separated families). They are a diverse group of students,
comprising 9 Caucasians, 5 African Americans, 3 Asians, and 1 Middle Eastern student. In
general, these students seem to have a basic desire to do well and try to complete their school
work (although their abilities vary). Students at this age have significant differences in their
learning abilities and scholarly work ethic. This variability is typical of all students; some are
“good/great” students who are excited and interested in learning, while others are
“mediocre/poor” students and do not want to be involved in academics (especially hard subjects
like chemistry).
All of these students have had similar education including middle school and the
beginning of high school. It is likely that they are able to read the textbook, although dense
formulas and derived mathematics will likely cause them difficulty. The students will be able to
understanding basic drawings and pictures and are likely to benefit from making their own
drawings and pictures as part of learning. Other common characteristics of students this age
include high levels of interest in romantic interactions with their peers, interest in owning and
driving cars, potential interest in drugs and alcohol, and general curiosity about new things.
Some students may be getting bored with some classes because they are similar to classes they
have had in the past. Many (but not all) of the students are starting to think about going to
16
college, and want to do well in their classes so that they have a good transcript. Some students
are getting apprehensive about standardized tests such as the SATI (general) and SAT II (subject
based).
7.2. Strengths
General learning enabling traits include
1. All the students have the ability to read multiple pages out of textbook and get a basic
idea of the main topics and understand some of the details. Some of the students are
reading and writing above grade level and will understand most if not all of what they
read.
2. All of the students have the ability to sit and listen for a whole class period, although they
will appreciate being able to “mix it up” and do non-lecture activities.
3. All of the students all have the ability to write legibly (either by hand or using a
computer) although the length and quality of writing will vary by individual.
4. Additionally most (if not all) of these students will have had some type of prior
technology experience. They will be familiar with telephones, especially cell phones,
and may be competent at using computers. All will have used computers before. They
can use a variety of electronic media. They will have used calculators previously.
5. All of the students have had prior science classes, usually general science in middle
school, and earth science and biology in high school, so they have been taught to evaluate
data and draw basic conclusions and determine basic relationships.
6. All of the students have had some math, and most will have had algebra (typically in 10th
grade).
17
7. All of the students have had a basic education regarding measurements. The ability to
make basic measurements is important because this unit will utilize the measuring of
various properties of matter.
8. All of these students prefer various learning styles, some will prefer to work
independently and/or some will prefer to work in groups.
9. Motivations for students this age include praise from the teacher, praise from their
parents, praise from their peers, a fear of failure, and a desire to “look good” in front of
their peers (Howe, 1999)
Specific learning enabling traits include
10. Most of these students seem to have a basic desire to succeed. 14/18 seem to be basically
interested in succeeding academically. 3/18 students seem to want to succeed socially or
athletically (but not necessarily academically) and only 1/18 student seems not to have
any interests (success or otherwise).
11. Some of the students have high academic performance characteristics that typically
indicate supportive families. It is likely that their family has expectations that the
students will get good grades. The parent(s) may have a specific time and place set aside
for the student to do homework and studying. The parent(s) may emphasize values and
choices that put the student’s academic performance ahead of the student’s involvement
in non-scholastic activities.
12. Some of the students have a goal of going to college, and want to do well in school to
build a successful transcript to enable that goal.
18
13. All of the students know what a balloon is and some of them have previously used a
balloon (blown one up by mouth, or purchased a helium filled one).
14. Some students like football. The football is a great example of a pressurized object.
7.3. Weaknesses
General learning disabling traits include:
1) Some of these students may not plan to go to college, and likely have few (if any) plans
for what they might do after high school.
2) Some of these students may have significant amounts of unsupervised time and as a
result, these students may participate excessively in leisure activities such as watching
television, playing video games, watching movies, shopping at the mall, etc.
3) Additionally, some students have low academic expectation for themselves, especially
those students that are below grade level in performance. They probably have
experienced failure in the past and are likely to expect failure or poor grades in the future.
4) Social skills and life is becoming much more exciting for these students. They are
experiencing strong urges to socialize with their peers, and interact romantically with
their gender preferred partners. In a class of approximately half boys and half girls, it is
possible that they may become romantically attached and/or break up with one another.
This may cause emotional turbulence in the classroom.
Specific learning disabling traits include:
19
5) The major identified weakness is that 7-8 out of 18 students read below grade level. This
weakness will cause problems with the assigned reading in the chapters relating to the
topic of study.
6) Another weakness, that is not explicitly listed but can be assumed, is lack of expertise in
higher math skills.
Many students are at or below grade level in reading and writing.
Students that are at and below grade level in those subjects are unlikely to be at or above
grade level in math. Skill with algebra is quite important for this unit, and the use of
advanced algebra is likely to cause difficulty for all but the most skilled students.
7) Some of these students may have a lack of family support at home for academics.
8) An additional confounding factor, which may prevent academic success, is participation
in extracurricular activities. Having extra-curricular interests is common for students who
are in their mid to late teens. At least two students participate in various sports, one to the
detriment of his academic work, and it is likely that some other students have extracurricular activities such as jobs, student government, clubs, acting/theater, and more.
Many parents of students this age are quite encouraging of these extra-curricular
activities, often driving their child to multiple events and practices for sports teams,
plays, music lessons, etc. This definitely takes away from the time that students have
available to do academic studying.
7.4.
Areas of Potential Difficulties
Foremost, the study of the gas laws involves memorizing and learning to use three basic
equations. They are P1V1=P2V2, P1/T1=P2/T2, and PV=nRT. These equations are applied to
word problems and will need to be algebraically rearranged to solve for the unknown quantity.
The perceived difficulty with math will cause significant difficulty with the students’ ability to
20
manipulate and utilize these equations. Another general difficulty is that students think
chemistry is HARD. A few of the students suffer from low self esteem so they will be reluctant
to try to do the work because they “know” that they are likely to have difficulty (Howe, 1999).
Several of the students (8/18) will have difficulty reading and understanding the book chapters
that explain the gas laws and their use. Additionally, some students may have difficulty
understanding that air is something we can measure, compress, weigh, etc. Most people are used
to thinking of air as “nothing” or “not there.”
7.5. Special Needs/Circumstances
The class has <1/3 above average, ~1/3 average, and >1/3 below average learners. It
would be a mistake to teach them all with the same type of instruction. They will obviously
benefit from a differentiated instruction scheme. The reliance on book reading would be a
mistake as well, since many of them have difficulty reading at grade level. The use of pictures,
figures, and sketches will be utilized to demonstrate the main points of the unit, so that the
students will all be able to comprehend the materials.
Additionally working in groups would be beneficial to many of them because it will
allow them the opportunity to hear the information explained from multiple viewpoints (not just
the teachers). The groups should be heterogeneous, having both boys and girls, having differing
abilities.
The less skilled students are likely to benefit from the more skilled students.
Additionally it would be beneficial for the skilled students to have to explain the information.
Being able to teach the information makes the student/teacher more skilled and creates a greater
understanding of the information for both students (Caine & Caine, 1991).
This unit will involve the use of manipulating laboratory materials in groups. It is likely
that some of the students are better with their hands-on skills than with their intellectual abilities,
21
and these students will be able to do well helping in their groups (Bybee, Powell & Trowbridge,
2008).
22
Groups: The students have a suffix indicating their basic ability: above +, at @, and below -.
Group 1
Group 2
Group 3
Group 4
Group 5
4
3
4
4
3
Mark+
Olivia+
Antonia+
Irving+
Tyler+
Lanna -
Jared -
John -
Julian -
Greg -
Molly @
Margie @
Katie @
Emily @
Justin -
Lilly @
Angie @
Shaneel -
Group 1 has a blend of above, average and below, I expect Mark to be the leader. He is
unlikely to cause conflict with the girls who are of lower ability, and will likely help them. This
group is likely to succeed. Group 2 has a very outspoken demeanor (Olivia is smart and strong
willed, while Margie and Jared are talkative and social), but will likely succeed due to strong
motivations for all students, and a variety of skill levels. Group 3 has a good dynamic of
Antonia (self determined) and John (unmotivated, but capable) and Katie (capable and
motivated) and Lilly (capable and shy). They are likely to be very capable with few personal
issues. Group 4 has a balance between Irving (strong and smart) and Julian (slow but smart),
Angie (talkative and very social, but capable) and Emily (good at organizing and keeping her
group on task). They are all capable and will likely stay on task. Group 5 is my most difficult
group. Tyler is smart but nerdy, Greg is only focused on football and not school, and Justin is a
self absorbed loner. I am sure I will have to supervise this group more than the others. I hope
that I can get Greg to participate because footballs are exciting for him, so I will use lots of
football examples and have him bring in a football to do pressure measurements with. I will
have to talk with Justin one-on-one to find out what he is interested in so I can use it to draw him
in.
23
7.6. Strategies
1. In order to capitalize on the student’s basic reading and listening skills (#1&2), a brief
amount of lecture with writing on the board will be used to introduce the topic and go
over the equations. Additionally some textbook reading will be assigned, but I will not
expect many of the students to understand much of the reading. It will mostly be for the
benefit of the good readers for use in the group activities.
2. The student’s writing abilities (#3) will be used to have them write down some of notes
about gas laws on interactive guided note sheets. I will provide the scaffolded notes with
spaces for their writing down the key concepts.
3. In order to capitalize on the student’s technology experience (#4), computer
demonstrations will be used to show movies and schematics of molecules in gases
moving within a container and generating pressure. Additionally the students will be
encouraged to use a calculator frequently to assist them with calculations.
4. The prior science experience (#5) will be utilized to help them remember the basic
process of scientific investigation (observe a phenomenon, measure and take data,
postulate an explanation, develop an understanding, and synthesize a model) and apply it
to this unit.
5. In order to capitalize on the student’s prior math knowledge (#6), some basic algebra
equations will be demonstrated on the board as a refresher. The applications of the
examples to the actual gas equations will be discussed and demonstrated.
6. The student’s prior measuring experience (#7) will be refreshed and used advantageously
during the pressure and temperature measurements in the lab. It will be beneficial to help
24
the students recall (Gagne’s event 3) various measuring techniques that they have been
taught in order to fully utilize this strength.
7. In order to best utilize the students multiple learning styles (#8), they will be working
individually and in groups.
8. In order to best motivate these students, teacher praise will be used (#9). Opportunities
will be presented to the students to demonstrate to their peers that they are capable by
having very specifically delineated tasks for group work.
9. In order to capitalize on the student’s basic desire to succeed(#10), the academically
strong students will be designated as explainers in their groups. At least two students
want to succeed by gaining peer approval (in preference to teacher approval). This
strength can be capitalized on by allowing them to participate in demonstrations where
they are “in the limelight” and recognized by their peers as being successful.
10. In order to capitalize on the supportive family (#11) and the students desire to go to
college (#12), The students will be encouraged to share their learning of new information
with their parents to demonstrate that school is useful and interesting. They will be sent
home with a uninflated balloon to demonstrate various gas laws at home. They will have
an official assignment to blow it up, measure it, and put it in their freezer, and measure it
in the morning. Their parents are likely to have to assist, as they may have to rearrange
their freezer. This homework will obviously have to occur at home and will involve the
parents in a whole family learning experience. This will help reinforce the student’s
interest via the families participation (and hopefully the families approval).
11. In order to capitalize on the student’s prior knowledge of balloons (#13) and footballs
(#14), as well as any other type of inflated sports ball, these items will be utilized as
25
examples whenever possible. The students will work with several inflatable objects
including balloons, footballs, and others, and measure them using a variety of
instruments.
12. In order to overcome the weakness of lack of college planning (#1), I will be sure to use
real-world examples (such as inflating a car’s tires) that do not require a college degree.
13. In order to overcome the students desire to use free-time to participate in non-academic
activities (#2), I will use fun and interesting homework, as well as encourage submission
of extracurricular information for extra credit. This could be photos of a helium balloon
at a car dealership, or a birthday party, or some other inflated object they see and capture
on a camera or camera/phone.
14. In order to overcome some student’s low expectations of themselves (#3), I will have
activities that are easy to do and result in definite conclusions that the students can do and
complete correctly.
15. In order to help the students overcome their social interests (#4) and focus on the
information to be learned, I hope to create an interesting and exciting classroom
experience.
16. In order to overcome the weakness of reading (#5), only some reading will be assigned
and the students will not be held responsible for that information. Most of the critical
information will be presented in class via lecture, writing on the board, interactive
computer software, guided notes/handouts, as well as actual physical manipulations and
measurements of various inflated objects.
26
17. In order to overcome the perceived weakness in higher math (#6), the actual algebraic
manipulations of the gas equations will be demonstrated on the board and handed out to
the students as photocopies.
18. In order to overcome the possible lack of family support for some students (#7), all of the
essential information will be presented in class, and the homework will count only for a
small portion of their grade.
19. In order to overcome the significant participation of some students in extra-curricular
activities (#8), all of the essential information will be presented in class, and the
homework will count only for a small portion of their grade.
27
8. Description of Learning Environment
The learning environment present in the Lower Merion School District (LMSD) is one of
success and support. The students consistently perform at a very high level and generally are
quite capable learners. They do extremely well on standardized tests and almost all of them
continue to higher education after graduating high school. LMSD has a strong support system in
place to for all their students. This help is available officially by offering services for special
needs or gifted/talented students, or unofficially by setting up study sessions, one on one tutors,
early intervention literary support, extended daycare, etc. The students are also offered an
incredible amount of technology support, having access to thousands of computers (approx 1 for
every 2 students), campus wide wireless internet access in all the schools, as well as many
classes specifically for specialized computer use. The general use of computers is also integrated
in to most classes as part of a “cross-curricular use of technology” focus. This access to
extensive support allows the students to achieve at very high levels. They are all skilled at using
various technology platforms and should be able to easily understand data, perform graphing,
and be able to describe relationships they discover. Most of the students go to college.
The school district is financially sound, and invests heavily in resources that are used to
assist the students in learning. They are at the forefront of providing new technologies to the
teachers, including ACTIVEBoards, SmartBoards, and Mimios (all interactive technology tools).
LMSD has recently rebuilt all of it schools (from 1997 to 2010) to the latest standards. They
offer some of the highest teacher salaries and benefits. They employ support staff at almost a 1:1
ratio for the teachers (~600 teachers and ~500 support staff).
28
8.1. Student List
The students come from diverse backgrounds and bring a variety of experiences and previous knowledge to the classroom. My
students are listed below.
Students
Mark
Katie
Olivia
Julian
Reading
Above
At
Above
Below
Writing
Social
Skills
Emotional
Development
Above
Welldeveloped
Careful,
conscientious
OK
No
No
Asian
Middle
Intact
At
Impatient
with
others in
group
work
Wants to
please teacher;
does required
work; raises
hand for every
question
To please
the teacher
No
No
Caucasi
an
Uppermiddle
Intact
Above
Others like
her, but
are wary
of being in
her group
Rebellious;
challenges
teacher;
pushes limits
Focused
on her
work
No
No
Caucasi
an
Lowermiddle
Intact
Below
Participate
s well in
small
groups
where
others can
help him
Reserved
Needs
extra time
No
No, but
processes
informatio
n slowly
African
America
n
Middle
Intact
Attention
ELL
Special
Ed.
29
Ethnicity
SES
Family
Comments
Mark is a very smart student who reads and
writes above grade level. He is a quick learner.
He is careful and conscientious in his work. Other
students like to work in his group. He comes from
a middle-class, Asian family.
Katie reads and writes on grade level. She is
motivated by her desire to please the teacher, so
she does everything that is required but does not
go beyond the requirements. She raises her hand
to answer every question the teacher asks.
During group work, she is impatient with other
group members when she thinks they are not
doing what is right or required. She comes from
an upper-middle-class Caucasian family.
Olivia reads and writes above grade level. She is
smart and focused on her work. At the same time,
she is a rebellious teenager, often challenging the
teacher on content, procedures, or assignments.
She often pushes the limits, so other students like
her but are wary of being in her group. She
comes from a lower-middle-class Caucasian
family.
Julian reads and writes below grade level. He is
smart, but processes information slowly and
needs extra time to learn and apply new
information. He is reserved and quiet during large
group work, but participates in small groups
where he can ask questions and allow others to
help him. He comes from a middle-class AfricanAmerican family.
Students
Emily
Antonia
Reading
At
Above
Writing
Social
Skills
Emotional
Development
Attention
ELL
Special
Ed.
Ethnicity
SES
Family
Keeps
group ontask
Organized;
thorough
OK
No
No
Caucasi
an
Middle
Mother
and
brother
Above
Strong
Highly
motivated; hard
working; goal is
to be the first
person in her
family to go to
college
OK
No
No
African
America
n
Lowermiddle
Father
Laughs and
jokes to
compensate for
lack of
processing
ability
Often
distracts
self and
others
when
joking
around
No
No, but
has
difficulty
processin
g linguistic
informatio
n
Caucasi
an
Middle
Mother
and
stepfath
er
At
Jared
Below
Below
Liked by
others, but
they get
annoyed
with his
laughing
and joking
Lilly
At
At
Average;
quiet
Average;
seldom
volunteers
Average;
can get
overlooked
No
No
Asian
Middle
Intact
Below
Popular,
but does
not work
hard in
groups
Does not apply
himself; football
star; thinks he
can get through
on his athletic
ability
Can but
does not
pay
attention
No
No
Caucasi
an
Uppermiddle
Intact
Greg
Below
30
Comments
Emily reads and writes on grade level. Her
greatest strength is her organizational ability.
Although she is of average ability, she completes
her work thoroughly and on time. She keeps her
group members on task, but is not pushy. She
comes from a middle-class Caucasian family,
living with her mother and brother.
Antonia reads and writes well above grade level.
Her goal is to be the first person in her family to
graduate from college, so she is motivated to be a
high achiever. She is not particularly bright, but
she works extremely hard. She possesses strong
social skills and often asks other students to
explain things. She comes from a lower-middleclass African-American family and lives with her
father.
Jared reads and writes well below grade level. He
has difficulties processing various kinds of
linguistic information. To compensate, he laughs
and jokes in class on a fairly constant basis. The
other students like him, but get annoyed with his
distractions. The teacher is also concerned about
the amount of distraction he creates in class. He
comes from a middle-class Caucasian home
where he lives with his mother and stepfather.
Lilly reads and writes at grade level. She is
average in every way-in terms of intellect, social
skills, appearance, and motivation. Although she
is competent, she seldom raises her hand or
contributes voluntarily. In addition, she is quiet, so
she is easily overlooked by the teacher and her
peers. She comes from a middle-class Asian
family.
Greg reads and writes below grade level. In
addition, he does not apply himself to his
schoolwork, paying little attention in class and
completing his assignments with minimum effort.
He is a star on the football team, so he is popular,
but seems to think he can cruise through school
and college on his athletic ability. He comes from
an upper-middle-class Caucasian family.
Students
Irving
Tyler
Angie
Molly
Justin
Emotional
Development
Attention
Above
Welldeveloped
; popular
Plays football,
but takes
academics
seriously
OK;
applies
himself
and does
homework
No
No
African
America
n
Uppermiddle
Intact
Above
Above
Lacks
interperso
nal skills;
hesitant in
groups
Considered by
others to be a
"nerd"
OK, but
tries not to
look too
smart
No
No
Caucasi
an
Middle
Intact
At grade
level, but
performs
inconsist
ently
At
grade
level,
but
perfor
ms
inconsi
stently
Very
social
More interested
in social life
than
academics
Does not
"have time"
for
homework;
whispers in
class
No
No
Caucasi
an
Lowermiddle
Intact
At
OK, but
lacks
confidenc
e and
does not
take
initiative
Lacks
confidence;
needs
encouragement
and positive
feedback
OK
No
No
Caucasi
an
Middle
Mother
Below
Poor;
keeps
himself
apart from
others
Has repeated a
grade;
unmotivated;
brooding
Unfocused;
fidgety
No
No
African
America
n
Lowermiddle
Mother
Reading
Above
At
Below
Writing
Social
Skills
ELL
Special
Ed.
31
Ethnicity
SES
Family
Comments
Irving reads and writes above grade level. He is
also a star on the football team, but takes his
academic work as seriously as his sports. He
applies himself in class and does well on his
homework. He is popular with other students. He
comes from an upper-middle-class AfricanAmerican family.
Tyler reads and writes well above grade level. He
is very smart, but lacks social and interpersonal
skills. He is considered by the other students to
be the class "nerd," so he is hesitant to participate
in class, even though he usually understands the
content better than his classmates. He comes
from a middle-class Caucasian home.
Angie reads and writes at grade level, but does
not consistently perform at that level. She is very
social and is clearly more interested in her social
life than in her academic life. During class she
whispers to other students and does not have
time for her homework in the evenings. She is
very popular with other students, but the teacher
often has to remind her to focus on her work. She
comes from a lower-class Caucasian family.
Molly reads and writes at grade level, but is not a
confident learner. She performs well, but does not
expect to, so she needs encouragement and
positive feedback to even try. The same is true
socially-she has social skills and other students
like her, but she lacks confidence so she does not
take initiative. She lives with her single mother in
a middle-class Caucasian household.
Justin reads and writes below grade level and has
repeated a grade. He is unmotivated and
unfocused and does not sit still. He seems to be
brooding and to see no purpose in school. He
tends to keep apart from other students. He
comes from a lower-class, single-parent AfricanAmerican home.
Students
Lanna
Margie
John
Shaneel
Reading
Writing
Social
Skills
Emotional
Development
Attention
ELL
Below;
spellin
g and
gramm
ar are
poor
Quiet;
friendly
Works hard;
struggles to
keep up
At
Highly
social, but
selfconscious;
does not
like to
make
mistakes
Worries about
making
mistakes in
front of others;
jokes to cover
mistakes
Works fast,
but not
carefully
Below
Below
Not
strong; is
not cool,
but wants
to be
Does not want
to appear
smart, so does
not work to his
potential
Acts as if
he doesn't
care; does
not do
homework
carefully
No
No
At
Below;
difficult
y with
compo
sition
Participate
s and
makes a
good
partner;
others like
her
Tries hard
Does not
do well on
homework
No
No
Below;
processe
s written
English
slowly
At
OK
No, but
English
is not
her first
langua
ge.
Special
Ed.
No
Ethnicity
SES
Family
No
Middle
Eastern
Middle
Large,
intact
family
No
Adopted
from
Korea
by
Caucasi
an
family
Uppermiddle
Intact
Caucasi
an
Middle
Intact;
lots of
parental
pressur
e to
excel
African
America
n
Middle
Intact
32
Comments
Lanna reads and writes below grade level. She is
competent, but English is not her first language.
She speaks English fluently, but processes
written English slowly so her comprehension is
poor. Her spelling and written grammar are also
poor. She works hard, but struggles to keep up.
She speaks English fluently, but processes
written English slowly. She is quiet, but friendly.
She comes from a large middle-class family of
Middle Eastern descent.
Margie reads and writes at grade level. She works
fast, but does not work carefully, so she makes
mistakes, which embarrasses her. She is selfconscious in class. At the same time, she is highly
social and has a good sense of humor. She
seems to laugh off her mistakes, but may be
using her humor to cover her self-consciousness.
She comes from an upper-middle-class
Caucasian family, although she was adopted from
Korea.
John reads and writes a little below grade level.
He could perform at a higher level, but does not
want to appear too smart. He is not cool, but
wants to be. In class, he acts as if he does not
care about academics, yet he does his homework
thoroughly. His parents are pressuring him to
become an engineer, but he will not admit that
math is his favorite subject. He tries to be popular,
but his social skills are not strong, so his
relationships with other students are not strong,
either. He comes from a middle-class Caucasian
family.
Shaneel reads on grade level, but writes below
grade level. She does well verbally, but has
difficulty with composition. She participates in
class and makes a good partner for verbal
exercises, but often does not do well on her
homework. Because she makes a good partner
and has a pleasant disposition, students in the
class like to sit by her, although most of her
friends are in other classes. She comes from a
middle-class African-American home.
33
9. Content Analysis
Below are several representations of the contents and information that I will be teaching
in the Gas Laws Instructional Unit. First is an outline of the content that lists the information in
order of increasing complexity. The sub-topics are roughly aligned with the unit objectives. At
the beginning of the unit, we will review the prerequisite knowledge in science, math, and basic
reading and writing. After the review we will learn about the various types of gases. Then we
will learn about properties of the gases. Then we will begin analyzing behaviors and how they
are related to the gas laws. These laws will be used to evaluate various real world examples and
analyze dynamic pneumatic problems.
9.1. Outline form of Unit Content
I. Gases
A) Prerequisite Knowledge
1) Science
(a) Atoms
(b) Elements
(c) Compounds
(d) State of Matter (solid, liquid, gas)
(e) Heat/Energy
2) Math
(a) Algebra
(b) Arithmetic
(c) Graphing
3) Communication
(a) Basic Reading
(b) Basic Writing
34
B) Types (of gases)
1) Monatomic
2) Diatomic
3) Multiatomic
(a) Natural
(b) Synthetic
C) Properties (of gases)
1) Molecular
2) Moles/Amount
3) Pressure
4) Temperature
5) Volume
D) Behaviors (of gases)
1) Volume vs Pressure
2) Volume vs Temperature
3) Absolute Relationships
E) Laws (of gases)
1) Boyle’s Law (P1V1 = P2V2)
2) Charles’ Law (V1/T1 = V2/T2)
3) Ideal Gas Law (PV = nRT)
F) Real World Applications (of gases)
1) Balls/Balloons
2) Tires
3) Pistons
4) Earths Atmosphere
5) Pollution
6) Explosions
7) Rocket Propulsion
35
9.2. Concept Map form of Unit Content
Math:
Algebra
Arithmetic
Graphing
Communication:
Basic Reading
Basic Writing
Natural
Monatomic
Moles/Amount
Molecular
Diatomic
Synthetic
Pressure
Multiatomic
Properties
Prerequisite
Knowledge
Temperature
Types
Volume
Science:
Atoms
Elements
Compounds
State of Matter
(solid, liquid, gas)
Heat/Energy
Gases
Volume vs Pressure
Behaviors
Volume vs Temp
Absolute Relationships
Balls/Balloons
Laws
Tires
Pistons
Charles’ Law
(V1/T1 = V2/T2)
Real World
Applications
Earths Atmosphere
Pollution
Boyle’s Law
(P1V1 = P2V2)
Rocket Propulsion
Explosions
36
Ideal Gas Law
(PV=nRT)
The concept map is organized around a central idea, gases. The pieces of content proceed in a
clockwise order, beginning with Prerequisite knowledge (magenta), and finishing with Real World
Applications (red). Each of the yellow circles is a discrete “sub-topic” within the study of gases. These
sub-topics are not discrete lessons, though, as a complete lesson will utilize information from various
sub-topics to create a complete learning cycle. For example, the three behaviors are matched to the
three laws using hatching to show that a lesson covering volume vs pressure behaviors will also include
Boyle’s Law (P1V1=P2V2), and may include some real world examples.
This inter-relationship of the sub-topics is presented graphically below
Prerequisite
Knowledge
Gas Laws Instructional Unit
Types
Gas Behaviors
Real World
Applications
Properties
Gas Laws
37
9.3. Activities/Lab List
The following list of activities can be performed by the students during class to take advantage of
their natural energy and curiosity. The students will be out of their seats, manipulating various models,
and learning by doing. Keeping them engaged is extremely important. The risk of losing all the
students to boredom during the process of monotonous lecture about these formulas is an obvious pitfall.
Topic
Gas Types
Sub-Topic
Activity
Atom/Multiatomic
Build gas molecules using marshmallows and
toothpicks and markers Use of 3D Computer
models to help visualize molecules.
Gas Properties
Pressure
Pressurize a rigid object using a pump,
measure pressure before and after.
Gas Properties
Moles
Count a dozen eggs (or golf balls).
Demonstrate moles with a math exercise:
relate 12 (1 dozen eggs) to
6.022 x 1023 (1 mole of atoms)
via powers of 10 expansions
Gas Properties
Temperature
Online video of molecular
energy/temperature/velocity
Gas Properties
Volume
Measure a spherical object directly, measure a
non-symmetrical object via immersion.
Gas Behaviors
Pressure vs Volume
Blow up a balloon and various balls, measure
volume before and after.
38
Topic
Sub-Topic
Activity
Temperature vs
Heat up a a flexible object (balloon). Measure
Volume
the volume change in the flexible object.
Gas Laws
Boyle’s Law
P vs V (Gas Behaviors Demo)
Gas Laws
Charles’ Law
T vs V (Gas Behaviors demo)
Gas Laws
Ideal Gas Law
Guided notes during algebra demonstration
Real World
All
Relate the real world examples using hands on
Gas Behaviors
Examples
demos for each of these examples, doing some
observing, measuring, analyzing and
evaluating using the previously learned
behaviors and laws. Blow something up and
explain how and why using the gas laws 
39
10. Instructional Materials Plan
10.1. General Description
In this unit I plan to use a variety of technologies to enhance learning. According to Dale’s Cone of
Experience, the most concrete experiences occur by actually doing something. I will endeavor to have
the students “do” learning as frequently as possible. The sciences are particularly well suited for this as
labs are basically hands on opportunities for the students to learn by doing. We will have one primary
lab exercise in which the students measure objects, effect changes, record data, analyze the data and
draw conclusions. Additionally, we will do a manipulative exercise to model the gas molecules.
Students learn more easily if they can hold and experience the objects to be learned (Garner, 2007).
Using real objects to put together shapes with their own hands is a premium way to learn about
structures. Some of these molecules are wonderful geometric shapes, such as trigonal bi-pyramidal, or
planar cubic that are simply fun to build and look at. Other concepts such as double and triple bonds are
easy to represent and understand with multiple toothpicks between marshmallows. I will use a 3D
software package to show representations of what the molecules look like to help them to build the
models using the toothpicks and marshmallows.
Because high tech kids learn well from high tech information (Gordon, 2000) I opted to do a
simulation online about gas properties and behaviors. This is an interactive simulator that the students
will be able to change parameters and “watch” the system change in response. It allows them to explore
the rational behind Boyle’s and Charles’ Law visually, in a dynamic situation, with them in control. I
also feel that the pictorial motion of the gas atoms is key to understanding concepts like pressure and
temperature. Being able to “see” the atoms/molecules is something that is extremely unlikely to ever
occur in a high school classroom, and easily represented on a computer. Another computer calculation
program we will use is the volume calculator. This is a neat online calculator that the can use to
40
calculate simple shapes volume’s. Its use also embeds the idea that if a math problem is complex, it is
ok to use technology to help you solve it. This will give them more confidence in their abilities to
process mathematical concepts.
I will show a video about safety that I make of myself, because they will get the message in a
more powerful way if I show them how dangerous things can be, rather than just tell them. I am pretty
sure I am not allowed to show them in real life, at school, at least not without the chances of the
principle yelling at me for making holes in the ceiling or setting off the fire alarms. By making a video
at home I can demonstrate these dangers and show them what not to do. Other videos they will use
include the videos they will watch for their final project. These are videos they will find and watch on
their own via their inquiry based learning.
Other technology I plan to use is more traditional, white boards or smartboards for drawing
pictures of molecules and writing gas laws. I plan to use powerpoint in a fairly basic way to show a few
slides of the equations, or of examples of the gas laws in action.
I will have the student interact with
me while I present by having them use graph paper to make plots demonstrating the various proportional
and inversely proportional natures of the gas behaviors embodied in Boyle’s and Charles’ laws. To
further help the students understand the graphing I have developed an interactive Excel spreadsheet for
them to use.
Additionally I plan to do some demonstrations with balloons and other objects, but they are just a
basic show and tell, not as interactive as an activity.
In their final project, they will be creating a presentation of some type, whether physical or
electronic or whatever. This is totally open and they can create a project in whatever media they like.
41
10.2. Lesson by Lesson Plan
Lesson 1
Instructional Technology
Powerpoint with pictures to present
Multimedia or Hands On
None
prerequisite knowledge review
Lesson 2
Whiteboard/Smartboard (drawing of
Marshmallow molecule building
molecules using chemsketch),
exercise (using manipulatives)
Explanation of BROFINCH
Lesson 3
Whiteboard for avagadro’s number
Volume calculator online
explanation. Soda bottle pressure demo.
Gas properties simulator
(so they can “see” the molecules)
Lesson 4
Powerpoint with pictures to explain
inversely proportional.
Lesson 5
Lesson 6
Lesson 7
Powerpoint with pictures to explain
Ruler, calipers, Interactive Excel
proportional. Whiteboard. Balloon and
Spreadsheet is used to plot data from
hairdryer.
Balloon Demo
Powerpoint, formulas and examples of
None
real world objects
(All boring lecture during lesson 6).
Safety Video (homemade)
Various real world objects, pressure
Whiteboard for big list of objects.
and vacuum pumps, pressure gauges,
data sheets and graph paper
Lesson 8
No teaching,
Watch videos and find pictures
just student learning
explaining their topic
42
11. Unit Description
This unit is a comprehensive learning environment in which the students are systematically exposed to
increasingly complex ideas about gases and their behaviors. It will start with a review of prior
knowledge, and then introduce and define necessary vocabulary and concepts. Once the basic scientific
language of gases has been learned, we will delve into the various types of gas behaviors, and their
interrelationships. These interrelationships will culminate in learning of the three gas laws; Boyle’s
Law, Charles’ Law, and the Ideal Gas Law. These laws will be practiced by the students until
proficiency is attained. The students will demonstrate their thorough understanding of the language and
their abilities to analyze the behaviors of gases by creating a project that explains real world applications
of the dynamic behaviors of gases in pneumatic situations.
11.1. Overall Plan for each day in narrative fashion.
There are several lessons in this unit. These lessons are described below.
Lesson 1: We will begin by having a review of prerequisite knowledge. I will cover basic required
mathematical graphs including proportional and inversely proportional, as well as basic scientific
concepts (atoms, atomic structure, the periodic table, etc). The students will receive an in class
worksheet (IS) to fill in after the lecture/discussion. This worksheet will be collected and used for
assessing the student’s prior knowledge via identification of various graphs and atoms, etc.
Lesson 2: The first content specific lesson will cover gas types and vocabulary. This lesson will be
in the format of lecture followed by a lab activity. The students will be given an in-class worksheet that
covers Lesson 2 and Lesson 3. During the lecture, I will describe various types of gas molecules and
their structure and examples of each (as shown on the worksheet). This in-class worksheet lesson guide
will be in the form of guided notes, with some information and some blank spaces for them to fill in.
We will go over the vocabulary words and discuss their meanings in the popular sense and also their
43
scientific meanings. The students will write the scientific meanings on the in-class worksheet lesson
guide. I will explain the BrIN ClOFH (Bring Cloth) pneumonic and how it helps to remember the
diatomic gas elements. I will discuss various aspects of the gas types and things like basic properties
and types of bonds. The students will do a lab exercise using marshmallows and toothpicks to build gas
molecules. This exercise is shown on page 2 of the LESSON 2 Worksheet. This mechanical assembly
of objects is a “multi-media technology artifact” that is the highest order on Dale’s Cone of Experience.
They will be discouraged from eating the marshmallows. These gas molecules will be shown on their in
class worksheet. Pictoral representations of these molecules will also be shown on a
powerpoint/overhead projector. They will be given a homework sheet with various molecules, gas
types, and other pertinent atomic and molecular information on it. They will have to complete and turn
in this homework for a grade (FF).
Lesson 3: After gas types finished, we will continue our study of gases by examining gas properties.
The four main properties are moles, volume, pressure, and temperature. Moles will be demonstrated as
a counting exercise. One mole = 6.022 x 10^23 atoms. We will count various objects, including a
dozen eggs. The label “dozen” will be analyzed and explained as an “amount designator”. We will
examine powers of ten, and how a dozen is 1.2 x 10^1. I will solicit help from the students in writing
out 6.022 x 10^23 on the board, it is a LONG number. Then we will review the basics of volume (cube
= l x w x h, sphere = 4/3πr^3, Cylinder = πr^2h, etc.) We will calculate volume of various objects using
an interactive internet calculator available at http://www.1728.com/diam.htm . We will finish the day
explaining about the standard molar volume of 22.4L/mole.
The next day we will continue lesson 3 by discussing pressure and how the gas molecules are
hitting the walls of the container. I will use a bottle of seltzer to demonstrate pressure. I will open the
top and have the students listen to the “PSSSSTTTTT”. Then I will close it and shake it up and wait and
44
shake it up and the open it over a sink. This will demonstrate the increase in pressure due to gas
evolution.
Then the students will do an online tutorial/webquest to examine the various types of gas
properties. Two online simulators will be investigated by the students. The motions of the particles will
be described while the container is subjected to various. These interactive guides are available at
http://www.grc.nasa.gov/WWW/K-12/airplane/Animation/frglab2.html and
http://www.chem.ufl.edu/~itl/2045/MH_sims/gas_sim.html. Using this interactive simulation, we will
also examine the temperature of the gas sample. The temperature is a measure of molecular motion and
speeds.
We will wrap this lesson up with a review of key information about gas types and gas
properties in preparation for a short quiz the next day.
We will start off Friday with a short quiz having ~ 7 questions including identifications, recognitions of
various molecules, and explaining the four key vocabulary words.
Lesson 4: After the quiz, we will launch in to the relationships of gas properties to each other and
the interrelationships of these properties. We will start with the relationship of pressure to volume that
culminates in the expressions of Boyle’s Law. Boyle’s law states that the pressure and volume are
inversely proportional and can be written in various ways. We will re-examine the inverse proportional
graphs, and the students will make some new graphs based on data sets given in class. We will do a
demonstration using a balloon and heavy weights. A pressurized balloon contracts. We will take some
data as a class and plot the resulting inversely proportional data set. There will be an in class worksheet
that the students will fill in the graphs and calculate some basic pressure and volume relationships. This
worksheet is to be finished as a homework that is handed in but not graded (IS).
Lesson 5: After Boyle’s law, we will learn the relationship of volume and temperature. We will do
a demonstration using a balloon and a hair dryer. A heated balloon expands and a cooled balloon
45
contracts. We will take some data as a class and plot the resulting proportional data set. This will lead
to Charles’ Law, which states temperature changes are proportional to volume changes in a gas sample.
There will be an in class worksheet that the students will fill in the graphs and calculate some basic
temperature and volume relationships. They will use the instructor created Volume/Temperature
Spreadsheet to do these calculations. This worksheet is to be finished as a homework that is handed in
but not graded (IS).
Lesson 6: After Charles’ Law we will examine absolute relationships and the formation of the Ideal
Gas Law. This law treats the systems as absolute entities and requires all the parameters be calculated at
a single moment in time. This law is extremely useful for examining changes in multiple parameters as
well. The students will have to memorize the ideal gas law (PV=nRT). We will spend two days going
over applications of this law and the calculation of various real world objects. The students will have an
in class worksheet that will be finished as homework in which they calculate various ideal gas law
examples, that is handed in but not graded (IS)
Lesson 7: This lesson is a lab that builds off the examples and calculations of real world objects.
First we will watch a brief safety video that I made at home showing how pressurizing objects can be
dangerous (I will explode a balloon using high pressure air during the video to show the potential
danger). After the video, the students will be asked to name as many objects as they can that are either
pressurized or evacuated objects. We will make a big list on the board. Then they will be given various
pressure gauges and allowed access to various pumps, pumps that either pressurize (compressors) or
evacuate (vacuum pumps) gases into or out of an object. They will be asked to inflate and deflate
several objects and measure their properties before and after the changes. They will record their data on
an in class worksheet and analyze the information collected. They will also be allowed access to various
heaters and chillers to heat and/or cool the various objects. They will (again) record their data and
46
analyze the data for patterns and trends. They will make plots and compare the results to the various gas
laws. This data will help them develop a more intrinsic understanding of the gas properties and
behaviors. The in class worksheet is handed in as a graded assignment (FF).
Lesson 8: The last lesson in this unit is the final project. The students will receive a copy of this
lesson outline for Lesson 8 as their assignment document. These three pages are the FINAL
SUMMATIVE ASSESSMENT for this unit.
Students shall create a project that embraces the various vocabulary terms, gas properties, gas
behaviors and interrelationships, and formulas learned earlier. In the project they will compose a
detailed scenario that presents the relevant technical details required for an average adult to
understand a complex dynamic pneumatic situation. Students will select one of the topics listed
below (or another dynamic pneumatic situation with teacher approval.)
a. The Piston Engine: Students will evaluate the forces that take place in a piston
automotive engine, write a description of these forces, draw a detailed schematic showing
the cyclical nature of this process, calculate the forces created by the rapid heating of the
gases, and explain the function of the gases in the piston as part of an automotive engine,
and support their explanation with arguments utilizing the various gas laws.
b. The Moving Atmosphere: Students will evaluate atmospheric changes as caused by
uneven heating of the earth by the sun, write a description of the changes that occur as a
result, draw a detailed schematic showing the development of high and low pressure
zones, calculate the relative expansion and contraction of these gases, explain the
resulting winds, and support their explanation with arguments utilizing the various gas
laws.
47
c. The Rocket Engine: Students will evaluate rocket engine propulsion, write a description
of the changes that occur in the engine, draw a detailed schematic showing the behavior
of the high pressure gases occurring within the engine, calculate the resulting pressures
and forces, and explain the motion of the gases and of the rocket, and support their
explanation with arguments utilizing the various gas laws.
The students will do inquiry-based research to develop their project.
They will engage the project by viewing a video online of the schematics and examining pictures
showing the working mechanism of their topic. They will explore the subject via research in the library
and online. They will explain their findings in their own words as well as through analysis of the forces
acting in the dynamic gas situation. They will elaborate on the mechanisms by creating their own
sketches and pairing these sketches with written descriptions. They will continue this elaboration on
their topic by analyzing their mechanism using calculations based on the three gas laws. They will
evaluate their work and present conclusions including a detailed explanation of the operational details
that are supported and justified.
In this project, the students will make a composition (which may include a posterboard, a paper, or
a diorama{3-D poster}, or other multimedia representation approved by the teacher) describing their
topic. They will utilize multiple levels on the cognitive hierarchy to completely demonstrate their own
thorough understanding of the complex dynamic pneumatic situation. This work will be presented to
various adults and lay-people (i.e., during the class exposition, in the school halls and during parents
night). Their creation will be handed in and assessed formally as a summative measure of their abilities
to understand the chemistry, describe the behavior of gases, and be able to apply the three gas laws to
evaluate real-world dynamic pneumatic situations as listed in the goal and the objectives.
48
Grading Rubric for Final Project
Excellent
Technical Explanation Uses correct technical
of “how it works”
language from
references and
properly cites those
references
Elaboration Sketches
Detailed sketches with
with descriptions
force diagrams.
Descriptions of forces
and reasons for them.
Analysis of gas
Correct calculations,
dynamics, Use of gas correct applications of
laws, and Conclusions gas laws, clear and
logical conclusions
with strong supporting
arguments
Overall Appearance
Neat, clean, bright,
eye catching,
multimedia, creative
Good
Uses correct technical
language, no
reference citations
Poor
Incorrect explanation,
no technical language
Crude sketches,
incomplete
descriptions
No sketches,
poor/wrong
descriptions
Mostly correct
calculations,
Conclusions are clear,
but may lack some
supporting arguments)
Wrong calculations,
Wrong (or none)
application of gas
laws Illogical
conclusions,
Neat Clean
Dirty, ripped,
mispellings
49
11.2. Unit Map
Goal: The student should understand the chemistry, describe the behavior of gases, and be able to apply
the three gas laws to evaluate real-world dynamic pneumatic situations.
1
Review Prerequisite knowledge
2
Gas Types & Vocabulary
3
Gas Properties
4
Gas Behaviors and Boyle’s Law
X
IF
X
IS
IF
5
Gas Behaviors and Charles’ Law
X
IF
X
IS
IF
6
Absolute Relationships and Ideal Gas Law
X
IF
X
IS
IF
7
Applications LAB
8
Final Project
KEY:
Objective 9
Objective 8
Objective 7
Objective 6
Objective 5
X
IF/
IS
Objective 4
X
IF/
IS
Objective 3
Objective 2
Lesson Description:
Objective 1
Lesson #
Objectives:
XL
FF/
FS
X
IF/
IS
L
IS
FS
FS
FS
FS
FS
FS
FS
Assessments (FF = Formal Formative, IF = Informal Formative, FS= Formal Summative, IS = Informal Summative)
Instructional Activities (X = Direct Instruction, M = Media, L = Lab/Hands on Activity, I = Inquiry type, student work)
50
FS
I
FS
11.3. Timeline
MONTH:
Week 1
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Lesson 1:
Review of Math
Reading/Writing,
Science, Atoms,
Basic Gas
Knowledge
Lesson 2: Learn
Gas Types and
vocab using in
class worksheet,
Marshmallow
Exercise,
Homework
Lesson 3 Gas
Properties : Moles
and Volume
Pressure and
Temperature.
Lesson 3 Gas
Properties:
Complete Lesson
1,2,3 Review for
Quiz
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
15 min quiz
Lesson 4,
Relationships
of Gas
Properties
Pressure vs
Volume
Week 2
Monday
Lesson 4
Boyles Law
continued,
Worksheet/
Homework Due
at end of class
Lesson 5
Volume vs
Temperature
Charles’ Law
Worksheet in
class
Lesson 5
Charles’ Law
Homework due at
beginning of class.
Lesson 6
Absolute
Relationships
Friday
Lesson 6
Ideal Gas Law
Worksheet/
Homework
Review worksheet
Performance
Week 3
Monday
Lesson 7 LAB
Applications
(Balls, Balloons,
Tires, etc)
Tuesday
Lesson 8
Final Project
Research
Wednesday
Lesson 8
Final Project
Research
Thursday
Lesson 8
Final project
Composition
Friday
Lesson 8
Final Project
Presentation
I will develop lessons 2 and lesson 5. Lesson 2 is a more learner centered unit in which they are hands
on with a concept. Lesson 5 is more teacher centered in which the teacher is teaching about a formula
and how to use it to do calculations.
51
12. Individual Lesson Plans
12.1. Lesson 2
General Lesson Plan Format
Nine Event Model
Lesson Name:
Lesson 2 : Gas Types and Vocabulary
Grade/Subject:
Grade 10-11-12, General Chemistry
Lesson Objectives:
The student will demonstrate he/she remembers the specific elements and molecules that are gases, by
labeling several gases with their name or type on homework
State Standards Addressed by Lesson:
3. PA Academic Standards for Science and Technology
3.4.10 Physical Science, Chemistry and Physics (Grade 10)
A. Matter: Explain concepts about the structure and properties of matter
•
Predict the behavior of gases through the use of Boyle’s, Charles’ or the ideal gas law, in
everyday situations.
Assessments (List items here, then append actual assessments to lesson plan):
LESSON 2&3 WORKSHEET: The students will complete an in-class worksheet as part of the hands
on lab. This worksheet will be reviewed in class, graded by the students and collected. This grade will
not count and this will be an informal formative (IF) assessment. It will be analyzed by the teacher to
52
assess teaching effectiveness and student learning.
LESSON 2 HOMEWORK: The students will complete a homework worksheet having various
molecules, gas types, and other pertinent atomic and molecular information on it. They will have to
correctly label several gases by name or type on the homework sheet. This homework will have ~10
questions. They will turn in this homework for a grade (FF). This homework will formatively assess
their understanding of gas types and vocabulary per Objective #3.
LESSON 2&3 QUIZ: Obective #3 will also be assessed summatively (FS) on the quiz after Lesson 3.
This quiz will have 10 questions relating to remembering gases names and types by labeling, and
understanding of gas vocabulary words by explaining the vocabulary words.
Instructional Strategy:
This lesson is a fun, hands-on learning activity that is student centered. I will hand out an in-class
worksheet LESSON 2&3 WORKSHEET that lists some vocabulary words and has a variety of gas
molecules of different types. This worksheet will be in the form of guided notes, with some
information and some blank spaces for them to fill in. We will go over the vocabulary words and
discuss their meanings. The students will write the scientific meanings on the worksheet. We will also
go over the gases listed and write the gas types and other chemical/scientific information next to each
gas. Page 2 covers drawing and building the gas molecules and also has a reminder about the
pneumonic. Page 3 is the basis for Lesson 3.
Overcoming weaknesses. Many of the weaknesses identified will not cause difficulties in this lesson.
53
Primarily this lesson will be aimed at overcoming the students perception that chemistry is hard. This
lesson is a fairly easy one, that utilizes the students basic assembly skills to build models of molecules.
Building the models using the marshmallows and toothpicks will be done in groups. I will show a
ChemSketch 3D Pictoral Representations of the molecules that they are going to build. The molecular
models using marshmallows are easy and fun to make. All of these features will help this lesson
convince the students “I can do this”.
Instructional Materials (List items here, then append actual artifacts to lesson plan):
LESSON 2 & 3 WORKSHEET including students copy and students copy with TIPS. These are
submitted with this assignment. This worksheet is the main learning tool for the students to keep track
of the key information that they are learning during the lesson. It is a guided notes type worksheet that
they fill in as we go along the lesson.
Building Gases Lab using marshmallows, toothpicks and sharpies. This is a hands on building exercise
that is designed to help the students understand that atoms are bonded together to make molecules. The
molecules they will build are all covered under the types of gases that are discussed earlier.
ChemSketch 3D Pictoral Representations of molecules for projection onto a screen. These virtual
molecules can be rotated and moved so the students can see exactly what the molecules look like, while
they are building them.
LESSON 2 HOMEWORK This is submitted with this assignment. This is used to assess the students
understanding of the concepts and the teacher effectiveness.
54
QUIZ (½ lesson 2 and ½ lesson 3.) This is submitted with this assignment. This is a formal assessment
of the student’s ability to remember and understand the information presented in lessons 2 & 3.
55
E5: Provide Learning Guidance
Instructional Plan:
E1: Gaining Attention
E6: Elicit Performance (formative)
E2: Inform Learner of Objectives
E7: Provide Feedback on Performance
E3: Stimulate Recall of Prerequisite Learning
E8: Assess Performance (summative)
E4: Present Stimulus Material
Event
E9: Enhance Retention and Transfer
Teacher Actions
Student actions
(E1-E9)
E1
Specific Student
Accommodations
“Class Please take your seats”
Students sit down
“How many of you have every cooked a marshmallow at a
Students raise hand
campfire?”
Students come up to the
“How many of you have caught the marshmallow on fire?”
fume hood
“Ok Class, Everyone come up to look at the fume hood.” Then I will
Students Ohh/Ahh
None
Light Bunsen burner in fume hood and burn a marshmallow. I will
add extra fuel and oxygen to the burner to “completely destroy the
marshmallow” I will describe this demonstration of the conversion
of solid to gas.
Students sit down and are
“Class Please Sit Down”
engaged
“LESSON 2 WORKSHEET:”
Students will follow along
56
Lesson guide will have two
Event
Teacher Actions
Student actions
(E1-E9)
Accommodations
“Class please look at this worksheet. It will be used for the next two
E2
E3
be filling in various piece of information throughout the lessons.
Lesson worksheet will have
“First we will start off discussing the vocabulary words”
space for bonus information
“Then we will do a molecule building exercise”
to fill in for talented learners
Define in class on board, with pictures:
Molecules (multiple atoms bonded together)
Vocabulary:
Monoatomic (having one atom)
Diatomic (having two atoms)
Multiatomic (having three or more atoms)
Explain Noble/inert gases are the only monatomic gases under
normal circumstances. Explain “normal” circumstances.
Explain BrIN ClOFH (Bring Cloth) are the 7 diatomic elements
Explain other diatomic gases (CO, NO, HF, etc)
Explain multiatomic gases. Three or more, up to several atoms.
Various shapes.
E4
versions, one regular and
one with “extra tips”
Bonds (sharing of electrons)
E5
with the lesson guide.
lessons”. I will explain the format of the lesson guide, how they will
Atoms (smallest particles of matter)
E4
Specific Student
“Lets fill in the Gas Type for the examples given in the worksheet on
57
Event
Teacher Actions
Student actions
(E1-E9)
Accommodations
the bottom half of page 1”. With the class (together) we will go
through the examples to help them understand what to write.
E5
We will discuss the choices and why a particular choice is the best
choice. After we have completed labeling each gas with the type, we
will have a brief amount of time dedicated to discussing bonus
material including properties of these molecules.
E6 &E7 I will walk around the classroom and look at the students worksheets
(page 1 top) and check to see they understand what to write down. I
will give feedback of a positive and reinforcing manner. (this is
Informal Formative)
E1
“Class, Remember the Marshmallows?” “Lets get into groups and
play with marshmallows”
E4
Get out the marshmallows, toothpicks, and sharpies. Explain lab
rules: no eating, no setting on fire, no writing on anything except
marshmallows, requirement to return sharpies at end of lab.
They use the worksheet and pictures on the board to build the
molecules using the marshmallows
E5
Specific Student
Walk around and help each group. Be sure they are labeling the
atoms with the sharpie. Be sure they are doing the correct number of
bonds and bond shapes/angles
58
Event
Teacher Actions
Student actions
(E1-E9)
E6
Accommodations
I will tell the students to setup their gas “molecules” next to their
worksheet in order to evaluate their building and naming skills
demonstrated on the worksheet. (this is Informal Formative)
E7
Provide Feedback to the students regarding their marshmallow
creations. Discuss various aspects and correct any inconsistencies.
E5
A final brief review of the vocabulary and the gas types that were
covered during the lesson and applications to homework problems.
E8
“Lesson 2 Homework” to assess the students remembering these
vocabulary and gas types by asking them to label specific gases with
the name and type of gas. This is a Formal Formative assessment
E8
Specific Student
After Lesson 3, we will have a quiz that covers both Lesson 2 and 3
and assesses Objectives 3 and 4. The first half of this quiz is shown
as “Lesson 2 & 3 Quiz”
59
LESSON 2 &3 WORKSHEET
Vocabulary Words:
Name
Date
Write the definition in the box
Atoms
Bonds
Molecules
Gas Types:
Write the definition in the box
Monatomic
Diatomic
Multiatomic
1st Required: Write the gas type (Monatomic or Diatomic or Multiatomic)
2nd Bonus Time: Write other chemical or scientific information about these gases
Ar (Argon)
N2 (Nitrogen)
O2 (Oxygen)
HF (Hydrogen Fluoride)
PF5 (Phosphorus Pentafluoride)
NH3 (Ammonia)
Cl2 (Chlorine)
Kr (Krypton)
C3H8 (Propane)
CH3NO2 (Nitromethane)
60
Drawing and Building the Gases
Ar
NH3
N2
Cl2
O2
Kr
HF
C3H8
PF5
CH3NO2
List the gases described by BrIN ClOFH?
61
LESSON 2 &3 WORKSHEET W/TIPS
Vocabulary Words:
Name
Date
Write the definition in the box
Atoms
The ____________ Part of Matter.
Bonds
Sharing of __________ between Atoms.
Molecules
Multiple atoms ____________ together.
Gas Types:
Write the definition in the box
Monatomic
Gases with __________ atom
Diatomic
Gases with __________ atoms
Multiatomic
Gases with __________ atoms
1st Required: Write the gas type (Monatomic or Diatomic or Multiatomic)
2nd Bonus Time: Write other chemical or scientific information about these gases
Ar (Argon)
N2 (Nitrogen)
O2 (Oxygen)
HF (Hydrogen Fluoride)
PF5 (Phosphorus Pentafluoride)
NH3 (Ammonia)
Cl2 (Chlorine)
Kr (Krypton)
C3H8 (Propane)
CH3NO2 (Nitromethane)
62
Lesson 2 Worksheet (with TIPS)
Drawing and Building the Gases
(hint: count the number of atoms)
Ar
NH3
N2
Cl2
O2
Kr
HF
C3H8
PF5
CH3NO2
List the names or symbols of the gases described by
BrIN ClOFH (Bring Cloth)?
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
63
Technology Item #1 (3 pages)
Gas molecule drawings and 3D pictorials created using
ChemSketch™ Freeware published by ACD
64
Note: These molecules are the same as those on the Lesson 2 worksheet.
65
Note: These molecules are the same as those on the Lesson 2 worksheet. In their native
program (ChemSketch™ ) they are 3D and can be rotated and zoomed, and viewed in various
types of representations.
66
LESSON 2 HOMEWORK
Assume Standard Temperature (0°C) and Pressure (1 atm)
Identify which of the following are gases. Please circle three
H2O
Fe
H2
C6H3(NO2)3
O2
Kr
Fe(C)0.04
Label the following gases with their type (Monatomic, Diatomic, or Mulitatomic)
Ar
I2
Xe
C2H2
HCN
Ne
O2
Bonus: Write the name and any other chemical information you know about these gases next to
the atomic symbol.
67
12.2. Lesson 3
Gas Properties (this lesson contains a preliminary idea of content, a preliminary worksheet and a technology item.
E1 &
Vocabulary: Pressure, Temperature, Volume, Moles.
Students raise hand and share
E4
Discussion of popular definitions vs scientific definitions. Elicit student responses
their ideas of what the
for popular definitions (E1). Write popular definitions/examples on the board.
vocabulary words mean in
Show 1 powerpoint slide with correct scientific definitions after popular definitions
popular culture. (little furry
discussion is complete.
critters, etc)
Explain vocabulary. Discuss vocabulary and “how things work”. Pressure is force
Students do counting
of the gas “pushing” on an object. (do
exercise to “count up to a
Temperature is heat and is measured as molecular speeds
mole”
E5
Volume is 3D size and measured via standard mathematical methods
Moles are an amount.
Explain that these terms will be examined at great depth in lesson 3.
E4
Vocabulary review
E6
Fill in vocabulary definitions on in-class worksheet. Go over vocabulary definitions
and assess students learning (informal formative). I will walk around and look at
students worksheets.
E7
Provide feedback for student vocabulary learning. (i.e. did everyone understand…?
Are there any questions…..? There is going to be a small quiz tomorrow on Lesson 2
& 3.
68
69
Lesson 3 worksheet
Gas Properties
Write the SCIENTIFIC definition next to the word
• Moles:
• Volume:
• Pressure:
• Temperature:
70
TECHNOLOGY ITEM #2 (3 pages)
Interactive Online Activity To Learn About Gas Properties And Behaviors.
Students will go online and visit the following two sites. They will use the interactive buttons/links on
the left side of both sites to adjust and measure the various changes that occur when various parameters
are changed. They will keep a lab notebook (computerized) with notes of the behaviors of each set of
conditions and what observations they make. Here is a sample lab notebook entry.
Site: http://www.grc.nasa.gov/WWW/K-12/airplane/Animation/frglab2.html
Experiments: We fixed the variables Mass and Temperature, and varied the pressure (weights). We
measured the volume change as the pressure was changed.
Observations: As pressure increased, the volume decreased. As pressure decreased, the volume
increased.
Explanations: This is inversely proportional behavior as described by Boyle’s Law.
71
http://www.grc.nasa.gov/WWW/K-12/airplane/Animation/frglab2.html
72
http://www.chem.ufl.edu/~itl/2045/MH_sims/gas_sim.html
73
12.3. Lesson 4
Technology Item #3 (3 pages)
Powerpoint presentation explaining proportional and inversely proportional and Boyle’s and Charles’ Law
74
PROPORTIONAL
Variable “X” increases, AND Variable “Y” increases
X AND Y ARE “TOGETHER”
X
X
Y
Y
Plot shows that Variables increase TOGETHER.
Y
X
75
INVERSELY PROPORTIONAL
Variable “X” increases, WHILE Variable “Y” decreases
Or “X” decreases, WHILE “Y” increases
X AND Y ARE “OPPOSITE”
Y
Y
X
X
Y
Plot shows
X inc/Y dec (right)
and
X dec/Y inc (left).
X
76
Boyles Law
Pressure is Inversely Proportional with Volume
P x V = K (a constant)
Y
or
P1V1 = P2V2
X
Charles’ Law
Volume is Proportional with Temperature
Y
X
77
12.4. Lesson 5
General Lesson Plan Format
Nine Event Model
Lesson Name: Lesson 5 : Gas Behaviors and Charles’ Law
Grade/Subject:
Grade 10-11-12, General Chemistry
Lesson Objectives:
5. The student will demonstrate he/she remembers the formulas of the three gas laws (Boyle’s Law,
Charles’ Law, and the Ideal Gas Law) by recognizing each formula and identifying it. (IF)
6. The student will demonstrate he/she can apply the three gas laws to compute/calculate the changes
that occur in a target parameter, as a result of a change in another parameter by completing various
calculation based problems both in class and on homework sheets. (IS)
State Standards Addressed by Lesson:
3. PA Academic Standards for Science and Technology
3.4.10 Physical Science, Chemistry and Physics (Grade 10)
A. Matter: Explain concepts about the structure and properties of matter
Predict the behavior of gases through the use of Boyle’s, Charles’ or the ideal gas law, in everyday
78
situations.
Assessments (List items here, then append actual assessments to lesson plan):
The students will be responsible for remembering the formula for the Charles’ Law and be able to
demonstrate application of Charles’ Law by calculating various problems. This remembering and
application will be demonstrated on a worksheet (LESSON 5 WORKSHEET) that the students will fill
in. The students will complete the graphs and calculate some basic volume and temperature
relationships. This worksheet is to be finished as a homework. The work in class (page 1) will be
reviewed in class as an informal formative assessment, and the finished worksheet (page 1, 2, &3) will
be handed in and graded, but will not count towards the final grade (IS). This worksheet will assess
Objectives #5 and #6 with respect to Charles’ Law. The worksheet will assess the students learning
and the teachers effectiveness.
Additionally the application of Charles’ Law will be assessed summatively in the final project
assessment rubric.
Instructional Strategy:
This is a teacher-centered lesson. The students have to learn how to manipulate the equation for
charles’s law and use it to calculate the answer to selected problems. This will be primarily a lecture,
with interactive components (Q&A). We will start off with a safety video. Then we will handout a
worksheet that has three pages. Page 1 will be completed in class and page 2&3 will be homework.
We will generate the data for the worksheet using a balloon, a hot hair dryer, and a meterstick. This
will be done using student volunteers. After page 1 is finished, I will lecture about Charles’ Law and
the derivation of the formula. In order to overcome the weaknesses of some students lack of familiarity
with algebra, the derivations of the formula will be done via powerpoint, and the students will not need
79
to be able to do the derivation themselves. I would expect that some but certainly not all of the
students will keep up with the derivation part of the lesson. To combat the slower students falling
asleep, I will spend a short time on this derivation and use an attention grabbing event (E1) at the end
of the lecture. We will view a wikipedia webpage that has a virtual lab demo showing Charles’ Law in
action http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles%27s_law. Then we will work through one of the
homework problems so that we are sure everyone understands how to do them correctly.
Instructional Materials (List items here, then append actual artifacts to lesson plan):
LESSON 5 WORKSHEET, This is submitted with this assignment #4. All students get the
same worksheet. It is going to be comleted with assistance from the teacher and during the in class
student demonstration.
Charles’ Law Demonstration: Balloon, hair dryer, meterstick. Students will do a measuring
demonstration for the class.
View Interactive websites to look at a virtual lab demo.
Use Interactive Spreadsheet to plot balloon volume vs temperature data.
Powerpoint presentation of Charles Law with algebra derivation.
80
Instructional Plan:
E1: Gaining Attention
E6: Elicit Performance (formative)
E2: Inform Learner of Objectives
E7: Provide Feedback on Performance
E3: Stimulate Recall of Prerequisite Learning
E8: Assess Performance (summative)
E4: Present Stimulus Material
E9: Enhance Retention and Transfer
E5: Provide Learning Guidance
Event
Teacher Actions
Student actions
(E1-E9)
E1
Accommodations
“Class Please take your seats”
Students sit down
If there is a person who is
“How many of you have ever worried that a balloon might burst and
Students raise hand
scared of balloons, I will
scare you?”
have them sit in the back
“How many have actually burst a balloon, was it loud?”
and wear eye and hearing
“Seriously, Is there anyone who is afraid of balloons?”
protection.
“We are going to start out by watching a safety video about
exploding balloons. This is a good video that I made myself, and it
E2
Specific Student
will teach you about balloon safety.”
Students watch movie are
Show exploding balloon video (submitted as part of assignment 5)
engaged
Hand out LESSON 5 WORKSHEET
Students whine about doing
“Today we are going to learn Charles Law of gases. You will need to another worksheet
81
Event
Teacher Actions
Student actions
(E1-E9)
Specific Student
Accommodations
memorize the law (which is quite easy) and use the law to calculate
some problems.”
E3
“Class, we are going to be doing a fun exercise today, although we
Students acquiesce.
will try to avoid exploding our balloons. We like to do hands on
activities, right? We like them better than boring lecture, right?”
E4
Get some volunteers to come up and start doing measurements on
Volunteers do experiment
Get the football students to
balloons. We will have two balloons, of different sizes. We need
for the class
bring in a football to
1 volunteer to measure the size of the balloon,
measure as well. This will
1 volunteer to read the balloons temperature,
make the football students
1 volunteer to write the data on the board,
have an interest. We can
And 1 volunteer to heat up the balloons.
also inflate the football.
All volunteers will wear safety glasses and may wear hearing
I promise not to explode
protection if desired.
their favorite football,
unless they want to.
Then we will measure the balloons and heat them up and record our
data.
E5
Once the data is recorded, we will sit back at our desks and work on
the graphs. I will walk around and help guide the students through
the volume calculation. I will verify that everyone is getting correct
answers. (IF)
82
Event
Teacher Actions
Student actions
(E1-E9)
E6
Specific Student
Accommodations
“Class, now we will plot the data on our graphs. Please work by
Students Graph the data
Students who don’t
yourself. If you need help please raise your hand and I will help
remember how to graph will
you”.
get personal assistance from
me.
E7
I will ask everyone to hold up their hand when they are done plotting
and I will come around and look at their graph and provide informal
feedback.
E5
Class, open the interactive spreadsheet to plot the data.
Use computers to process
If student does not
data
understand computers, get
them a partner who does
E9
I will point out the straight line to the class and we will talk about
Understanding is achieved
how it means that the two data sets are proportional to each other,

and what proportional really means.
E4
I will do a brief powerpoint presentation about the algebra involved
Some students will keep up
Go fast and let them veg out
with Charles’ Law. We will finalize with the slide having the derived
(those who are good at
if they cannot follow it.
equations V/T = k and V1/T1 =V2/T2.
math) and some will veg
out.
E1
Show the Wikipedia site having the virtual lab demo running.
Comment about volume being proportional to heat.
E4
We will do problem #4 in class together.
83
“Hey, we did that!!”
Event
Teacher Actions
Student actions
(E1-E9)
E5
Specific Student
Accommodations
Help them to understand how to lay out the problem and substitute
the variables and calculate the answer.
E8
“The rest of the problems are for homework”
E8
Grade the homework so that it is a summative assessment, but do not
count it towards their final grade, so it is informal
84
LESSON 5 WORKSHEET
Today we will use a balloon to analyze the relationship between temperature (T) and volume
(V). We will measure a cold balloon, and heat it using a hair dryer. As the balloon increases in
temperature, we will continue to measure the balloons diameter. Record the data in the table
below. Once the data is recorded, calculate the volume using the formula 4/3π r3 (note: we are
assuming the balloon is a sphere). Remember, r = ½ d.
Ballon Temperature (°C)
Balloon Diameter (cm)
85
Balloon Volume (cm^3)
Using the data recorded from the class experiment, please graph the relationship between the size
of the balloon and the temperature of the balloon. (Note: Plot the points above on the graph
Balloon Volume (cm^3)
86
65,450
57,906
50,965
44,602
38,792
33,510
28,731
24,429
20,580
17,157
14,137
11,494
9,203
7,238
5,575
4,189
3,054
2,145
1,437
34
905
4
6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 26 28 30 32 34 36 38 40 42 44 46 48 50
Diameter of the Balloon (cm)
524
4
268
2
113
115
110
105
100
95
90
85
80
75
70
65
60
55
50
45
40
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0 0
0
Temperature of Balloon (oC)
below). Draw a “best fit” line for the data.
Technology #5
This is a teacher created interactive spreadsheet to show the students how to process data. The
students will use the spreadsheet after they have done one set of measurements and plotted them
manually above (so they learn how). This is a protected spreadsheet and they can only type in
the yellow boxes (the data boxes). The plot will update automatically when they enter their data.
87
In Class Balloon Measurement: Volume vs Temperature
We will examine three balloons
Weight
Empty
(g)
Balloon 1
Balloon 2
Balloon 3
gas
Weight
full (g)
Note: The data entered is for example purposes only and will be replaced by the students wit
data.
Volume
empty
(cm^3)
Volume
Full at T1
(cm^3)
Temperature 1
degrees C
10
10
10
NOTICE: ONLY TYPE IN THE YELLOW BOXES!!!
Balloon 1
Balloon 1
Balloon 2
Balloon 2
Balloon 3
Balloon 3
88
Temperature
20
20
20
0
20
40
Volume at
T2 (cm^3)
20
20
20
10
5
15
Volume
10
10
10
5
10
15
Temperature 2
degrees C
20
0
40
Differential
Volume
0
-5
5
D
T
Lesson 5 Homework
1. What is the formula for Charles Law?
2. Using the data generated in class, what is the relationship shown in the data? Proportional?
Inversely proportional?
or Parabolic?
3. Explain why….. in three sentences or less.
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
4. Using Charles’ Law ( V1/T1 = V2/T2 ), Calculate the final volume (V2) of a gas sample that
starts in a flexible container having an initial volume of 5000 cm3 and an initial temperature of
20°C, that is heated to a final temperature of 40°C. You must calculate this out completely and
show your work!!
89
5. If the final temperature in problem 3 is 400°C, what is the final volume?
6. If the temperature is decreased to -200°C, what is the final volume?
Bonus: Is there a quick and easy way to figure these problems out without doing all the
calculations? If so, please state your ideas below:
90
12.5. Lesson 7: Laboratory
TECHNOLOGY ITEM #4 (2 pages)
This is a safety video of me showing the hazards associated with pressurizing balloons. The
actual movie is on a DVD (handed in) and on my computers hard drive. It is 351MB I would
use a laptop projector to show it to my students.
91
Safety Video Script
By
Leo Macdonald
“Balloon Safety: Don’t try this at home or in the classroom”
We are surrounded by air which has pressure. This pressure is from the weight of the air. What
Weight You ask???? We do not seem to be able to feel the weight of the air. We wave our arms
and cannot feel it. Really there is weight, we are just so used to it, that we do not notice it. The
average weight of air at sea level is 15psi which is ~equal to 760 mmHg.
When we blow up a balloon, the pressure inside exceeds the pressure applied from the outside
and the balloon expands. More pressure expands the balloon further. The stretchy balloon
material (in this case latex) can only stand pressure up to a certain point.
SAFETY ALERT! DO NOT DO THIS AT HOME OR IN CLASS!!
Do not overpressure your balloon. I will demonstrate how scary and dangerous a balloon can be.
This air tank has 4500 psi compressed air (which is 300 times the atmospheric air pressure). As I
fill the balloon with this high pressure air, the balloon expands to its limit, and then ruptures
violently.
“BANG”
REMEMBER….. BE SAFE, NOT SORRY!!
92
12.6. Lesson 8
Final Project and Summative Assessment
The last lesson in this unit is the final project. The students will receive a copy of this lesson
outline for Lesson 8 as their assignment document. These three pages are the FINAL
SUMMATIVE ASSESSMENT for this unit.
Students shall create a project that embraces the various vocabulary terms, gas properties,
gas behaviors and interrelationships, and formulas learned earlier. In the project they will
compose a detailed scenario that presents the relevant technical details required for an
average adult to understand a complex dynamic pneumatic situation. Students will select
one of the topics listed below (or another dynamic pneumatic situation with teacher
approval.)
d. The Piston Engine: Students will evaluate the forces that take place in a piston
automotive engine, write a description of these forces, draw a detailed schematic
showing the cyclical nature of this process, calculate the forces created by the
rapid heating of the gases, and explain the function of the gases in the piston as
part of an automotive engine, and support their explanation with arguments
utilizing the various gas laws.
e. The Moving Atmosphere: Students will evaluate atmospheric changes as caused
by uneven heating of the earth by the sun, write a description of the changes that
occur as a result, draw a detailed schematic showing the development of high and
low pressure zones, calculate the relative expansion and contraction of these
93
gases, explain the resulting winds, and support their explanation with arguments
utilizing the various gas laws.
f. The Rocket Engine: Students will evaluate rocket engine propulsion, write a
description of the changes that occur in the engine, draw a detailed schematic
showing the behavior of the high pressure gases occurring within the engine,
calculate the resulting pressures and forces, and explain the motion of the gases
and of the rocket, and support their explanation with arguments utilizing the
various gas laws.
The students will do inquiry-based research to develop their project.
They will engage the project by viewing a video online of the schematics and examining
pictures showing the working mechanism of their topic. They will explore the subject via
research in the library and online. They will explain their findings in their own words as well as
through analysis of the forces acting in the dynamic gas situation. They will elaborate on the
mechanisms by creating their own sketches and pairing these sketches with written descriptions.
They will continue this elaboration on their topic by analyzing their mechanism using
calculations based on the three gas laws. They will evaluate their work and present conclusions
including a detailed explanation of the operational details that are supported and justified.
In this project, the students will make a composition (which may include a posterboard, a
paper, or a diorama{3-D poster}, or other multimedia representation approved by the teacher)
describing their topic. They will utilize multiple levels on the cognitive hierarchy to completely
demonstrate their own thorough understanding of the complex dynamic pneumatic situation.
This work will be presented to various adults and lay-people (i.e., during the class exposition, in
the school halls and during parents night). Their creation will be handed in and assessed formally
94
as a summative measure of their abilities to understand the chemistry, describe the behavior of
gases, and be able to apply the three gas laws to evaluate real-world dynamic pneumatic
situations as listed in the goal and the objectives.
Grading Rubric for Final Project
Excellent
Technical Explanation Uses correct technical
of “how it works”
language from
references and
properly cites those
references
Elaboration Sketches
Detailed sketches with
with descriptions
force diagrams.
Descriptions of forces
and reasons for them.
Analysis of gas
Correct calculations,
dynamics, Use of gas correct applications of
laws, and Conclusions gas laws, clear and
logical conclusions
with strong supporting
arguments
Overall Appearance
Neat, clean, bright,
eye catching,
multimedia, creative
Good
Uses correct technical
language, no
reference citations
Poor
Incorrect explanation,
no technical language
Crude sketches,
incomplete
descriptions
No sketches,
poor/wrong
descriptions
Mostly correct
calculations,
Conclusions are clear,
but may lack some
supporting arguments)
Wrong calculations,
Wrong (or none)
application of gas
laws Illogical
conclusions,
Neat Clean
Dirty, ripped,
mispellings
95
13. Technology Items Overview and Description:
Technology #1: Molecular models in 3D, coupled with the marshmallow molecule building
exercise.
Technology #2: Online Web learning, using online molecular motion and gas properties
simulators.
Technology #3: Powerpoint explaining inversely proportional.
Technology #4: Safety Video "Dont try this at home!, Balloon Safety" Also has word document
that matches.
Technology #5: Charles Law Calculator excel worksheet (protected) for student use in
Classroom Demonstration Lab
96
14. Educational Beliefs Statement
Fundamentally I believe that all people learn by interacting with their environment and
remembering information they find useful or interesting (or required). This memory is more
than simple facts; including whole patterns of information from all five senses, and is related to
past information, forming coherent thoughts and ideas. These thoughts and ideas are very
powerful and can be used by the person to plan and organize their intellectual and physical lives,
as well as to predict and interact with events in the future. All people (and most animals) can
learn, although some people find learning easy and some find learning difficult. This certainly
varies by the subject and type of information. Simple animals learn and their experiences and
memories help them to survive by eating and avoiding being eaten. Our experiences and
memories help us to be more “successful” at interacting with our environment in addition to the
basic survival skills. All individuals do not all learn in the same way. By the very definition,
individuals are different from one another in many ways. We are not genetic clones, nor do we
live in identical environments. Our knowledge comes from our environments, so we must all
have different knowledge. The ability to add new information to our existing knowledge varies
greatly across the population considered. From a statistical standpoint (i.e. the bell curve/normal
distribution), many people have similar abilities while a small minority have abilities either
above and/or below the majority. The realization that people have abilities along a scale (some
high, some moderate, and some low) dictates the requirements for the use of various types of
learning situations. Some students will excel in many types of learning situations, while others
will only succeed in a very specific type of learning situation.
97
The purpose of schooling is to provide a learning environment in which students are educated.
This is typically done by exposing the students to information that society deems useful and
important. The existence of state standards shows that the government has an official opinion
about information and what is important for students to learn. The methods used for exposing
these students to the information are critical to ensure quality learning.
The role of the teacher is to utilize both the best and a variety of teaching methods to create a
variety of learning situations. The best teachers will create learning environments tha are
effective at educating the students. As stated above, some students will excel in many types of
learning situations, while others will only succeed in a very specific type of learning situation. In
addition to presenting the “facts and figures” that make up the nuts and bolts of our state
mandated educational strategy, the teacher is responsible for teaching the students how to think,
how to process information, how to learn, how to make observations, how to listen, how to
discern “high” quality information from “low” quality information, how to read, how to write,
how to understand logic, how to develop analytical skills, and many other behaviors that will
help the student succeed in school and life.
Technology plays an important role in our lives. The oldest technology developed for learning is
still in use today. The written word. Books are typically the most heavily used “technology” in
education, and have been for the past few hundred years. Other learning assistive technologies,
such as computers, the world wide web, cell phones, television, radio, video conferences, etc, are
the products of a plethora of recent inventions and innovations that allow greater access to a
wider variety of information at unprecedented rates. These innovations allow the student of
98
today to access seemingly limitless amounts of information. Unfortunately, with so much
information, students have a difficult time separating truthful quality information from hyped
over-exaggerated marketing slang. It is a new role that teachers must fill, teaching students to
qualify and rate information. This is a bit risky because students can and will use these
qualification techniques against information that the teacher is presenting and may no longer
accept the teachers information as gospel. Many teachers are uncomfortable letting students
question their information. It is the effective teacher who can present their information in such a
way (or variety of ways) that is logical and understandable for all the students in their class.
Optimal learning conditions are those that promote interaction and two way communication
between the teacher and the students. Students will be more likely to learn when they are
engaged in the information being presented and participating in the sharing of the information.
The feedback from the students to the teacher gives the teacher critical information about the
progress of the students. This feedback allows the teacher to modify the learning environment
(as needed) which often results in a greater percentage of the students understanding and learning
the information.
I envision myself as a teacher who creates interest in the information presented by being very
hands on and doing demonstrations (with student involvement) that are relevant to the materials
being presented. I feel that these interactive demos will help the students to physically see the
materials that are being discussed and presented as theoretical equations and abstract information
during the lectures. For example if we are learning about equations for electrolytic oxidation and
reduction; I will generate interest by having the students disassemble batteries (safely) that they
99
use in their everyday devices (ipods, cellphones, walkmans, etc). They will “learn” about the
chemicals and how they work (through oxidation and reduction) and how these chemicals
provide power for their beloved electronic devices. I have dozens of fun hands on demos
planned for a whole variety of chemical subjects. I really believe that chemistry is fun and
because it is fun it is not as hard as many people seem to think. I hope to communicate this
“fun” to the students while presenting the facts and figures in a variety of intriguing ways.
100
15. References
Benson, T., (2004) Animated Gas Lab Retrieved April 20, 2010, from
http://www.grc.nasa.gov/WWW/K-12/airplane/Animation/frglab2.html
Bybee, R., Powell, J., & Trowbridge, L. (2008) Teaching secondary school science: Strategies for
developing scientific literacy (9th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Merrill Prentice Hall.
Caine, R., & Caine, G. (1991). Making connections: Teaching and the human brain. Alexandria, VA:
Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.
Colley, K. (20008). Project-based science instruction: A Primer. The Science Teacher, 75 (8), 25-28.
Garner, B. (2007). Getting to got it!: helping struggling students learn how to learn. Alexandria, VA:
Association for Supervision and Curricular Development.
Gas Law Simulation (2007). Retrieved March 27, 2010, from
http://www.chem.ufl.edu/~itl/2045/MH_sims/gas_sim.html
Gordon, D (Ed.). (2000). The digital classroom. Cambridge, MA: The Harvard Education Letter.
Howe, M. (1999). A teacher’s guide to the psychology of learning (2nd ed.). Cornwall, Great Britain;
M.P.G. Books Ltd.
Lower, S., (2008) Chem1 General Chemistry Virtual Textbook Retrieved March 29, 2010, from
http://www.chem1.com/acad/webtext/virtualtextbook.html (Note: this is an online book by
Stephen Lower and licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License for
public use)
National Research Council. (2000). How people learn: Brain, mind, experience, and school. Washington
D.C: Author.
SAS - Pennsylvania Department of Education Standards Aligned System (2010). Retrieved March 22,
2010 from www.pdesas.org
Shore, B.M., Cornell, D.G., Robinson, A., & Ward, V.S. (1991) Recommended practices in gifted
education: A critical analysis. New York, NY: The Teachers College Press
Whitehall Coplay School District(2006-2007) WCSD High School Curriculum website designed bythe
block 1 web design class of 2006-2007 Retrieved January 22, 2010 from
http://www.whitehallcoplay.org/districtsite/highl.html
1728 Software Systems (1999-2010) Circle area, sphere area, sphere volume, cylinder area and
cylinder volume calculator Retrieved April 23, 2010 from http://www.1728.com/diam.htm
101
102