Unit Planning Matrix – Atomic Structure & Light!
GENERAL CHEMISTRY
FALL 2006
JULIE MCVAY
Big Ideas
Skills & Standards
Student & Family
Knowledge
What are the
enduring
understandings/
essential questions
to be addressed?
What important
skills/standards will
students learn, practice, or
apply?
How will you draw on
students’ ideas, interests
and experiences to
connect students to the
big ideas?
1. What is the nature
of matter (the stuff
that makes up the
world around us)?
California State Science
Standards (CSSS):
Chemistry
Student know:
(1a) how to relate the
position of an element in
the periodic table to its
atomic number and atomic
mass.
Lesson 1:
 Use of the high
school quad to
represent the size of
an atom.
 Students take a
diagnostic pre-test
to determine their
prior knowledge &
misconceptions
about atomic
structure and light
2. How does
scientific evidence
change our view of
the world over time?
3. How can we use
our senses (and
extensions of our
senses) to explore
and know the world
around us?
(1e) that the nucleus of the
atom is much smaller than
the atom yet contains most
of its mass.
(1h) the experimental basis
for Thomson’s discovery of
the electron, Rutherford’s
nuclear atom, Millikan’s oil
drop experiment, and
Einstein’s photoelectric
effect.
(1i) explain the
experimental basis for the
development of the
quantum theory of atomic
structure and the historical
importance of the Bohr
model of the atom.
(1j) demonstrate knowledge
that spectral lines are the
Lesson 2:
 Nothing new – used
as a practice/quiz
day
Lesson 3:
 Revisit quad for
experiment reenactment
 WBP (white board
practice) makes
learning a game to
students
 Students use their
prior knowledge &
ideas to explain the
mystery liquid.
Lesson 4:
 Students use their
Assessment
(Formative &
Summative)
What is meaningful
evidence that students
have understood the
big ideas and reached
proficiency on the
skills/standards?
Formative:
1) Diagnostic
assessment of prior
knowledge of atomic
structure and light
2) White board
practice on basic
atomic structural
elements, isotopes,
and names
3) Quickwrite on the
nature and forms of
energy
4) Brainstorm
examples of light and
color in everday life.
5) Formal lab report
on atomic structure
and light
Summative:
1) Formal lab report
on the connection
between atomic
structure & light
2) Mini-exam on
Atomic Structure &
Light (including a
few basic calculations
and some lab
practical)
HOMESTEAD HIGH SCHOOL
Instructional Components
Resources &
Materials
What instructional practices and
strategies will support students to meet
the standards and grasp the big ideas?
What resources will
best convey the big
ideas and concepts to
support skill
attainment?
Lesson 1: (95 min)
 Diagnostic assessment of student
prior knowledge of atomic structure
and light
 Students measure the high school
quad, calculate the atom:nucleus
ratio, and take an appropriate-sized
bead out to the center of the quad to
visualize the difference. Discussion
of the nature of matter.
 Discussion of unit plan
 Homework: ChemActivity 1 (linked
to CSSS Chem1a), study for
elements quiz
Lesson 1:
Quad Msmt –
yardsticks, string, beads
Lesson 2: (40 min)
 Quiz: Elements (name, symbol,
atomic #)
 Students compare notes on
ChemActivity 1 (Pt I) in groups of 3
 Homework: notes on section 4.3 in
text (atomic #, atomic mass, isotopes,
periodic table)
Lesson 3: (95 min)
 White board practice on elements
(names, symbols, atomic number)
 Go over ChemActivity 1
 Gold foil re-enactment and group
summary sheets of atomic theory
history key points.
 Mystery Liquid demo. Students
attempt to explain why a liquid glows
Diagnostic Assessment
on atomic structure &
light
ChemActivity 1 copies
Lesson 2:
Elements Quiz copies
Lesson 3:
Quad: Beads, marbles,
tennis balls
Mystery Liquid: clear
plastic cup, tonic water,
blacklight
Lesson 4:
Ch.4 Quiz copies
Powerpoint on Bohr
model of atom with
question set
Examples of energy
transitions
Lesson 5:
Nova video: Fireworks
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result of transitions of
electrons between energy
levels and that these lines
correspond to photons with
a frequency related to the
energy spacing between
levels by using Planck’s
relationship (E=hv).
Investigation &
Experimentation
TSWBAT:
(1g) recognize the
usefulness and limitations
of models and theories as
scientific representations of
reality.
(1k) recognize the
cumulative nature of
scientific evidence.
Other Skills & Habits:
Academic Skills:
 notetaking
 recording information
in a lab notebook
 writing a formal lab
report
Habits of Mind:
 Persisting
 Thinking and
communicating with
clarity and precision

prior knowledge to
brainstorm forms of
energy
Students give
examples of types
of energy
transformation
during discussion
Lesson 5:
 Students brainstorm
examples of light
and color in
everyday life
 Students connect
their interest in
fireworks to course
content for video
notes
Lesson 6:
 Students explore
lab stations
designed to connect
their interests in
everyday lightrelated phenomena
(glow-in-the-dark,
rainbows, fiber
optics, etc) to the
study of atomic
structure

under a blacklight–who’ll drink it?!!!
Homework: revise notes for Quiz
Lesson 4: (95 min)
 Quiz – Ch.4 (open-notes)
 Quickwrite: how would you define
“energy?” List all the different forms
you know.
 Discussion of different types of
energy transformations (electric to
light, mechanical to electrical, etc)
 Interactive Mini-lecture: Bohr model
of the atom & why quantum
mechanics?
 Groupwork: Analysis of Spectral
Lines (guided-inquiry packet which
is qualitative and lightly quantitative
on the connection between atomic
structure & emitted light)
 Homework: Finish packet, read
selected sections of Ch.5 of text on
own.
Lesson 6:
Light Lab Station signs
& setups.
Lab report rubric
Topic/skill review list
for mini-exam/practical
Lesson 5: (40 min)
 Brainstorm: examples of light and
color in everyday life.
 Nova video: Fireworks. Students
note at least 6 connections between
video topic and current class topics.
Lesson 6: (95 min)
 Light Lab. Students explore the
nature of electronic transitions in
atoms, the production of spectral
lines, glow-in-the-dark items,
blacklights, flame tests, atomic
models, and fiber optics at hands-on
lab stations.
 Give rubric for formal lab report on
Atomic Structure & Light
 Give review handout for exam topics
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Unit Planning Matrix – Rationale
Atomic Structure & Light
Unit Objectives
The two-week unit plan on atomic structure and light is one rich in student experiences and
challenges and is one that students seem to really enjoy. There are multiple academic skills and
habits of mind goals infused with the chemistry content objectives. In this unit, students are
scaffolded from a very rudimentary understanding of atomic structure (from middle school) to a
solid knowledge of the development of the basic structure of the atom (Lessons 1-3) and the
application of this understanding to a new problem, the production of light by excited atoms
(Lessons 4-6). As this unit happens toward the beginning of the school year, students are
working on the basics of the academic skills of note-taking, recording data in a lab notebook, and
writing formal lab reports. Regarding habits of mind, this unit is the second exposure to
“thinking and communicating with clarity and precision” and the first experience in building the
habit of “persisting.”
The unit is designed with six key components during the course of instruction. These are:
discussion (or question/answer, interactive lecture, conversation time), skill practice times,
hands-on experiences, multi-sensory learning opportunities, varied formative assessments
throughout instruction, valid summative assessment(s) at the end of instruction.
Lessons 1-3
Ideally, every unit begins with a pre-assessment of student prior knowledge and ends with some
sort of summative assessment (for the assignment of grades). This unit begins with a diagnostic
(formative) assessment of students’ existing knowledge about the nature of atomic structure and
the production of light and color in various circumstances. Some questions are multiple choice
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(how accurate are their ideas) and some are short answer (what “theories” or explanations do
they have about relevant everyday phenomena?). This diagnostic assessment is then used to
modify later lessons (especially discussions) in order to correct common misconceptions and
bring every student to the same (or close) level of understanding.
The first lesson is a hands-on activity designed to give students an accurate sense of the size of
the atom and the ridiculous amount of empty space in an atom. This activity gets students up out
of their seats, directly links to chemistry standard 1e, gives students an appreciation of the true
nature of the world around them (essential question #1), while having students apply a
previously acquired skill (unit conversions) to a new problem to get a tangible result. This
exercise relates something students know (their school quad) to something about which they’re
learning (atomic structure).
Students are then told the basics of the unit plan and given a homework packet that builds on the
previous activity by having them extend their knowledge about the structure of the atom to the
differences between atoms of different elements (Chemistry standard 1a). This homework
assignment is a guided inquiry question set given with no instruction whatsoever except the
comment “everything you need to answer these questions is on the front page of the packet.”
This is done purposefully to encourage students to persist in attempting to solve problems
themselves (linked to Habits of Mind). The concepts are simple, and students do very well once
they realize this. Lesson Two is a short day with a quiz (to help students learn the elements in
small clusters) and an opportunity for students to check with their classmates and get
encouragement on the ChemActivity homework. The instructor monitors, but does not help.
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In Lesson Three, a formative assessment (WBP – white board practice) is used to assess how
students are doing with the basics of atomic structure and the difference between atoms of
different elements. Students work in pairs to answer questions on a white board they hold up to
the instructor. If they answer is incorrect, they talk and try again. This activity is both “of
learning” in that is lets the instructor know how much students have learned so far, and “for
learning” in that it lets students better understand where they are in the learning process. As a
class, we then go over ChemActivity 1 – the first guided inquiry packet. This is an informal
formative assessment which gives the instructor an idea of how students are doing both on the
content and on persisting with problem solving on their own – if done right. The class discusses
why the assignment is hard (they realize it isn’t the content) and how to do better the next time.
Students then participate in a class re-enactment of a famous experiment in atomic theory and
create and turn in group “summary sheets” on the different atomic models (I&E standards 1g, 1h,
Essential Question #2). This exercise is kinesthetic and gives the instructor a formative
assessment (both “of” and “for” learning) on students’ understanding of the key points of atomic
theory history. Lesson Three finishes with a short demonstration in which students are
challenged to drink the “mystery liquid” which glows under a blacklight. Students do a
quickwrite explanation of why they think this happens. This activity is used as a pre-assessment
of their understanding of the nature of light absorption and reflection and is used to get them
excited about the upcoming lab.
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Lessons 4-6
Lesson Four begins with an open-notes quiz (a formative assessment on their note-taking ability)
and a quickwrite on their ideas about nature of energy and energy transformations. This is
followed by a discussion eliciting student ideas about energy forms and transformations and a
mini-lecture on the final atomic model used to explain the production of light. The lecture is
interactive, using visuals in PowerPoint and requiring students to fill out a corresponding
question sheet as we move through the topic (Chemistry standard 1i). After this introduction to
quantum atomic theory, students receive another guided inquiry packet on the application of this
theory to the analysis of line spectra of atoms (Chemistry standard 1j). Students work in groups,
again only monitored by the instructor. Students have enough time for most students to finish
most of the packet in class.
Lesson Five is a break from the more difficult work of spectra line analysis to involve students in
something in which most of them are interested – fireworks. Students watch a Nova video on the
development and variety of fireworks and note down connections between what they’re learning
in class (the theory) and what they see in the video (the application).
In Lesson Six, students turn in their spectral analysis packets to be graded (a formative
assessment of both their persistence and their understanding of the content). The entire class
period is dedicated to the Light Lab where students (in pairs) explore different lab stations, some
having explanations of items related to the content but not yet seen by them, and some of which
they have seen but have no explanation (to be provided by the student). In this way, students
practice what they already know about atomic structure (electronic steps) and explore new
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applications of their knowledge (fiber optics, etc). They have the opportunity to see the spectral
lines from their homework packet and practice the same calculations again with the light right in
front of them (Chemistry standard 1j, Essential Question #3). Students are then given the rubric
for their formal lab report for the day’s lab and a topic review list for the mini-exam to follow
two sessions later.
CIAS Links
Through focus on the content standards, students address the essential questions listed in the unit
plan throughout the course of instruction (see specific lessons). Instructional methods are varied
(visual, auditory, kinesthetic), and give students opportunities to work with peers, to ask
questions of the instructor, and to practice skills they’ve learned. Though the content, another
layer of academic skills (note-taking, etc) and habits of mind (persistence, etc) are scaffolded for
students in this unit as part of a general scaffolding of these skills over the course of the entire
year.
The assessments in this unit are both formative and summative. Formative assessments are
varied – from quickwrites to brainstorming and white board practice - and happen almost every
lesson. They serve to inform both the students and the instructor of progress in the learning
process and are linked directly to the content standards. The summative assessments for this unit
are the formal lab report and a mini-exam. The formal lab report is a summative assessment for
the content of the unit, but a formative assessment in terms of their ability to write formal lab
reports. The rubric details out the differences for students. This type of assessment, while not
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very practical, is somewhat valid in that the requirements mimic what they’ve already done in
the lab. It is not, however, very standardized or possibly reliable.
The mini-exam (while not a very large exam) is another way to summatively assess students (in
terms of the content of this unit (formatively in terms of the whole year of chemistry). It includes
some multiple choice, some short answer (similar questions to class discussions and activities),
and some lab practical (like their lab stations). In that way, this assessment is higher on the
validity scale, somewhat more practical than the lab reports (at least, in terms of grading), and
somewhat more standardized as it is administered to all students at the same time in the same
way (I have only one class this year).
In total, the unit designed is a fairly complex weaving of different components, with academic
and other skills layered on top of the content, varied instructional strategies to match varied
student abilities, and the use of formative assessments throughout to inform before and during
instruction with two relatively small summative assessments at the end.
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