Mystery Materials - Chemical Reaction

As learners continued to learn about chemical reactions, they took part in a lab in which they were mixing "unkown" materials. As they are beginning to understand, sometimes when you mix different types of materials, a chemical reaction will take place and a new substance will be formed. In this case, the resulting material resembled and acted like a bouncy ball.

Physical vs. Chemical Change - CO2 Extinguisher

As we look at chemical vs. physical changes, we are beginning to explore how to tell the difference.

5 Changes that typically show a chemical reaction:

1. A gas is  formed
2. A new substance is formed
3. Heat and/or light is generated or lost
4. A new smell is formed
5. A dramatic color change occurs.

Below is a demonstration done in class, mixing baking soda and vinegar. The resulting reaction produced Carbon Dioxide which I used to put out candles.

Mystery Mass Rods Lab

As part of our exploration on density, learners used an equal mass rods kit to discover that rods of various volumes can still have the same mass if their densities are different.

Watch two of our learners discover this...

Density Labs

 Matter and Motion

Atoms, Molecules and Density

This week, we will be taking a closer look at atoms, molecules and how they are positioned in terms of density. Learners will have an opportunity to learn how to calculate density through a series of 8 labs. Each lab focuses on at least one part of the density calculation.

Each lab will be highlighted in further blog posts as the week continues.

Ohio State Science Standards covered are highlighted below:

Matter and Motion Videos

A large part of our Matter and Motion unit will involve studying atoms and molecules. As these are VERY hard to see...studying them through video and animation are the best and sometimes only route to understanding.

Take a look at our playlist of videos on YouTube. These will be used in class multiple times.