Week 15: Matter and Its Behavior
What did you learn this week?
This week, I learned more about creating an investigation for students to complete in order to gain an understanding of the conservation of matter. We had both our teacher and our student hats on and were able to conduct experiments to find the best way to prove that even after a chemical reaction, matter is not created or destroyed. We did this by using baking soda and vinegar to create a chemical reaction, taking note of the mass of the materials before and after the reaction.
Are you able to relate what you learned to what you already knew?
Our learning this week focused on genuine inquiry and discovery, which is what we have been working toward all semester. Throughout the last few weeks, we have been honing in on particle interactions, and this week was no different. The experiments we were conducting this week had to do with particles interacting and changing and whether that change took away or added more particles or not. Allowing students to build this knowledge through genuine curiosity is integral to fostering young science minds!
What are new or remaining questions?
Are there ways to incorporate the other experiments that we completed into an elementary setting?
If an experiment goes haywire, what is the best way to pivot?
Hi Elsa! This experiment was a great way to really think of how we would teach this concept to students. These experiments really help student to deepen understanding, build ideas, and create curiosity, like you said. I am also curious about your remaining question, these experiments will occur differently with a class full of elementary students.
ReplyDeleteHi Elsa! I agree that it is crucial to allow students to build their knowledge of these phenomenas through curiosity. Like we learned earlier this year, people have an innate sense of curiosity; so, if we focus on that, it will definitely help students meaningfully understand what's going on. Great post!
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