Structure and Properties of Matter
Start laying the groundwork for middle school chemistry with this unit that builds on student understanding of the properties of matter, changes of state, physical and chemical changes, and conservation of matter. By the end of the unit, students apply what they’ve learned to a real world engineering project. They devise a water purification system — a great application of chemistry to a timely problem!
Performance Expectations: 5-PS1-1; 5-PS1-2; 5-PS1-3; 5-PS1-4; 3-5-ETS1-2
Teacher supplied items (not supplied in kit): 2 aluminum cans (1 crushes), 2 bananas (1 green, 1 yellow), 1 bottle (2L) of club soda, unopened, 3 clear containers of different shapes, 8 coffee mugs (heavy enough not to float), 8 crayons (any color), 1 lb dry ice (optional), 2 eggs (1 raw, 1 hardboiled), 1 glass lens, 50mL honey, 32 ice cubes, water, 1 kitchen knife, 1 large starchy potato, 2 leaves (one fresh, 1 dried), 50mL milk, scissors, poster board, scrap paper, 2 slices of white bread (1 regular, 1 darkly toasted), 1 small rigid solid object such as toy car.
Teacher Prep Videos
Vocabulary Resources
Matter and Energy in Ecosystems
Students begin by focusing on the interdependence of living and nonliving things in an ecosystem. Students plan an investigation using radish seeds to determine what resources plants require to grow. Then students dissect an owl pellet to develop food chains and food pyramids. They will also construct an ecocolumn that uses radish seeds and redworms to examine the importance of decomposers in an ecosystem. By the end of the unit, students analyze the cause and effects of agriculture, fossil fuels, technology, and factories on ecosystems and design a solution to reduce human impact.
Performance Expectations: 5-PS3-1; 5-LS1-1; 5-LS2-1; 5-ESS2-1; 5-ESS3-1; 3-5-ETS1-3
Teacher supplied items (not installed in kit): Computers, glue sticks, kitchen knife, 2 large potatoes, scissors, poster board, plastic garbage bags, stopwatch or clock.
Teacher Prep Videos
Vocabulary Resources
Earth and Space Systems
This study of the universe and sun-earth-moon systems naturally integrates math and literacy into hands-on science lessons. Students design scale models, then gather data and express it in bar graphs and circle graphs. As they study water, they calculate the ratio of salt to fresh water on earth. Literacy comes in as students research and report on how systems on earth interact with systems in space.
Performance Expectations: 5-PS2-1; 5-ESS1-1; 5-ESS1-2; 5-ESS2-1; 5-ESS2-2; 5-ESS3-1; 3-5-ETS1-2
Teacher supplied items (not supplied in kit): 1 ball, 1 book, calculators, coolers (optional), globe, ice cubes, markers/colored pencils, mirror, scissors, pencils, paper, water.
Teacher Prep Videos
Vocabulary Resources
Designing Water Filters (EiE)
In Water, Water Everywhere: Designing Water Filters, students explore and discuss the connections between water and the water cycle and the role of engineers in providing and maintaining clean and safe drinking water. The unit begins with the storybook Saving Salila’s Turtle, in which a girl named Salila living in India explores ideas from the field of Environmental Engineering in order to save a turtle from its polluted environment. Like Salila, students then follow the steps of the Engineering Design Process to imagine, plan, create, and improve their own water filters.