ALEX Classroom Resource

  

What Is Density?

  Classroom Resource Information  

Title:

 What Is Density?

URL:

 https://www.middleschoolchemistry.com/lessonplans/chapter3/lesson1

Content Source:

 Other
American Chemical Society
Type: Lesson/Unit Plan

Overview:

In this lesson, students will observe a copper and an aluminum cube of the same volume placed on a balance. They will see that the copper has a greater mass. Students will try to develop an explanation, on the molecular level, for how this can be. Students are then given cubes of different materials that all have the same volume. Students determine the density of each cube and identify the substance the cube is made from.

Students will be able to calculate the density of different cubes and use these values to identify the substance each cube is made of. Students will be able to explain that the size, mass, and arrangement of the atoms or molecules of a substance determines its density.

Content Standard(s):
Science
SC2015 (2015)
Grade: 8
Physical Science
5 ) Observe and analyze characteristic properties of substances (e.g., odor, density, solubility, flammability, melting point, boiling point) before and after the substances combine to determine if a chemical reaction has occurred.

NAEP Framework
NAEP Statement::
P8.2: Chemical properties of substances are explained by the arrangement of atoms and molecules.

NAEP Statement::
P8.7a: Chemical changes can occur when two substances, elements, or compounds react and produce one or more different substances whose physical and chemical properties are different from the reacting substances.

Unpacked Content
Scientific And Engineering Practices:
Analyzing and Interpreting Data
Crosscutting Concepts: Patterns
Disciplinary Core Idea: Matter and Its Interactions
Evidence Of Student Attainment:
Students:
  • Observe characteristic properties of substances before and after the substances combine.
  • Analyze characteristic properties of substances before and after the substances combine.
  • Determine if chemical reactions have occurred based on observations and analysis of the characteristic properties of substances before and after the substances combined.
Teacher Vocabulary:
  • Characteristic properties (e.g., odor, density, solubility, flammability, melting point, boiling point)
  • Substances
  • Chemical reaction
Knowledge:
Students know:
  • Each pure substance has characteristic physical and chemical properties that can be used to identify it.
  • Characteristic properties of substances may include odor, density, solubility, flammability, melting point, and boiling point.
  • Chemical reactions change characteristic properties of substances.
  • Substances react chemically in characteristic ways.
  • In a chemical process, the atoms that make up the original substances are regrouped into different molecules, and these new substances have different properties from those of the reactants.
Skills:
Students are able to:
  • Observe characteristic physical and chemical properties of pure substances before and after they interact.
  • Analyze characteristic physical and chemical properties of pure substances before and after they interact.
  • Analyze the properties to identify patterns (i.e., similarities and differences), including the changes in physical and chemical properties of each substance before and after the interaction.
  • Use the analysis to determine whether a chemical reaction has occurred.
Understanding:
Students understand that:
  • Observations and analyses can be used to determine whether a chemical reaction has occurred.
  • The change in properties of substances is related to the rearrangement of atoms in the reactants and products in a chemical reaction (e.g., when a reaction has occurred, atoms from the substances present before the interaction must have been rearranged into new configurations, resulting in the properties of new substances).
AMSTI Resources:
AMSTI Module:
Exploring the Properties of Matter
Experimenting with Mixtures, Compounds, and Elements
Alabama Alternate Achievement Standards
AAS Standard:
SCI.AAS.8.5- Compare the properties of substances (color, texture, odor, state of matter) before and after chemical changes have occurred (e.g. burning sugar, burning steel wool, rust, effervescent tablets).
Tags: atoms, density, mass, molecular level, molecules, property, substance, volume
License Type: Custom Permission Type
See Terms: https://www.acs.org/content/acs/en/terms.html
For full descriptions of license types and a guide to usage, visit :
https://creativecommons.org/licenses
AccessibilityVideo resources: includes closed captioning or subtitles
Comments

A video explaining how to teach the lesson is provided.

  This resource provided by:  
Author: Stephanie Carver
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