We had 8 different experiments to learn about air pressure! It was pretty exciting and students learned a lot about air pressure. As we all know, scientific fact is not accepted after one experiment, but rather after many scientists repeat similar experiments as well as verify data and results. We modeled this in our class. Students travelled to three groups and looked at their experiment, graph and analysis and wrote down some observations and a question. Specifically, they wrote down one thing they learned from looking at a classmate's graph and they wrote down one thing they learned from looking at a classmate's analysis. They took these with them to help them understand how temperature and pressure are related. Additionally, students left a question to help them see possible sources of error or parts of the experiment to change. Students love to show their classmates all their hard work!
This week, students have created and implemented an experiment to collect data to answer the question "How are temperature and pressure related?" Students have measured how much a can crushes when heated then placed in cold water, how much a balloon grows or shrinks when heated or cooled, among other experiments. Check back for their results! Today, students finished their posters and shared them with the class. Here are two examples. As students presented, I noted key academic words and terms. If a word or similar idea was repeated, I added check marks. Students used this list of terms to develop a definition of air pressure individually, as a group and eventually as a class.
To introduce air pressure, students watched two videos: one of a 55 gallon barrel being crushed and a train car being crushed. These are crushed just by the air! In groups, students are tasked with picking a video, drawing a picture of the video and explaining to the class what they think the physical mechanisms are. We will note any key words and terms they use. Check back for their posters and a list of words! To learn about the Earth's layers, students created foldables. To create these, students colored the four layers of the Earth (crust, mantle, inner core and outer core), and labeled them. After learning about what the composition and states of matter were in each layer, students answered two questions: 1) How does matter move in this layer? and 2) What physical mechanisms cause this? I helped them with the inner core, and the students determined the rest of the answers in groups.
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