Tag Archives: HLP 3

Data: LAMP Project

Student teachers at Ball State University are required to complete an in-depth unit long data driven analysis of their student teaching called Learning Assessment Model Project (LAMP).  I chose to run the project during the stoichiometry  unit.  Stoichiometry is a unifying topic of chemistry.  It synthesizes previously taught topics of writing chemical formulas, calculating molar masses, performing molar conversions, and balancing chemical reaction equations so that students may apply prior knowledge to its fullest use.  Stoichiometry is rigorous and challenging for students.  My aim was to make this topic both accessible and useful for my students by relating it to their everyday lives.  We chose the stoichiometry unit to run our LAMP project in as most students, except possibly those who have taken integrated chemistry and physics, have no experience with stoichiometry.  We wanted to see the direct impact that our teaching had upon students.  The following is a summary of the project, its outcome and conclusions drawn from it.

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States of Matter Sort

Chemistry I students last discussed the states of matter in sixth grade, but they are also used as a discussion lead in to thermodynamics in chemistry.  Because students have experience with states of matter, I wanted to find an engaging way to activate previous knowledge and begin our thermochemistry unit.  I generated a list of eight properties of each of the three common states of matter, printed them on colored sheets of paper, cut them into slips and mixed them together in a bucket.  Then I divided the class into three teams and assigned each team a state of matter to represent and asked them to pull eight random slips from the bucket.  The teams were to discuss amongst themselves whether or not each of the eight slips they pulled out matched their state of matter.  If the group found that some of the slips descriptions didn’t define their state, they were to trade with another group until they found descriptions that did, but not to have more than eight slips at once.

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Gas Laws Inquiry Investigation

I began the Gas Laws unit wondering how to present Gas Law equations in a more engaging way.  Mr. Smith suggested that we approach the discussion from an inquiry perspective using the new DataHub instruments at the school.  We had used the DataHub during Gas Laws in Chemistry II, so I modified an activity that had been used with them to present and derive the Gas Laws for Chemistry I.  The following data table was generated for student data collection during the in class demos: Gas Law Investigation

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Using the DataHub to collect real time pressure data to derive the Gas Law equations.

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Balancing Chemical Reaction Equations Using Beads

Kinesthetic activities are one of my favorite ways to engage students in their learning.  We utilized several methods in modeling the art of balancing chemical reaction equations, but one of my favorite activities was balancing reactions using beads.

Balancing equations using beads.
Balancing equations using beads.


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Stoichiometry Organizer

Stoichiometry is the heart of chemistry, but is often a challenging concept for students to grasp.  My goal was to generate an informational organizer for students to use to assemble all of the necessary pieces of information in order to successfully solve a gram to gram stoichiometry problem.  The resulting algorithm organizer was introduced to students during the stoichiometry unit:

Stoichiometry Algorithm

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Mole Madness Activity

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What’s in a mole?  6.022 EE 23 atoms/molecules for sure, but what does a mole look like?  That depends on the molar mass of a given compound.  The goal of generating this particular activity was to have students calculate the molar mass of three common household compounds, sugar, baking soda and sodium chloride, and then to measure out the same number of moles of each compound and visually compare the amounts of each compound to see how much space a  given amount of moles occupies.

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Factor Label Conversions Using Marzano Techniques

IMG_0347Introducing and using conversions and the factor label system in the science classroom are traditionally done through lecture based activities.  Student engagement in this topic is usually limited to checks for understanding via homework and assessment on quizzes and tests.  Utilizing Marzano’s kinesthetic technique, our goal was to physically engage students in groups while simultaneously performing a formative assessment of understanding of these topics.

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