BetterLesson - Super Bowl Science....Which ice cube is best?
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School
Eastern Gateway Community College *
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Course
3336
Subject
Industrial Engineering
Date
Dec 6, 2023
Type
Pages
5
Uploaded by midnightohio
Veronique Paquette
KENROY ELEMENTARY, EAST WENATCHEE, WA
2nd Grade Science : Unit #5 - Unit 5 - The Science of the Polar Regions : Lesson #8
Super Bowl Science
....
Which ice cube is best?
Objective:
SWBAT set up an investigation to determine which ice cube will remain the coldest.
Standards:
2-PS1-4 SP1 SP3 SP7
Subject(s): Science
60 minutes
Setting the Stage -
5 minutes
This lesson has no connection to the Polar Regions in any way, other than the concept of ice cubes! However, it
happens to fall at the end of the unit and coincides with Super Bowl Sunday. Which this year also happened to
involve the Seattle Seahawks. Even though we are far from Seattle, folks in our town are huge supporters and fans
of the Blue and Green and we just could not allow the day to go without a science lesson to connect.
Materials Needed:
ice cubes
plastic ice cubes
thermometers
small cups
balance scales
Engage -
5 minutes
I gathered all my students together and explained that we were all getting pretty excited for the big weekend!!! (It
was Thursday before the big game). I knew we would be having friends over to watch the Super Bowl at our house
and I was sure many of them would as well. I told them that I knew their parents would have quite a bit to do to
get ready, so I though maybe we could do a little research to help them out.
I had my
Ice Cube math and science Power Point
(https://betterlesson.com/lesson/resource/3198637/ice-cube-math-and-science-power-point)
ready to go on the screen and had
the scenario set on Slide two. Right away the decibels in the classroom have just elevated by twenty. The kids are
so excited!!!
I pass out the
Student Document Booklet
(https://betterlesson.com/lesson/resource/3198638/student-document-booklet)
and
let the children peruse it. The pattern of this investigation is so similar to ones we have done in the past, that the
know exactly what we will be doing. But there will be a few twists and turns in this one that they won't be
prepared for.
Ice Cube math and science teacher copy BL.pptx.pdf
https://betterlesson.com/lesson/resource/3198637/ice-cube-math-and-science-power-point
Ice Cube math and science student copy BL.pdf
https://betterlesson.com/lesson/resource/3198638/student-document-booklet
RESOURCES
Explore -
15 minutes
I explain to the children that we will gather our data about every five to ten minutes. And while we are waiting to
gather data, we will spend our time with our "free fun" science activities.
This was really just a fun time to explore with various science related toys the children could play with and direct
their own learning. (Things like: Marbleworks, Gears and Wheels, Blocks, Computer Investigations). The children
are excited and happy. They love to explore and play with these extra science tools and we do not always have a lot
of time to do this. Win! Win!
The booklets are passed out, the balance scales and blocks are passed out and children jump in.
The children know instinctively from the beginning what we are going to do. I find that my only job during this
portion of the lesson is to roam the room and offer moral support as the children complete their sketches and
document the observations they have about the ice cubes.
They work independently to make their predictions, and even discuss what they are going to do as Slide six
suggests they come up with a plan.
As the children finish this first portion, they get the thermometers and place them into the bowls with the ice
cubes. One caution I share with the children is to make sure they place the bulb of the thermometer into the cubes
themselves. I remind them about what we learned earlier in our
lesson
(../635435/thermometers-tools-of-polar-scientists)
about how to read a thermometer. We discuss the importance of the bulb being close to what is being measured
in temperature must be close to this portion of the thermometer.
The first set of data points are taken, before I let the children move to their book bags I ask them to share their data
with me and I record it on the screen. I include each team's data and record their measurements. I do this because
I want all the children to see and know what we are discovering. This will lead a good conversation later about
validity of results.
sketching.jpg
https://betterlesson.com/lesson/resource/3198661/sketching-1
sketching 2.jpg
https://betterlesson.com/lesson/resource/3198660/sketching-2
high student.jpg
https://betterlesson.com/lesson/resource/3198649/sketch-high-student
high students.jpg
https://betterlesson.com/lesson/resource/3198650/sketch-really-high-student
highly engaged!!.jpg
https://betterlesson.com/lesson/resource/3198651/highly-engaged
table teams working.jpg
https://betterlesson.com/lesson/resource/3198662/working
teamwork.jpg
https://betterlesson.com/lesson/resource/3198663/working-2
working.jpg
https://betterlesson.com/lesson/resource/3198665/working-3
beginning data.jpg
https://betterlesson.com/lesson/resource/3198639/beginning-data
blue team.jpg
https://betterlesson.com/lesson/resource/3198640/blue-team
green team.jpg
https://betterlesson.com/lesson/resource/3198647/green-team
purple team in the beginning.jpg
https://betterlesson.com/lesson/resource/3198659/purple-team
writing data 1.jpg
https://betterlesson.com/lesson/resource/3198666/writing-our-data
writing the data.jpg
https://betterlesson.com/lesson/resource/3198667/more-data
RESOURCES
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WEIGHING OUR CUBES
....
NEW CHALLENGES: Learning Communities
When it arrived at the weighing portion of the lesson, we realize we have a snag in our plan. The ice cubes
are not going to be exactly the same. So the children decide, with some leading from me, that if they weigh
the cup first without anything in it and then weigh it again with each type of ice cube, they can do some
simple math to determine the weight. I was a bit nervous at first that this might be a few too many steps to
comprehend.
I was to be pleasantly surprised. My students had no troubles comprehending this. They handled this step
easily. And those that struggled a bit, had support in their teammates to walk them through the math and
explained it beautifully to each other.
explaining the math.mp4
https://betterlesson.com/lesson/resource/3198646/explaining-the-math
weighing the plastic.jpg
https://betterlesson.com/lesson/resource/3198664/weighing-the-plastic-ice-cubes
STUDENT CONVERSATIONS: Learning Communities
When they came to the phase of weighing the ice cubes, one group had an in depth conversation about
why, how, and what should be done in the process. I never once had to intervene, prompt, clarify or direct
this group. They took the lead and handled the entire investigation on their own.
I was incredibly impressed with the high level of thinking the students were able to articulate with each
other. They spoke respectfully and even questioned each others thinking and built upon the statements of
each other. The children did a great job of engaging in respectful argument with evidence and opinions
during this phase (SP7).
It was quite uplifting to say the least. I felt that this was really the ultimate in what teachers hope for in their
students. To become independent learners.
conversation about weight.mp4
https://betterlesson.com/lesson/resource/3198645/student-conversations
Extending -
10 minutes
After gathering the data, the students were excited. I explain to them that we have gathered all the information
that we can and now it is time to draw some conclusions from our work. I wanted to bring in a new element that
we had not yet explored and that was how we looked at the data. I took this opportunity to bring in the concept of
Line Plots
(http://www.corestandards.org/Math/Content/2/MD/D/9/)
. I knew that scientists use this type of data recording
often in their work as well. It is a mathematical way to look at patterns.
I explain to the children that this is the perfect chance for to look at our own data on this chart and plot it out. I
demonstrate for the children how to take the smallest number and the largest number from their charts and write
those along the number line on their paper. I do this on my sample on the Power Point on the screen. Offering
them a sample. As I am doing this, I realize most of my students have already begun.
Ice Cube math and science teacher copy.jpg
https://betterlesson.com/lesson/resource/3198673/class-copy-of-data-on-screen
completed data 1.jpg
https://betterlesson.com/lesson/resource/3198641/complete-data-1
completed data.jpg
https://betterlesson.com/lesson/resource/3198642/completed-data-2
completed work.jpg
https://betterlesson.com/lesson/resource/3198643/completed-data-3
line plots.jpg
https://betterlesson.com/lesson/resource/3198655/line-plot-low
low line plot.jpg
https://betterlesson.com/lesson/resource/3198657/line-plot-middle
lineplots.jpg
https://betterlesson.com/lesson/resource/3198656/line-plot-high
RESOURCES
Conclusions -
10 minutes
A scientific conclusion will not be conclusive because it is supposed to support the actual hypothesis. In this
lesson, we did not have a hypothesis. But we did have a question to guide our lesson. Which cube will remain the
coldest? I also reminded the children that not only were we trying to find out which cube would remain the
coldest, we were able to explore in a little more depth the standard
PS1-4.
(http://www.nextgenscience.org/2ps1-matter-interactions)
Because our natural cubes melted, and we took note of this in
the data grids, it was obvious to the students that the ice was melting due to the warm temperature in the
classroom.
I explain to the children that they will take all their data and pull it together into one piece of evidence that
compiles all their work. They will need to go back and look at their original prediction and rewrite it on the
conclusion sheet.
Looking at all the data, they will need to determine (make an inference) which cube remained the coldest through
out the duration of their investigation.
20150217_143952.jpg
https://betterlesson.com/lesson/resource/3201636/conclusions-1
20150217_144030.jpg
https://betterlesson.com/lesson/resource/3201637/conclusions-2
RESOURCES
WHAT I WOULD DO DIFFERENTLY
.....
: Adjustments to Practice
I struggled with the correct wording to put on the conclusion page. I knew initially what I wanted the
children to investigate
....
which cube would remain frozen the longest. Ultimately, it was really challenging
to do.
The lesson was really fun, engaging, provided more practice to investigate thermometers, 2-PS1-4, but what
we really discovered was there was not a significant difference in the two types of ice cubes and I did not
plan for that. The next time I teach this lesson, I will rework the conclusion page to have the wording
include the possibility of 'no difference' between the cubes.
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