Science Lesson Plan II

Here you will find an overview and example of a 5E science lesson plan that was produced and enacted!

Topic

Driving Question

Grade

Instructional Goals

Head Goals

Students will gain an understanding of key scientific concepts related to states of matter and physical changes.
Essential vocabulary such as solid, liquid, gas, melting, and heating.
Using hands-on activities like melting chocolate and popping popcorn, students will explore how heat causes substances to change states.
This lesson will help students make connections between science and everyday experiences, fostering an understanding of how heat impacts matter in practical applications, such as cooking and food preparation.
The big idea of this lesson is that heating and cooling causes physical changes in matter.
Students will understand the concepts of reversible and irreversible changes in matter.

Hand Goals

Students will melt chocolate using a microwave or hot water bath ( hot plate) under supervision, observing and recording changes in texture, consistency, and state.
Students will document their findings with before-and-after sketches or descriptions.
Students will pop popcorn, using a popcorn maker or stovetop type setup to investigate the transformation of kernels. Findings will be organized into models, tables, and charts to represent their data and conclusions.

Heart Goals

Students will reflect on how heating and cooling changes matter, relating these changes to their everyday experiences and the food preparation processes they encounter at home or in the classroom.
Students will explore the impact of heat on the materials they use daily, such as how chocolate melts when heated or how popcorn pops during cooking.
Sharing their personal experiences and connections to food preparation, students will engage in meaningful conversations, demonstrating empathy for the perspectives of others as they discuss favourite foods and cooking methods.

5E Phases

Example work from a 2nd grade student

Reasoning Behind Pedagogical Choices

This 5E lesson plan on how heat and cooling affects different states of matter and material, was created to allow students to explore scientific concepts that are meaninful to them.
- Using chocolate and popcorn - materials that children are familiar with offers engaging and clear visuals.
This lesson focused on having students engage in curiosity-inspiring hands-on activities to help them foster their love of learning and understanding of science.

Practices of High Quality Teaching

Engage

Students were asked a series of initial questions to probe their level of understanding of states of matter by listing examples of ones they know.
Key terms including reversible, irreversible, liquid, gas, solid, etc. will be reviewed or introduced to the class and told to be kept in mind for the duration fo the experiment.
Students were also given a matching card game where there were images of various states of matter in different forms and they were told to organize them the best way they see fit. Some would organize based on state, based on material, etc. but ultimately it's a guiding activity to seeing reversible and irreversible changes.

This lesson gives students multiple opportunities to interact with materials directly, which encouraged exploration, observation, and discussion. This hands-on approach helps support students' understanding and allows students to engage with science in a fun and memorable way.
This lesson encourages students to generate their own ideas and hypothesis before the experiment began
- Using student-led inquiry and structured opportunities to develop scientific talk, this lesson helps further language development and positions children as young scientists ready to explore their world!

Explore

Individually or in groups, students were given bowls, a hot plate, kernels, pieces of chocolate, spoons, and ice cubes.
Students were guided through the safety rules of using hot equipment and then handed out worksheets.
While the popcorn popped, and the chocolate melted, students filled in a worksheet with observations of what was happening.
Once the chocolate was heated, the students got to further experiment with what happened to the new state of matter when cooled on ice.

Explain

Once the materials are cleaned up, the teacher begins asking students a variety of questions including; "What happened when we heated the chocolate? What happened when we cooled it down?" or, "Is this a reversible or irreversible change?" etc.
Students will respond according to their observations and diagrams they have created on their worksheets.
The teacher organizes and records these observations on the board in a T-Chart style to differentiate between reversible and irreverrsible changes.

Example work from a student

Extend

Students would explore how heat can transform ingredients in cooking by participating in making scrambled eggs and pancakes for a class breakfast.
Students will wonder what will happen to the batter and eggs when we cook them, based off of evidence they have accumilated from the previous experiment.
Students will record their observations, and even get to journal observations from cooking at home with family.
If there is time, students can even make ziploc ice cream to see how ingredients can be created using ice instead of heat.

Evaluate

Students will go back to their worksheets and reflect/review their original hypothesis. They will think about how their understanding of the heating and cooling of matter has changed throughout the lesson. I will ask them for some ideas to share either in small groups or/and in a class discussion.
Students will take back the cards that were used in the engagement phase and organize them by reversible and irreversible changes of matter when heated or cooled to assess their understanding of those two concepts explored.
To get students thinking about their new ideas and skills, I will as prompting questions such as:“What evidence do you have for that claim?” or“Why do you think that?”
The following will be used to assess the students:

Checklist:

The student explains and provides examples of the term irreversible
The student explains and provides examples of the term reversible
Student organizes the cards into two groups: reversible and irreversible changes
Student expresses that not all matter changes the same way when heated or cooled
The student connects what they learned about matter in relation to food to real-world experiences (i.e. marshmallow melts when heated, steak cooks)

Example work from a student

Filled in board from lesson enactment

Link to the Full Lesson Plan!