Matter
In the sixth grade, students begin to study the characteristics of matter. While they are not asked to understand the role that subatomic particles like protons, neutrons and electrons play in the structure of matter, they are asked to understand that all matter is made up of atoms -- which are extremely small particles that are too small to be seen with eyes and/or microscopes.
They are also expected to understand that atoms form the 100+ elements that combine in different ways to make all living and non-living things in the universe. Finally, they are expected to understand that atoms are constantly moving -- and when they are heated or cooled, the speed of those molecules changes. This change in speed results in phase changes -- moves from solids to liquids and liquids to gasses.
County Unit Overview
County Overview - Matter Unit.pdf
This document was created by the county as an overview of the content to be covered in the Matter unit that can be shared with parents. It presents essential content in parent friendly language, it includes a list of required vocabulary, and it highlights where the content that our kids are expected to master stands in the sequence of learning for students. It can be useful as a guide for teachers -- both of sixth grade science and those who wish to integrate sixth grade science content into their curricula.
I Can Statements
Matter_ICan_Statements.doc
This document includes a list of the objectives that students will be expected to master in their study of matter. It can be used as a checklist by teachers to guide their instruction and as a tracking sheet for parents and students to monitor progress towards mastery.
Key Vocabulary List
Handout_MatterVocabularyNotes.docx
Handout_MatterVocabularyReview.docx
Handout_VocabularyOrganization_Matter.doc
These handouts can be used by students to practice the content-specific vocabulary for our Matter unit.
Vocabulary Quick Checks
Quiz_MatterVocab.docx
Quiz_MatterVocab - Version C.docx
Quiz_MatterVocab - Version E.docx
These handouts include quick vocabulary tests that can be given to students to assess their understanding of the key terms in our unit on Matter. Version C and E have been modified for special programs students.
Matter Study Guide
Handout_MatterStudyGuide.docx
This handout contains a simple study guide -- created by Kate Kotik -- that students can use to study for their matter common assessment. It also includes an activity that asks students to create and interpret a graph -- a lab skill that Kate focused on during the course of her work with the matter unit.
Matter Study Guide.docx
A modified version of the above study guide that condensed some pages and includes an enlarged graph area and additional questions.
General Materials
Reading - Matter over Time
Reading_MatteroverTime.pdf
This reading is from the Discovery Ed Techbook. It describes the changing perceptions that scientists held about matter over time. Can be used as an introduction to matter. Have students brainstorm everything that they know about matter to start the unit. Then, have them compare their own thinking to the thinking of other scientists over time.
Reading - The Quest for Cold
Reading_TheQuestforCold.pdf
Another reading from the Discovery Ed Techbook. It describes the work of one scientist who was committed to finding the point where molecules stop moving completely. Could be a good reading while talking about the effect that adding and removing heat have on the movement of molecules.
Reading - Chemical and Physical Properties of Matter
Reading - Chemical and Physical Properties of Matter.pdf
Another reading from the Discovery Ed Techbook. It is useful because it introduces the basic chemical and physical properties of matter. That is one of the key outcomes for our unit -- students are supposed to understand how chemical and physical properties are used by scientists to identify bits of matter.
Solubility Materials
Solubility Project
Handout_SolubilityProject.docx
Handout_SolubilityProjectGradingRubric.docx
These handouts include materials for an inquiry based solubility lab that Kate Kotik used with her students. It asks students to develop and test their own wonder questions about why materials dissolve.
Solubility Activities
http://www.inquiryinaction.org/classroomactivities/topic.php?topic=Solubility
This collection of activities -- spotted by Kate Kotik on the American Chemical Society's website -- are fantastic starting points for the study of solubility. They ask students to conduct quick mini-experiments with M+M candies, specifically looking at how the candy shell is dissolved when in water. All of the activities can be completed with limited supplies and all come with detailed handouts that introduce solubility concepts in an approachable way.
Solubility Notes and Handouts
Handout_SolubilityWorksheet.pdf
Handout_SolubilityStudentNotesheet.pdf
These handouts -- which Kate Kotik found useful when working with her students -- introduce the definitions of important words connected to solubility.
Mass and Volume Materials
Mass and Volume Lab
Handout_MassVolumeLab.docx
This activity -- which was developed by Jason Dapkevich -- can be used to introduce students to (1). the difference between mass and volume and (2). the proper use of graduated cylinders and triple beam balances.
Mass and Volume Lab #2
Handout_MassVolumeLab.doc
This activity -- which was developed by Kate Kotik -- can be used to introduce students to the notion that mass and volume are two characteristics of matter that change based on the amount of matter present.
Play-Doh Density Lab
Handout_PlayDohDensityLab.docx
This activity -- which was developed by Kate Kotik -- can be used to introduce students to the notion that the density of an object can be determined by first figuring out its mass and volume and then using the formula D=M/V. It is also designed to give students the chance to determine whether or not density is a property that is affected by the amount of matter present.
General Matter Materials
What's In Project
Handout_WhatsInProject.doc
This activity -- which was developed by Kate Kotik -- asks students to study the elements that are in common, every-day household objects and then to compare those findings to the elements that are common in the human body. The purpose of the activity is to introduce students to the concept that elements in combination make up everything in the universe.
While the activity asks students to bring in packaging from a common household product, this website can be used by students who forget to bring in a package to find ingredient lists for common household products, too.
This file -- created by Bill Ferriter -- introduces kids to the composition of both the human body and earth's atmosphere. It can be used as a comparison for students completing the What's In Project.
And this file -- created by Bill Ferriter -- is a revised version of a final product that doesn't require students to make a final poster, but does require them to make comparisons between the elements in their products and the elements in the human body/earth's atmosphere. Bill designed it simply as a time-saver.
Boiling Point Demonstration
Boiling Point Demonstration.doc
This activity -- which was developed by Kate Kotik -- asks students to consider whether or not the boiling point of water is affected by the amount of water in a container. It can be used as either a mini-lab or as a classroom demonstration.
Boiling/Melting Point Interactive Graphic
http://www.harcourtschool.com/activity/hotplate/
This interactive graphic from Harcourt can be used to introduce students to the idea that temperatures don't rise above the boiling point. It is also useful for introducing students to the idea that temperatures will plateau at the melting point until all of a substance melts before rising again to the boiling point.
Lab - Making Ice Cream
Handout_IceCreamLab.doc
This activity -- which was developed by Kate Kotik -- is designed to introduce students to the notion that substances can change states. In it, students make ice cream and observe the transition that milk undergoes from a liquid to a solid.
Lab - What's Your Phase
Lab - WhatsYourPhase.docx
This lab -- created by Stephen Howe -- is designed to introduce students to the different phases of matter. It asks students to make "flubber" using Borax. What is neat about the activity is that can be used to introduce students to colloids -- substances that exist somewhere between solids and liquids.
Viewing Guide - Bill Nye Video on Atoms and Molecules
ViewingGuide - BillNyeAtomsandMolecules.doc
This viewing guide -- created by Bill Ferriter -- is designed to be used alongside the Bill Nye video on Atoms and Molecules in our school's library. The video is a nice introduction to the differences between atoms and molecules, which is one of the key expected outcomes in our unit. The activity could also make for good substitute teacher plans.
Additional Resources
Density Overview
http://www.visionlearning.com/library/module_viewer.php?mid=37
This weblink provides a nice overview of what density is and where the concept of measuring density comes from. It can be used as a resource for students, parents and/or teachers who are interested in brushing up on their knowledge of density as a physical property of matter.
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