Week 13

 This week in lab we started by discussing our homework assignment from the previous week before talking more about matter and its interactions. We explore how we can support Elementary students in learning about matter and it's interactions. Many of the things that we do in lab can help support this science learning for Elementary students. The activity we completed this week incorporated experiments, modeling, making observations, and taking measurements which are all great methods to help young students learn about matter and its interactions. Our table tested the M&Ms using sugar water and found that the M&M colors moved closer to the control tables M&Ms than the hot water tables. At the 1, 3, and 5 minute marks the hot water moved the M&M colors the fastest. 

This experiment did a great job in illustrating the different speeds of particle movements. The hot water had more energy than the cold water, therefore the particles moved quicker in the hot water. This was clearly shown by the amount the M&M colors moved further at the hot water station than the control station. This would be a great activity for an elementary classroom because it allows the students to see this interaction in real time even though we cannot see the actual particles in water. Having the students draw their own model at the end of the interaction they witnessed is a great extension to this learning and allows them to display their knowledge.

Some remaining questions I have would be how much would the experiment have been different if the temperatures were taken to the extreme. What would happen if the hot water was boiling? What would happen if the cold water was near freezing? 




Comments

  1. Julia MikkelsenApril 19, 2023 at 11:35 AM

    Great post Matt! I am also super interested to see what would happen if the temperatures were taken to the extreme. I would love to do the experiment again and do that. I think the boiling water would melt the m+m's.

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  2. Amber EmbrockApril 19, 2023 at 12:15 PM

    Those are great questions Matt! I wonder if we used the ice in class like we were suppose to if the color would even dissolve since the molecules would be so closely packed together. The opposite would go for boiling water, I think that everything about the M&M would dissolve, including the chocolate. I was wondering about what would happen if we used a liquid like vinegar?

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  3. Emily StultzApril 20, 2023 at 6:02 AM

    Hi Matt, I really like your ideas and questions in your post! I agree that I think this is a great model for students to do to understand particle movement in a very simple way.

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  4. Ali CraigApril 23, 2023 at 7:12 PM

    Hi Matt, this is a great post! I also think this was great experiment to observe the speed at which molecules move. I agree that it would be interesting to see this experiment again but with extreme temperatures. I don't think much would happen to the M&Ms in the near freezing water, whereas the boiling water would likely melt all of the M&M.

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