Key Question: How are conductors and insulators used in everyday objects?
Engineering Design Process
Orderly, systematic approach to problem-solving.
Cyclical process (unlike the linear scientific method).
May involve repeating or skipping steps.
Engineering Design Process: Documentation
Formal method of recording and communicating steps.
Begins with initial sketches.
Continues through prototype creation and testing.
Concludes with working drawings of the design solution.
Complete documentation should be integral to each step.
Key Partners
Smithsonian Institution: Integrated online resources to further the mission of increasing knowledge.
SpongeLab Interactives: Providing gamified environments to encourage student interaction and problem-solving, with tools for assessment.
PhET Interactive Simulations: Interactive science and math simulations for exploration and discovery, based on education research.
Modules
Module 1: The Nature of Science
Introduces physical science and tools for its study.
Encounter the Phenomenon: Why did the person jump backward over the bar?
Module 2: Motion
Encounter the Phenomenon: Why did the person jump backward over the bar?
Main topics in Module 2 include: Describing Motion, Velocity and Momentum, and Acceleration.
Module 3: Forces and Newton’s Laws
Encounter the Phenomenon: Why did the person jump backward over the bar?
Main topics in Module 3 include: Forces, Newton’s Laws of Motion, and Using Newton’s Laws.
Module 4: Work and Energy
Encounter the Phenomenon: How can energy be collected and stored for daily use?
Main topics in Module 4 include: Work and Machines, Describing Energy, and Conservation of Energy.
Module 5: Thermal Energy
Encounter the Phenomenon: How can energy be collected and stored for daily use?
Main topics in Module 5 include: Temperature, Thermal Energy, and Heat, Conduction, Convection, and Radiation, and Using Thermal Energy.
Module 6: Electricity
Encounter the Phenomenon: How can energy be collected and stored for daily use?
Main topics in Module 6 include: Electric Charge, Electric Current, and More Complex Circuits.
Module 7: Magnetism and Its Uses
Encounter the Phenomenon: How can energy be collected and stored for daily use?
Main topics in Module 7 include: Magnetism, Electricity and Magnetism, and Producing Electricity.
Module 8: Energy Sources and The Environment
Encounter the Phenomenon: How can energy be collected and stored for daily use?
Main topics in Module 8 include: Fossil Fuels, Nuclear Energy, Renewable Energy Sources, and Environmental Impacts.
Module 9: Introduction to Waves
Encounter the Phenomenon: How do waves interact with our senses?
*Main topics in Module 9 include: The Nature of Waves, Wave Properties, and The Behavior of Waves.
Module 10: Sound
*Encounter the Phenomenon: How do waves interact with our senses?
*Main topics in Module 10 include: The Nature of Sound, Properties of Sound, Music, and Using Sound.
Module 11: Electromagnetic Waves
*Encounter the Phenomenon: How do waves interact with our senses?
*Main topics in Module 11 include: What are electromagnetic waves?, The Electromagnetic Spectrum, and Radio Communication.
Module 12: Light
*Encounter the Phenomenon: How do waves interact with our senses?
*Main topics in Module 12 include: The Behavior of Light, Light and Color, Producing Light, and Using Light.
Module 13: Mirrors and Lenses
*Encounter the Phenomenon: How do waves interact with our senses?
*Main topics in Module 13 include: Mirrors, Lenses, Optical Instruments.
Module 14: Solids, Liquids, and Gases
*Encounter the Phenomenon: Why can dry ice go directly from a solid to a gas?
*Main topics in Module 14 include: Matter and Thermal Energy, Properties of Fluids, and Behavior of Gases.
Module 15: Classification of Matter
*Encounter the Phenomenon: Why can dry ice go directly from a solid to a gas?
*Main topics in Module 15 include: Composition of Matter and Properties of Matter.
Module 16: Properties of Atoms and The Periodic Table
*Encounter the Phenomenon: Why can dry ice go directly from a solid to a gas?
*Main topics in Module 16 include: Structure of the Atom, Masses of Atoms, and The Periodic Table.
Module 17: Elements and Their Properties
*Encounter the Phenomenon: Why can dry ice go directly from a solid to a gas?
*Main topics in Module 17 include: Metals, Nonmetals, Mixed Groups.
Module 18: Chemical Bonds
*Encounter the Phenomenon: Why are the jellyfish glowing?
*Main topics in Module 18 include: Stability in Bonding, Types of Bonds, Writing Formulas and Naming Compounds.
Module 19: Chemical Reactions
*Encounter the Phenomenon: Why are the jellyfish glowing?
*Main topics in Module 19 include: Chemical Changes, Classifying Chemicals Reactions, Chemical Reactions and Energy, Reaction Rates and Equilibrium.
Module 20: Radioactivity and Nuclear Reactions
*Encounter the Phenomenon: Why are the jellyfish glowing?
*Main topics in Module 20 include: The Nucleus, Nuclear Decays and Reactions, Radiation Technologies and Applications.
Module 21: Solutions
*Encounter the Phenomenon: How are advancements in chemistry related to technology?
*Main topics in Module 21 include: How Solutions Form, Concentration and Solubility, Particles in Solution, Dissolving Without Water.
Module 22: Acids, Bases, and Salts
*Encounter the Phenomenon: How are advancements in chemistry related to technology?
*Main topics in Module 22 include: Acids and Bases, Strength of Acids and Bases, Salts.
Module 23: Organic Compounds
*Encounter the Phenomenon: How are advancements in chemistry related to technology?
*Main topics in Module 23 include: Simple Organic Compounds, Substituted Hydrocarbons, Petroleum—A Source of Organic Compounds, Biological Compounds.
Module 24: New Materials Through Chemistry
*Encounter the Phenomenon: How are advancements in chemistry related to technology?
*Main topics in Module 24 include: Alloys, Versatile Materials, Polymers and Composites.
Module 1 The Nature of Science
Encounter the Phenomenon
How do we know how rainbows form?
GO ONLINE to play a video about the way Newton studied light.
Ask Questions Do you have other questions about the phenomenon? If so, add them to the driving question board.
CER Claim, Evidence, Reasoning
Make Your Claim Use your CER chart to make a claim how rainbows form. Explain your reasoning.
Collect Evidence Use the lessons in this module to collect evidence to support your claim. Record your evidence as you move through the module.
Explain Your Reasoning You will revisit your claim and explain your reasoning at the end of the module.
Lesson 1 The Methods of Science
What are the steps of the methods of science?
What is science?
Science is a method for studying the natural world.
Science is a process based on inquiry that helps develop explanations about events in nature.
*Major categories of science:
Life science deals with living things.
Earth science investigates Earth and space.
Physical science studies matter and energy.
Science changes
Scientific explanations help us understand the natural world, but these must be modified as we learn more.
Investigations
Scientists learn new information about the natural world by performing investigations.
Scientific Methods
Investigations often follow a general pattern called the scientific methods.
Six common steps:
State the problem.
Research and gather information.
Form a hypothesis.
Test a hypothesis.
Analyze the data.
Draw conclusions.
State the problem
The question of “why” or “how” is the problem.
Research and gather information
Gather observations and interpretations from reliable sources.
Form a hypothesis
A hypothesis is a possible answer to a question based on what you know and observe.
Test a hypothesis
Some hypotheses can be tested by making observations.
One common way to test a hypothesis is to perform an experiment.