Wednesday, February 16, 2011

End of the Unit & Assessing Progress

Over the past few days my classes have been retaking a quiz on balancing chemical equations. The idea that atoms can neither be created nor destroyed in chemistry is a powerful one. No chemical reaction will ever destroy an atom. Through balancing the chemical equations, we can show how this physical law is true. The chemical equation, showing a chemical reaction, indicates the amount of reactants and products. It also has a strong connection to mathematics. Just like an equation in algebra, the values on either end of  the equation must be the same. I have seen a lot of growth in the scores from the first Smart Response questions to the last quiz. Great work students!

Today was also the unit test. I am interested in seeing how everyone has progressed up to this final assessment. What have we learned about everyday chemicals and their impact on our lives? How do those nanoscopic atoms affect how a compound is made? Hopefully, everyone has gained an appreciation for chemicals and how we use them in our daily lives.

As we progress into the second part of the third nine-weeks, we begin a unit on Newton's Laws. To help explore these topics, the students will work on Ramp It Up (dealing with inclined planes) and  bridge engineering (part of the Pittsburgh Unit).

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