Which Molecules Are Pure Elements

"The consignment was to apply the base 10 blocks to create a model of each of the four elusive words: Atoms, Elements, Molecules and Compounds."

As a science instructor I dear educational activity new concepts. I dearest easily-on investigations and scientific discipline lab days. Still, one 24-hour interval in these beginning 9 weeks (yes already), I was faced with a challenge that every educator has to deal with at some signal: reteaching a concept afterwards a massive test failure! I was dreading information technology! How was I going to reteach a concept that is so abstract? A concept that 85% of my students did not go? A concept that most students struggle with every year! So I reached into the depths of my brain and into the dorsum of my lab supply cabinet to run into what I could find. Out comes my Wipebook Flipchart and my base 10 blocks. I take used them before to teach chemistry concepts, but due to COVID they have patiently been waiting to be chosen to duty.An idea had hatched, so and then information technology merely needed to develop.

whiteboard_VNPS_flipchart_Science_Teacher

Compare and Dissimilarity

Every bit a heart school student in the state of Texas you are required to empathise the differences and similarities betwixt Atoms, Elements, Molecules and Compounds. Some of the concepts that nosotros learned throughout the grading period were:

Ascertain Atoms, Elements, Mixtures, Molecules and Compounds.
Demonstrate how to tell if a substance is an element by using the periodic table.
Which of the following are pure substances: Atoms, homogeneous mixtures, Elements, heterogeneous mixtures, Molecules and Compounds.

Despite starting at what I thought was the start, group projects and even labs, they only could non sympathize that:

An chemical element was one type of cantlet and a chemical compound is two or more different atoms
An element is represented by a symbol and a compound past a formula
Both are pure substances.
Molecules and compounds are very similar but molecules tin can take 2 or more than of the aforementioned atoms or different atoms, but compounds must have two or more different types of atoms.

whiteboard_VNPS_Teacher_flipchart

Wipebook Flipchart Anchorcharts

Even though my students completely understood the concept of mixtures, they struggled with the more abstruse. The tiniest of the tiny. The matter that y'all cannot actually see. The assignment was to use the base of operations 10 blocks to create a model of each of the four elusive words: Atoms, Elements, Molecules and Compounds. To set this up I took all of the graphics that they struggled with off of their ix weeks test and created a google doc of them. I removed all of the questions and answer choices and gave them only the graphics.

VNPS_Flipchart_teacher_Whiteboard_science

Each group of no more than 3 students got ane flipchart sheet, a set of 40 base x blocks (10 of each different colour), wet or dry erase markers to match the block colors and a printed copy of the google doc with the graphics on it. After a rousing give-and-take of the similarities and differences of the four types of matter, and the four different particle types, I demonstrated a few ways they could format their anchor chart, discussed the definitions and set them complimentary to design and larn.

Concluding Results

About of my students decided to follow the same format that I started with, which was a bones four square design. They and then created their block models and had no trouble modeling and drawing the cantlet and the compound. Elements and molecules, however, were much more difficult for them. As they were working I made my manner effectually the room and explained the concepts as needed. The result: a much deeper understanding of the words and the power to model, describe, and describe the 4 words also as decode the graphics and analyze which graphic or description from their examination fit with which of the iv words.