Heat Transfer Experiment Reflection

The first thing that came to mind when I read this experiment was the types of materials used in on-the-go coffee cups or containers such as Styrofoam, cardboard or even plastic.  I thought that this experiment made the perfect connection to something that I do daily; drink coffee.  I was instantly curious about heat transfer and which material would keep the water hottest at the end of thirty minutes.  The materials I choose to test were: foil, plastic wrap, a thick napkin, cotton dish towel, and cardboard.  My hypothesis was that the foil or the cardboard would keep the water at a higher temperature for the longest time.  Boy was I wrong.  The plastic wrap and the cotton dish towel kept the water the hottest.
I think it would be fun to test heat transfer by using food items in different types of materials to see what kept the temperatures the highest or the lowest.  I think students would be interested in trying things like macaroni and cheese, pizza, hot dogs or even brownies (yum!).  I think that by using food items the results would be different than those of the water because foods are solid rather than liquid.  I just finished a lesson (in summer school) with my students about matter (solids, liquids, and gases) and this would be a perfect extension to that lesson by introducing temperature and heat transfer. It encourages inquiry based learning as well.     

Momentum Reflection

I love working with marbles!  The question that I choose for my guided inquiry study was: How do different surfaces affect the momentum of marbles?  My hypothesis was that the rougher  the surface, the slower the marble would go.  The surfaces that I decided to try were, a pillow, carpet, hardwood floor and grass.  I collected my materials: a pillow, a stopwatch, a marble, and a yardstick, then I went to work.  I had a lot of fun doing this investigation and I think my students will as well.  What I found out was that each time I flicked the marble it traveled at the same speed, what was affected by the surface type was the distance that it traveled.  The smoother the surface was, the further that the marble traveled.  The marble did not stop on the hardwood floor until it hit a wall.

Participating in this activity allowed me to see what students may experience as they conduct guided inquiry investigation of their own.  I enjoyed using materials and getting up and moving around while searching for my answers to the question.  I realized too that there are many variables to consider, that I hadn't before.  One challenge that I had was trying to shoot my marble with a consistent force in order to not skew the results.  Handling materials properly can be a challenge for students, so I would be sure to explain the expectations to students about the marbles.  I would allow them to play with the marbles as long as they are being responsible.

This experience would benefit students by allowing them the opportunity to build on their prior knowledge, explore new ideas and communicate with others.  They would be able to see that normal, everyday objects can be used to investigate important concepts such as forces.