Primary Type: Lesson Plan
Status: Published
This is a resource from CPALMS (www.cpalms.org) where all educators go for bright ideas!
Resource ID#: 75645
Land Versus Water Specific Heat Activity
This activity has been designed as an inquiry lab to introduce weather and weather patterns. The students will explore the concept of weather
through one of the factors that causes the weather that surrounds us, wind production.
Subject(s): Science
Grade Level(s): 9, 10, 11, 12
Intended Audience: Educators
Suggested Technology: Document Camera,
Overhead Projector, Microsoft Office
Instructional Time: 1 Hour(s) 45 Minute(s)
Resource supports reading in content area: Yes
Freely Available: Yes
Keywords: temperature, wind, convection, convection currents, specific heat, heat energy
Resource Collection: FCR-STEMLearn Earth Systems
ATTACHMENTS
Land versus Water Specific Heat Lab.docx
Land versus Water Lab Questions Answers.docx
Land versus Water Lab Questions Answers.pdf
LESSON CONTENT
Lesson Plan Template: Learning Cycle (5E Model)
Learning Objectives: What will students know and be able to do as a result of this lesson?
Students will:
demonstrate how unequal heating of water and land is a factor in breeze and wind production.
diagram heating and cooling patterns onto map of Florida's coastline.
be able to cite evidence from the text to explain the concept.
be able to construct meaning of key terms from the reading passage.
Prior Knowledge: What prior knowledge should students have for this lesson?
SC.6.E.7.1 Differentiate among radiation, conduction, and convection, the three mechanisms by which heat is transferred through Earth's system.
Students should know that solar energy (energy from the sun, radiant energy) is the cause of the heating of the land and the water.
Students should understand the ways in which energy move in the natural world, by radiation, conduction, and convection.
Students should understand that it is the interactions of radiation, conduction and convection that transfer energy from place to place.
Students should know how to use a timer or stopwatch. You might wish to practice this skill before they begin the lab.
Students should know how to read a thermometer. You might wish to practice this skill before they begin the lab.
Students should know how to use a balance. You might wish to practice this skill before they begin the lab.
Students should know how to graph a scatter plot (line graph). You may teach this skill after they have collected all of their data.
Guiding Questions: What are the guiding questions for this lesson?
How can we explain weather?
What causes weather patterns?
page 1 of 4 Engage: What object, event, or questions will the teacher use to trigger the students' curiosity and engage them in the concepts?
At the beginning of the activity, students will receive a copy of the Land versus Water Specific Heat Activity handout. The teacher will introduce the following scenario:
While at the beach on a hot summer day, have you ever observed the temperature difference between the dry sand and the body of water? You nearly burn the
bottom of your feet trying to get to the water! Why is there such a huge temperature difference between land and water?
Specific heat is defined as the heat needed to raise the temperature of one gram of a substance by one degree Celsius.
How does this difference between the temperatures cause breeze or wind patterns?
Convection currents occur because a hot fluid (i.e. water, air, lava) rises and a cooler fluid rushes in to take its place.
Are the two even related?
This is what we are going to find out today.
The class will discuss the questions, then move to the explore portion of the lesson.
Explore: What will the students do to explore the concepts and skills being developed through the lesson?
The students will then look at the Concepts section. In heterogeneous learning pairs, the students will discuss the definitions of the vocabulary words:
temperature
wind
convection currents
heat energy
specific heat
The definitions for temperature and wind should be known or familiar to the students. The definitions for convection currents and specific heat are given in the
Background section of the lab sheet. A technical definition for temperature is also given. The students might have to infer the meaning of heat energy.
The teacher should determine if the lamps will all be at the same height (i.e. 30 cm) or if varying heights should be allowed so that comparisons can be made at the
end of the lesson.
Safety Precautions:
Handle the heat lamp with care; it may get very hot and may cause burns.
Do not leave the lamp unattended.
Wear safety goggles and heat-resistant gloves.
Wash hands thoroughly with soap and water before leaving the laboratory.
Follow all normal laboratory safety guidelines.
General Recommendations:
The students will obtain lab materials that have been prepared ahead of time, from the teacher.
The students will set up the lab according to the diagram. The students should be placed in teams of 3 for this lab.
One student should use the timer or stopwatch and record the data in the tables.
The other two students should take measurements every 2 minutes of the temperature of the substance that they are measuring.
The students will follow the directions in the Procedure section of the lab.
The teacher will walk around the room, answering questions that the students may have and generally supervising setup and conduction of the lab.
The students will fill out the data tables while they are conducting the lab.
When the lab is finished, the students should clean their work station and reset the lab materials. The sand can be poured back into the container and the water
can be poured into the sink.
Explain: What will the students and teacher do so students have opportunities to clarify their ideas, reach a conclusion or
generalization, and communicate what they know to others?
When the tables are cleaned, the students should create their graphs. The teacher might wish to take this time to review graphing skills to the students.
The students will then answer the Lab Questions and draw the wind diagrams onto the Florida maps using red and blue markers, pens, or pencils.
Explain to students that Lake Okeechobee would have a similar but much smaller effect on the weather as the differences from land to sea.
Elaborate: What will the students do to apply their conceptual understanding and skills to solve a problem, make a decision,
perform a task, or make sense of new knowledge?
The students and teacher will discuss the Lab Questions and determine the level of understanding that the students have.
Question 8 will be used to begin a class discussion on whether this concept explains all of the weather patterns that we experience in Florida.
After the students have completed the Lab Questions and the drawings, ask the Guiding Questions again, to determine understanding.
How can we explain weather?
Weather is the conditions in the atmosphere-temperature and moisture-on any given day or at any given time in a given place.
What causes weather patterns?
One major cause of weather patterns is the unequal way that land and water heat up and cool off.
Summative Assessment
The lab questions and the maps of Florida's wind patterns will help determine whether students have reached learning targets.
The discussion of question 8 will help determine whether the students have reached learning targets.
Formative Assessment
During the Explore section: The teacher will gather information about student understanding by observing student interactions while the lab is being conducted.
During the Explore and Explain sections: Data tables and graphs will be used to determine student understanding.
During the Explain section: Questions targeting the content will be used to assess understanding after the lab has been completed.
During the Explain section: The students will diagram Florida's wind patterns.
During the Elaborate section: The class as a whole will discuss the Lab Questions and the diagrams.
Feedback to Students
The students will recieve feedback during the lab as the teacher walks around observing their progress.
The teacher will provide instruction/feedback during the graphing portion of the lab.
The lab questions are designed to monitor misconceptions and provide additional instruction, if needed.
Possible misconceptions that students might have:
page 2 of 4 Students might not understand how to set up the equipment on their own.
Students might not understand that the mass of the Petri dish containing water and the mass of the Petri dish containing sand must be exactly the same.
Students might not understand that the lamp must shine equally on the water and on the sand.
Students might think that the principles in this lab apply to all water or land. There are many factors that could cause differences in different bodies of water
and different land masses.
ACCOMMODATIONS & RECOMMENDATIONS
Accommodations:
Students will be placed into heterogeneous teams of three.
ELL students who are still in the acquisition stage of language for English will be paired or teamed with a student(s) who will be able to communicate in the native
language for translation. If this option is not available, the student may use an electronic translator.
Extensions:
Students who need extension can work with other materials, such as potting soil, soil with plants, salt water, etc. and allowed to design an experiment testing other
aspects of the concept.
Students who need extension will be given the opportunity to design their graph on a spreadsheet program, such as Excel.
Suggested Technology: Document Camera, Overhead Projector, Microsoft Office
Special Materials Needed:
Materials per group:
Balance (0.1 g precision)
Sand
Lamp, infrared with reflector
Support stand and clamp
Construction paper (black)
Thermometers
2 Petri dishes
2 metric rulers
Timer or stopwatch
Water, deionized at room temperature
Materials per student:
Copy of Land Versus Water Specific Heat Lab
Red and blue colored pencils, markers, or pens
Further Recommendations:
Before the students enter the room have the lab trays set up.
On each tray, the teacher should place black construction paper, 2 thermometers, 2 Petri dishes, metric ruler, timer or stopwatch.
At each lab station, the teacher should set up the lamp and ring stand or free standing desk lamp.
At various stations around the classroom, set up balances for students to make their measurements.
At one station, set up a pour station for the deionized water.
At one station set up a way to scoop sand into Petri dishes.
Additional Information/Instructions
By Author/Submitter
This activity does not address all causes of weather, but can be used as an introduction to the weather unit.
SOURCE AND ACCESS INFORMATION
Contributed by: Donna Ryman
Name of Author/Source: Donna Ryman
District/Organization of Contributor(s): Marion
Is this Resource freely Available? Yes
Access Privileges: Public
License: CPALMS License - no distribution - non commercial
Related Standards
Name
LAFS.910.RST.1.1:
LAFS.910.RST.2.4:
Description
Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of science and technical texts, attending to the precise details of
explanations or descriptions.
Determine the meaning of symbols, key terms, and other domain-specific words and phrases as they are used in a
specific scientific or technical context relevant to grades 9–10 texts and topics.
page 3 of 4 Summarize the conditions that contribute to the climate of a geographic area, including the relationships to lakes and
oceans.
SC.912.E.7.4:
Remarks/Examples:
Describe how latitude, altitude, topography, prevailing winds, proximity to large bodies of water, vegetation and
ocean currents determine the climate of a geographic area.
page 4 of 4