Grade Level

/Subject
Context
Description

Technology Lesson Plan

Explore Learning: Gizmos
Stephanie Dickerson
th
11 Grade Chemistry
The prior knowledge required for this lesson is a basic understanding of how
gases move through space and how they interact with surfaces. Properties of
gas was covered in the Physical Science course as well as during the Phases
of Matter Unit. The unit was very short since properties of solids liquids and
gases was very straight forward and a review of material they already
learned. However, in the PowerPoint there is a portion that focuses on
properties of gases before we begin the new material with the gas laws. This
allows students who may not remember the material covered at the beginning
of the year a chance to re learn the information. My students prior learning
experiences have shown that they have an affinity for Gizmo exercises when
we have used them in the past. The modules are simple to manipulate and
they present information in a very straight forward and assessable manner. By
using this as the introduction to a new unit, the students will be able to
connect the Laws to a concrete activity they completed. The guided notes are
being used as reinforcement for the comprehension of the Laws and guided
practice using the mathematical relationships.

Standards Met
SC.CHE.2.2
SC.CHE.2.2.a
SC.CHE.2.2.b
The kinetic-molecular theory can be used to explain the macroscopic
properties of gases (pressure, temperature and volume) through the motion
and interactions of its particles. When one of the three properties is kept
constant, the relationship between the other two properties can be quantified,
described and explained using the kinetic-molecular theory. Real-world
phenomena (e.g., why tire pressure increases in hot weather, why a hot air
balloon rises) can be explained using this theory. Problems also can be solved
involving the changes in temperature, pressure and volume of a gas. When
solving gas problems, the Kelvin temperature scale must be used since only
in this scale is the temperature directly proportional to the average kinetic
energy. The Kelvin temperature is based on a scale that has its minimum
temperature at absolute zero, a temperature at which all motion theoretically
stops. Since equal volumes of gases at the same temperature and pressure
contain an equal number of particles (Avogadros law), problems can be
solved for an unchanging gaseous system using the ideal gas law (PV = nRT)
where R is the ideal gas constant (e.g., represented in multiple formats, 8.31
Joules / (mole K). The specific names of the gas laws are not addressed in
this course. Deviations from ideal gaseous behavior are reserved for more
advanced study. Explore the relationships between the volume, temperature
and pressure in the laboratory or through computer simulations or virtual

Technology Lesson Plan

Explore Learning: Gizmos
Stephanie Dickerson
experiments.
Concept
Addressed

The big idea for this lesson is that students will be able to identify the
different relationships that exist between volume, pressure and temperature
when a gas is being manipulated. The justification for this lesson is to
introduce students to the Gas Laws by having them manipulate a web-based
program that will show them how the variables are related. From this
program the students will be able to determine the relationships that are
Charles, Boyles and Gay-Lussacs Laws. This justification is related to the
overarching concept because per the chemistry content standards for Gas
Laws.

Objectives

The students will be able to:

Academic
Language

Learning
Strategies

Manipulate a computer based simulation to determine the

relationships between temperature, pressure and volume
Define the relationship between pressure and volume in regards to
Boyles Law
Define the relationship between temperature and volume in regards
to Charles Law
Define the relationship between temperature and pressure in regards
to Gay-Lussacs Law
Solve gas law problems using Charles Law, Boyles Law and GayLussacs Law
Solve gas law problems using the combined gas law
The essential vocabulary chosen for this lesson is:
Boyles Law- a gas law, stating that the pressure and volume of a gas
have an inverse relationship, when temperature is held constant. If
volume increases, then pressure decreases and vice versa, when
temperature is held constant.
Charles Law- a gas law which describes how gases tend to expand
when heated. When the pressure on a sample of a dry gas is held
constant, the Kelvin temperature and the volume will be directly
related.
Gay-Lussacs Law- a gas law, stating that the temperature and
pressure of a gas have a direct relationship, when volume is held
constant. If pressure increases then temperature increases and vice
versa when volume is held constant.
Pressure- force per unit area. SI unit is the pascal (Pa).
Volume- Measures the size of an object using length measurements
in three dimensions
Temperature- A measure of the intensity of heat
Combined Gas Law- a gas law that combines Charles's law, Boyle's
law, and Gay-Lussac's law.
Small Group Instruction- this strategy will be used for the first part of
this lesson. The students will work on their Gizmo within their tables or
pairs of two. While the students are working, I will travel from table to
table to make sure the students are not having any trouble operating the

Materials
Needed
Safety Needs
and Instruction

Technology Lesson Plan

Explore Learning: Gizmos
Stephanie Dickerson
Gizmo or with any of the concepts being covered during the activity.
Whole Group Instruction- this will be used to walk through the Gizmo
Warm-Up as a class to show the students how to use the different
components of the computer simulation before they begin to explore the
3 Gas Laws being used in this activity.
Direct Instruction- the students will have guided notes after they have
completed the Gizmo to introduce them to the topics that will be covered
during the Gas Laws Unit. This strategy will be used to reinforce the new
material and to make sure that the students understand the results they
observed. The students will also have guided practice with solving gas
problems using the laws.
Technology Integration- Gizmos
1. 25 Copies of Student Exploration Sheet
2. 25 Copies of Gas Law Guided Notes
3. Gas Laws PowerPoint
4. 1 Laptop per Student
There are no safety needs for this lesson.
Pre-class Prep: Make sure all copies have been made and that you have
instructed students to bring their laptops to class the day before the activity.
Engagement/Introduction/Hook (10 minutes): Whole Class Activity
We will complete the Warm-Up portion of the gizmo as a class. This time
will be used to explain to the students how to manipulate the different
components of the Gizmo (temperature, mass, table, bar chart, and graph).

Instructional
Outline

Transition 1 (5 minutes): Instruct students to complete the remainder of the

gizmo and to direct questions to their group members or to you if they get
stuck on a question or if there is a problem with the website.
Segment 1 (45 minutes): Small Group Instruction
The students will complete the Gizmo Student Exploration Sheet while they
use their computers to complete the simulations for each Law. During this
process, the students will draw conclusions about the observations they are
making when one variable is held constant while another is changed. They
will record the results in the data tables throughout the worksheet and draw
representations of what their graphs look like to show different relationships.
Transition 2 (5 minutes): While the students are closing their computers
down, distribute the guided notes handout to the students.
Segment 2 (35 minutes): Teacher Instruction for Whole Class
The duration of the class will be spent going over the Gas Laws PowerPoints
that will help students better understand the information they have been
taught as well as give them the mathematical relationships associated with
Boyles, Charles, and Gay-Lussacs Laws. During the PowerPoint, there will
be three short videos that show experiments conducted to demonstrate each
of the three laws. The PowerPoint will also introduce the Combined Gas Law.
The students will complete practice problems using each of the Gas Laws

Technology Lesson Plan

Explore Learning: Gizmos
Stephanie Dickerson
presented in the PowerPoint.
Videos
Boyles Law: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=27yqJ9vJ5kQ
Charles Law: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NplVuTrr59U
Gay- Lussacs Law: https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=N6DZRiSIK3s
Closure (3 minutes): Assign the Gas Laws Practice worksheet for
homework due the next class period. Explain to students that their homework
also consists
Modifications

Assessments of
Learning

This lesson has been modified to accommodate my written processing need

students with picture representations of the material using the web-based
simulation as well as a handout to guide them through the information they
are learning, highlight the key points. The guided notes are also serving as a
means to help student decipher a PowerPoint into its main points and it takes
the pressure off the students to have to write everything down while they are
also trying to process the information
Formative Assessment: As students are completing the sample problem after
each Law, I will walk through an initial their work for completion and
accuracy to see each student was able to complete the problems. This asses
Learning Objective five.
Summative Assessments: The students will receive a formal grade for the
accuracy of the answers on the Gizmo which asses Learning Objectives one,
two, three and four. The homework will also receive a grade to show mastery
of Learning Objective six.

Assessment of
Teaching

I felt the technology was received very well. The students have experience
using Gizmos prior for other content being taught in this class. They have
used the Gizmo for Freezing Point Depression, Balancing Chemical
Equations, and Calorimetry. The students seem to enjoy the Gizmo but there
is always some push back when it comes to technology in the classroom. I
think this may be due to the quality of the laptops the students have been
given. Many of them are slow or have short battery life causing them to die
frequently.
One student is continuously excited when we use Gizmos in the classroom.
She is a student who has trouble visualizing concepts that are abstract. Gases
is one of those concepts. We dont physically see the molecules moving
around in space or even think about gases being all around us. The gizmo
gave this student the ability to see the molecules moving and to see how
pressure temperature and volume affect their movement. A different student
on the other hand consistently complains about the use of Gizmos in the
classroom. He is a higher achieving student and doesnt really see the point in
activities like gizmo. He is perfectly fine with listening to a lecture and he is
able to understand the material with very little additional support. The gizmo
is a bit long and some of the questions are in fact redundant so for a student
like him that doesnt need the redundancy or the visual, Gizmos are not
something he enjoys.

Technology Lesson Plan

Explore Learning: Gizmos
Stephanie Dickerson
I think this activity was very effective in helping the students achieve the
learning objectives. The objectives were focused on having students discover
the relationships between pressure, volume and temperature when it comes to
gases. The Gizmo allowed the students to manipulate the parameters and to
observe the changes seen each time. The gizmo prompted the students to
think about the observations they were seeing and to answer several questions
about what those relationships meant. The two student work samples show an
understanding of the three gas laws and introduces them to the combined gas
law by asking them how could they relate all three variables together instead
of just two like each of the laws did. The Gizmo sufficiently questioned the
students and make them think about what they were seeing in order to reach
the learning objectives.
If I were to use this activity again in the future, I would make modifications
for the different levels of students I have in the classroom. I think more
students would have enjoyed the activity if it didnt feel so long and tedious
after a certain point. For the students who actually need to walk through all
the steps, the entire Gizmo would be given, but for those students who do not
need as much support to understand, certain questions could be cut out. This
way the high achieving students will still find value in the activity.

Technology Information Sheet

Explore Learning: Gizmos
Stephanie Dickerson