Melt, melt, as fast as you can!

Our third-graders had tons of fun and exercised their creativity and resourcefulness during our second lesson The Melting Race!  After an introductory lesson on solids, liquids, and changes in matter, the students devised and implemented methods of melting ice cubes in the fastest time possible.  Our lesson introduction asked the students what they did and what they learned in the previous lesson.  I was glad that so many students remembered exactly what we did!  Then my partner Kathy sparked the student's interest by introducing The Melting Race and explaining the experiment.  There were not a lot of materials for this lesson, but the materials management was still very important!  Since our main material was ice cubes, my genius partner Kathy brought a cooler to prevent any premature melting while we were introducing the lesson.  Another important material was the plastic bags.  Even though we didn't anticipate needing extra bags, it was a good thing we brought them when a few groups needed a replacement.  We also made good use of paper towels to clean up any drips from the melting ice.  

We were impressed with the creative methods that the students thought of (using hot water, rubbing hands together, breathing on the bag, applying pressure)!  It was definitely beneficial to give them the freedom to explore their own ideas and use the resources in the classroom, but things got a little slippery when one group thought of lifting the desk leg and putting the ice cube under it to crush it and another group tried a dropkick method!  Luckily, Kathy and I were attentive and quickly addressed the situations by explaining that the method must be safe and cannot damage the bag.  The students are very respectful, and it was not difficult to redirect their efforts to a more appropriate method.  However, we could see how easily the situation could've escalated if we had not reacted quickly.  I am so grateful to be working with my partner, Kathy, who handled the classroom management like a pro!  Next time, we will anticipate possible desk lifts and stomping techniques and be able to prevent them, but I am relieved to say that these things did not interfere with the success of our lesson! 

Kathy also brought a great changes word search for the finished groups to work on while other students were still melting.  The kids enjoyed it, and this small detail made a big difference in the flow and management of the lesson.  Thanks Kathy!  During the experiment it took all of our eyes, ears, and attention to monitor everything that was going on, but it was well worth it when the students shared the results of the experiment with the class.  They all were excited to tell their melting time and method, and after hearing other methods, they realized the commonality that the methods that used heat in some way had the fastest melting times. The students were engaged in the lesson, enjoying themselves, and were able to take away the important point that heat is a factor that changes a solid (ice) into liquid (water)!  This directly connects to the Massachusetts Frameworks for science.  I am really enjoying teaching science and am looking forward to the next lesson!!