University of West Alabama

5E Lesson Plan Template

Teacher: Jordan Morris

Date: July 15, 2019

Subject area/course/grade level: 8th Grade Physical Science

Materials:
 Promethean board for “engagement” videos
 Rubber bands
 Meter sticks
 Popsicle sticks
 Glue/tape
 Paper clips
 Pipe cleaners
 Chromebooks

Standards (State and ISTE Standards for Students):

ALCOS 14: Use models to construct an explanation of how a system of objects may contain varying types
and amounts of potential energy (e.g., observing the movement of a roller coaster cart at various inclines,
changing the tension in a rubber band, varying the number of batteries connected in a series, observing a
balloon with static electrical charge being brought closer to a classmate's hair).

ISTE 3: Knowledge Constructor Students critically curate a variety of resources using digital tools to
construct knowledge, produce creative artifacts and make meaningful learning experiences for themselves
and others. Students:
a) plan and employ effective research strategies to locate information and other resources for their
intellectual or creative pursuits.
b) evaluate the accuracy, perspective, credibility and relevance of information, media, data or other
resources.
c) curate information from digital resources using a variety of tools and methods to create collections of
artifacts that demonstrate meaningful connections or conclusions.
d) build knowledge by actively exploring real-world issues and problems, developing ideas and theories
and pursuing answers and solutions

Objectives:
1. Define elastic potential energy.
2. Differentiate between kinetic and elastic potential energy.
3. Construct explanation of the relationship between kinetic and elastic potential energy through lab
experiment.
4. Use constructed knowledge of the relationship between kinetic and elastic potential energy to build a
model and step-by-step procedure of a working rubber band launcher.
5. Students will use their model and procedure to create a brochure advertising and explaining their
product through Google docs.

Differentiation Strategies (How will the lesson address the various learning styles of the students and the
needs of those with special needs?):

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  All activities are designed with multiple learning styles in mind. All learning styles are utilized
throughout the unit.
 Collaborative lab groups will be chosen will different ability levels in mind.
 Based off results from the technology proficiency survey, students may be allowed to create a slide
presentation or a summary within Word as their final product rather than a brochure.

ENGAGEMENT:
Students of all ages are highly entertained by the different video challenges that go viral. Middle schoolers
are especially intrigued, some even try to complete the challenge. The two videos below will be shown to
the students.
https://youtu.be/WmJDpZyVpzs
https://youtu.be/NeQQsb7ZptM
Assessment: Before they watch the videos, I will ask the students to make predictions of what they think
will happen. We will discuss if their predictions were correct or not. I will have the students attempt to
explain why the objects exploded because of the rubber bands based on their prior experiences. Also, in
the first video, one of the guys is wearing sunglasses instead of safety goggles. At the end of the video, I
will ask the students if they noticed anything wrong with the way they performed the experiment to see if
they realize the mistake and remember lab safety protocol.

EXPLORATION:

Students will be grouped into lab groups to participate in the Rubber band Lab. In this lab, students will be
investigating the correlation between the distance the rubber band is stretched and the distance it travels.
The rubber band being stretched is the potential energy, and the rubber band in motion is the kinetic
energy. Students will test various lengths of stretched rubber bands, and then they will measure the
distance the rubber band travelled. They will collect their data by hand. Once all data is collected, they will
transfer their data to a Google Sheets. They will then use the functions in Google Sheets (similar to Excel)
to create a graphical display of their data.

ASSESSMENT: The graph and data will be turned into Google classroom for a lab grade.

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Assessment

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EXPLANATION:
1. The vocabulary and other information for the unit will be presented using Prezi. Students will use
prior knowledge from the lab mentioned above to confirm or refute their theories about elastic
potential and kinetic energy. Students will take notes as the teacher presents the information in the
prezi found at https://prezi.com/view/kSLMbWiuKDoukuwArzA0/ . Students will only cover slides 1-
18. The remaining slides will be covered in the next lesson. Other vocabulary words include:
a. Joules
b. Mass
c. Velocity
d. Elastic potential energy

Assessment: Google Forms Quiz -

ELABORATION:
Students will design, build, and test a rubber band launcher using their previous knowledge from the
rubber band lab. After completing the lab, students should have an idea that the farther you pull the rubber
band back the more potential energy you create and therefore the farther the rubber band will fly. Students
will then create a brochure, using Google Docs, to describe step by step how to recreate their launcher.
They must include their knowledge of potential and kinetic energy to back up why they think their design is
the best.
 Instructions for building and creating a brochure:

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Assessment: Rubric found below in the Evaluation section. I will also be walking around as students are
working to observe and ask questions about the progress of the project.
EVALUATION:
Checklist:
 Build and test a working rubber band launcher.
 Document step to create the launcher.
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  Create a brochure using Google Docs template advertising the launcher.
 Record steps of your building process with appropriate pictures inserted.
 Use vocabulary to explain how your rubber band launcher works.

References:
Bybee, R.W. et al. (1989). Science and technology education for the elementary years: Frameworks
for curriculum and instruction. Washington, D.C.: The National Center for Improving Instruction.
Bybee, R. W. (1997). Achieving Scientific Literacy: From Purposes to Practices. Oxford: Heinemann.
National Research Council. (1999). Inquiry and the national science education standards: A guide for
teaching and learning. Washington, D.C.: National Academy Press.
Polman, J.L. (2000). Designing project-based silence: Connecting learners through guided inquiry.
New York: Teachers College Press.

Lesson plan Content References:

Rubber Band Fling Lab. (n.d.). The Tech: Museum of innovation. Retrieved from
http://www.thetech.org/sites/default/files/pdfs/Science-Labs/Phys-Rubber_Band_Fling.pdf
Hydel, A. (2016, December 19). Retrieved July 12, 2019, from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NeQQsb7ZptM
REKT. (2018, May 09). Retrieved July 12, 2019, from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WmJDpZyVpzs

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