Teachers'
CornerTeachers'
CornerLesson 1: History of the Periodic
Table
On this introductory day, students shall access the home page
of the Periodic ADventure website at http://web.buddyproject.org/web017/web017/
and then proceed to the "History of the Periodic Table"
page at http://web.buddyproject.org/web017/web017/history.html.
Students should read the biographical information on Dmitri Mendeleev
and his pioneering efforts to create the first periodic table
of the elements. Students may then follow the link to view Mendeleev's
first periodic table found at http://chemlab.pc.maricopa.edu/periodic/foldedtable.html.
Students should then be directed to follow the link to the Mendeleev
Creative Writing Assignment, the second lesson in this sequence.
Directions for the assignment may be found at http://web.buddyproject.org/web017/web017/menwrite.html.
Lesson 2: Mendeleev Autobiography
Writing Assignment
The directions for this assignment can be found on the following
page:
http://web.buddyproject.org/web017/web017/menwrite.html.
In short, students must research the life of Dmitri Mendeleev,
including what they read on Day 1 of the unit, together with outside
internet, print, or CD-ROM resources. Internet links are given
to valuable resource sites for the assignment. Using the information
they have gathered, students are to type a one to two page, double-spaced
autobiography of Dmitri Mendeleev. Since the assignment is an
autobiography, the writing should be in the first person point
of view, with that student pretending he or she is Mendeleev.
Students should be given two to three days depending on speed
of progress to complete the assignment. Students should list sources
in a Works Cited format, which can be found at http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Acropolis/1623/workscited.html.
The entire class will collaborate to develop a rubric which will
be used to score this 30 point assignment. Their final score will
be an average of the teacher's assessment and a peer assessment
using the same rubrics.
Lesson 3: Inside the Atom
Students should link to the "Inside the Atom" page found
at
http://web.buddyproject.org/web017/web017/ae.html.
This page contains information about the subatomic particles (protons,
neutrons, and electrons) that are found inside the atom. The page
instructs them in the process of how to find the number of protons,
neutrons, and electrons when given the atomic number and mass
number (both of which are defined in the page). Students also
learn how to find atomic number and mass number when given the
number of protons, neutrons, and electrons. Finally, students
should link to the quiz found at http://www.quia.com/t/111124.html.
The quiz tests the students' ability to find atomic number, mass
number, electron number, proton number, and neutron number when
given sufficient information. This page may be used to supplement
traditional classroom instruction on subatomic particles and the
calculations to find the numbers of subatomic particles in a given
atom. It is suggested that quiz scores be collected to assess
student progress.
Lesson 4: Organization of the Periodic
Table
Using the "Organization of the Periodic Table" page
at http://web.buddyproject.org/web017/web017/pertab.html,
students will discover that the periodic table is organized into
vertical columns called groups or families, and rows called periods.
They will discover trends that occur in both families and periods.
Students will also discover the pieces of information contained
in each box of the periodic table. Students may then follow links
to several web pages dedicated to helping students memorize the
names and symbols of some common elements. These web pages make
an excellent supplement to traditional classroom memorization
of common element names and symbols. In-class quizzes may be conducted
to test student memorization of these common elements. I would
anticipate that students may be able to review this web page more
than one day as a review or supplement to more traditional classroom
instruction.
Lesson 5: Metals, Nonmetals, and Metalloids
Students may access the metals, nonmetals, and metalloids page
found at http://web.buddyproject.org/web017/web017/metals.html
to discover the properties of these three categories of elements.
This page may be used as a substitute for or a supplement to more
traditional classroom note-taking on the topic. This lesson is
an information presentation session and requires no synthesis
of information, but serves as a valuable resource to supplement
the student's learning and preparation for the end of unit exam.
Lesson 6: Element ADventure WebQuest
Student pairs will select an element to research using the "Element
ADventure" page found at http://web.buddyproject.org/web017/web017/quest.html
and its subsequent links to the project requirements and online
resources. Each student pair must use their research data to develop
a commercial for that element. The element will be presented before
the class, and both students and teacher will assess the performances
using a class-developed rubric. The more particular details and
requirements of this project may be found on the website on the
"Element ADventure WebQuest" web page at http://web.buddyproject.org/web017/web017/quest.html.
Lesson 7: (Optional)
End of unit objective and subjective test covering the topics
contained in the unit. (See the "Assessment" section
of the lesson plan.)
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Last updated on 4/18/00 Thank you for visiting!
If you have any questions or comments, please e-mail D. Gibson, Grade 8 Science Teacher at dld1999@excite.com