The first large unit we were instructed on was completely based on Density; the random spreading out of molecules to evenly fill a container. To start off the unit, an unknown aerosol was sprayed in one direction in the middle of the room. The direct relation we noticed was that the closer you were sitting to the initial amount of spray in a windless room, the sooner you would smell the molecules of the spray (which we later found to be Febreeze). This showed the difference in temperature of the air and spray molecules that were constant in motion. The lower the temperature, the lower the rate of diffusion, and vice versa. Another experiment was shown to us consecutively that displayed the rate of diffusion in both hot and cold water. From what my group and I saw, the food colored water diffused much quicker into the beaker, for the molecules were moving many times faster than the molecules in the cold water. A computer simulation was completed the next day explaining the concept with particle diagrams and interactive methods of seeing how particles move, as you can see below.
The next part of the unit was set out to show myself and my fellow classmates the Microscopic properties of the States of Matter. Now I came into this unit with the strong belief that I knew a good amount of facts on the states of matter, but it turns out, the only thing that I really didn't know was the microscopic explanation of the solid, liquid, and gas, but the other info just enforced my previous knowledge of the subject. For a solid, it has a definite volume, definite shape, and can not be compressed. The particles are held in a rigid latticework, and the particles are only merely vibrating. A liquid is different, having definite volume, but it changes shape depending on it's container. It's particles can move along and past each other but they have to stay in contact with one another. A gas is farther out, filling the container for volume and taking the shape of the container for shape. The particles freely move randomly in all directions.
*Note- The class also watched two "Eureka" videos that provided another method of sinking in the basic principles of particle motion.
All in all, the start of unit 2 has been very rewarding, thought-provoking, and enjoyable, especially when we got to play with dry ice bubbles and were able to change the color of a solution by human voice. :)
I would have to rate my understanding out of the few weeks this unit has been taking place to be a 5 out of 5, everything I learned has soaked in and will not by drying out anytime soon. But even though I feel very confident in recognizing my increase in skill of the topic, there will always be room for improvement on the calculations necessary to come up with accurate responses, for I feel like I don't take as much time on them as I should and end up making simple mistakes. I will have to keep that in mind next time a problem arises... As long as the fun learning experiences don't stop, I feel that this class is just going to keep getting better and better as the year goes, just as it is currently. So ill give you an A for teaching, Mr. G...
