Physics: Electromagnets

Students built electromagnets, then started exploring to try and describe the shape and direction of the magnetic field and to find ways to affect the magnetic field. A lot of groups were quick to come up with tests to see if the electromagnets behave like bar magnets.

Chemistry: Neutralization

Students practiced writing equations for neutralization reactions and predicting the products. The biggest challenge was how many different ideas, including formula writing and balancing equations, they had to combine. My students got very good at both of those skills, but we didn’t use them much the last two weeks, and some students struggled to rediscover their previous fluency. I need to do a better job of spiraling some of these key concepts so that students don’t have the opportunity to get rusty.