Unit Overview

Students solve two mysteries on thermal energy that demonstrate that heat is a form of energy that moves from areas of high heat to low heat. Students are hired by the Better Business Bureau to put their knowledge of heat transfer to the test by investigating two heat-related claims. The unit culminates in an engineering challenge in which students are tasked with making a low-cost, highly effective cooler that can compete with the leading cooler on the market.

• Science TEKS
• Inquiry Scale
  • Each lesson in the unit has an Inquiry Scale that provides directions on how to implement the lesson at the level that works best for you and your students.
  • “Level 1” is the most teacher-driven, and recommended for students in 4th-5th grades. “Level 4” is the most student-driven, and recommended for students in 7th-8th grades.
  • For differentiation within the same grade or class, use different inquiry levels for different groups of students who may require additional support or an extra challenge.
• Common Misconceptions
  • Learners’ first inclination is the opposite of reality: They will think that when they open the fridge, cold air escapes or that when their hands get cold, it is cold moving towards their hands. This is best helped with a thorough explanation of particle motion, building off the particle motion unit.
  • Learners may need some scaffolding to help them understand why hot water rises and cold air sinks in the “Make” lab. Ask them to visualize the molecules and consider the density of the molecules at different temperatures.
• Vocabulary
  • • Particle
    • Vibrate
    • Hot
    • Cold
    • Dense
    • Conductor
    • Insulator
• Content Expert
  • Hans C. von Baeyer
    Chancellor Professor of Physics, Emeritus College of William and Mary
• Leveled Reading

  * To give our users the most comprehensive science resource, Mosa Mack is piloting a partnership with RocketLit, a provider of leveled science articles.

  • Light That Heats

    This article talks about how light is different than most kinds of energy. Light can move through space as radiation and we can even feel one part of it as infrared heat!

  
  RocketLit serves NGSS aligned reading at 7 reading levels.
  Don't show me this message againGo to RocketLit
  • Feel the Burn

    This article gives an introduction to fuel and the heat that is released when it's consumed. We can feel this heat energy leaving the things that once contained them when we heat up while exercising or set wood on fire.

  
  RocketLit serves NGSS aligned reading at 7 reading levels.
  Don't show me this message againGo to RocketLit
  • Heat in Motion

    In this article students read about how convection moves matter by changing the density of a fluid.

  
  RocketLit serves NGSS aligned reading at 7 reading levels.
  Don't show me this message againGo to RocketLit
  • Heat That Shakes

    In this article students will read about the way heat travels through a conductor. They learn about the collisions that happen between molecules and how these spread in a conductor and how they are stopped more quickly in an insulator.

  
  RocketLit serves NGSS aligned reading at 7 reading levels.
  Don't show me this message againGo to RocketLit
  • How Hot?

    In this article students will read about temperature and the ways that it can be measured. The article explains the concept of average kinetic energy and the differences between alcohol and mercury thermometers.

  
  RocketLit serves NGSS aligned reading at 7 reading levels.
  Don't show me this message againGo to RocketLit