Our Year 7 students have been doing some exciting experimenting with elements in their Science lessons. In addition to testing how metals react when heated, the students have acquired some important new Middle School Science skills.
In order to carry out their experiments with safety and accuracy, the students first needed to learn how to use a Bunsen burner and demonstrate their ability to use one safely. After receiving their Bunsen burner licences, the students then worked on how to identify different elemental metals according to their properties. Although many metals look the same, their properties are very different. It was, therefore, essential that the students were able to identify the correct element they needed for their experiments. Finally the students needed to ensure they observed the reactions accurately, and recorded their observations correctly.
With new skills and knowledge under their belts, the students went forth to discover the exciting world of elemental metals. Magnesium wowed them with its bright glow as it was heated; iron filings created firework-like sparks; copper burned with a green glow and aluminum melted into liquid!
Once they’d discovered how differently the metals all behaved under identical conditions, it was time to take a closer look at the atomic structure of different elements. This helped the students to understand how different the building blocks of each element are. Creating models of the atoms of various elements really helped the students to recognise and understand how each element is fundamentally different.
We have really enjoyed our hands-on Chemistry learning in Year 7 and we’re looking forward to what’s next!
