Activity 4.2 - Observing Ethanol Burning (30 min)

Target Student Performance

Students record data about changes in mass and BTB when ethanol burns and reach consensus about patterns in their data.

Resources You Provide

  • BTB, blue (less than 1 cup per group)
  • (optional) BTB, yellow (less than 1 cup per group)
  • Digital balance (1 per group of four students)
  • Ethanol, 95% (10-15 ml per group)
  • Large plastic container with aluminum foil taped inside to protect the bottom from the ethanol flame (1 per group of four students)
  • Lighter (1 per group of four students)
  • Petri dish, glass (1 per group of four students)
  • Petri dish, plastic (1 per group of four students)
  • Safety glasses (1 per student)
  • (Optional) Molecular modeling kits
  • (From previous activity) 4.1 Predictions and Planning Tool for Ethanol Burning with student answers

NOTE: Some classrooms have access to CO2 probes. We designed this investigation with BTB because it is less expensive than probes, but if you have them available, they are more sensitive than BTB and show changes more quickly.

Resources Provided

Recurring Resources

Setup

Prepare the BTB, Petri dishes, ethanol, lighter, digital balances, plastic containers, aluminum foil, and safety glasses for students to retrieve for their groups. If you plan to use the poster to record student data, print one copy of the poster before class and post it on the wall. Print one copy of 4.2 Observing Ethanol Burning Worksheet for each pair of students. Prepare a computer with an overhead projector to display the PPT and video. You may want to print copies of the BTB Information and Instructions Handout for each group, or print a few color copies of the BTB Color Handout for students.

Directions

1. Use the instructional model to show students where they are in the course of the unit.

Show slide 2 of the 4.2 Observing Ethanol Burning PPT.

Assessment

Use the class discussion to interpret how successful your students are at identifying patterns in the class data. Use the 4.2 Grading the Observing Ethanol Burning Worksheet to determine if your students had any trouble with data collection.

During this Activity, note students' success in measuring changes in mass and BTB. Also note students' ability to reach a consensus about patterns in data and how they interpret results.

Differentiation
Modifications
  • Have students develop the experimental design on their own using the tools provided. For example, students may choose to set up a control treatment as a chamber with BTB and no ethanol.
  • If you have a hygrometer, consider measuring water content in the air after the ethanol burns.

Tips

Addressing problems at this point as students try to find patterns in data will support their learning in future investigations. This is the first investigation, so it is likely to expose challenges that may come up again.

Extending the Learning

Students can explore conditions under which the ethanol burns for longer or shorter periods, and the relationship between how long the ethanol burns and how much mass it loses.